Attached at the hip: Stay connected with your members through mobile marketing

Everyone is attached to their smartphone these days. They go everywhere we go - so it makes sense to reach people in the one place they’re guaranteed to see it. 

Mobile marketing is a multi-channel, digital marketing strategy aimed at reaching a target audience on their smartphone, tables and/or other mobile devices via websites, email, SMS, MMS, social media and apps.

As people shift their attention towards smaller screens, marketers have come up with ways to target people on the move. Now, personalised mobile marketing is a really important piece of the jigsaw when it comes to any marketing plan - short term or long term, and it’s one you can use to engage new members, keep current ones enthusiastic and win back members who’ve decided to leave your organisation.

As you can see, there’s a lot going on here, but never fear! This blog post will offer some simple solutions and make sure you can offer the right content for the smaller screen.

Mobile marketing means multi-channel, small screen

We’ve said it a little bit at the top - mobile marketing is a multi-channel digital marketing strategy that aims to hit your audience on their phones and other mobile devices across the full spectrum of channels. 

Mobile marketing takes your whole marketing strategy, email, pay-per-click, content marketing, social media marketing or search engine optimisation, and targets your potential members on their mobile platforms.

Mobile marketing is very important

It’s important because it can drive brand value and increase demand as you connect with more potential members in real-time. Membership organisations should jump on this as mobile usage is rising and that trend looks set to continue. 

According to stats from the EU, in 2019, 92 % of young people used mobile phones to access the internet away from home or work, compared with 52 % who used a portable computer in this way. Additionally, in 2019 almost three quarters (73 %) of the EU-27 adult population used a mobile device such as a mobile phone or portable computer (including laptops and tablets) to connect to the internet when away from home or work.

According to these worldwide statistics, in 2020, there were 3.5 billion smartphone users around the world and that number is expected to increase to 3.8 billion by the end of 2021. It is also stated that 62% of those smartphone users have made a purchase on their devices. All in all, since so many people have access to devices on the move, it is important to be visible in the best way on those tiny screens. Don’t let the opportunities to upsell go to waste. 
 

Optimise for mobile marketing

There are a few things you can do to get started with mobile marketing. The first thing that needs to happen is you need to fully optimise your website for mobile. A mobile-friendly website automatically fits your content to whatever screen a user is holding and loads quickly. Additionally, this creates a good user experience and helps to keep your members engaged with your web content.

Within the realm of mobile-friendly websites sit other areas, such as landing pages and emails - which work hand-in-hand. Both of these need to be optimised for the smaller screen if you’re planning on doing some mobile marketing. The first step would be to take stock of the current state of your web offering, and then consider looking into an online marketing platform that can help you reach your goals.

We’ve covered why you need to fit into your member’s pockets - that’s through their phone, not their wallet. Here’s a more specific how-to. 

Use mobile messaging to stay connected to your members

SMS messages are a great way to provide direct communications to your members, and at 160 characters, ensures you can get your messages across concisely and directly. Remember to include a strong call-to-action to direct your members exactly where you want them to go.

For example, if you’re a union and you want to reach out to your members to remind them to vote on an important matter, you can send them an SMS reminding them about an upcoming deadline with a clear CTA to your mobile-optimised landing page.

Furthermore, you could send out quick SMS blasts reminding people that their memberships are about to expire and could alert them to special member-only events or benefits that are coming up.

But don’t just stop there - additional benefits to mobile messaging can be found in other areas, too.

Integrate campaigns

SMS campaigns can work side-by-side with your email provider and help to strengthen your bond with your members. Integrate SMS messages into your marketing automation flow and you’ll be on to a winner!

Report in real-time

Personalised mobile marketing is really useful because it can gather real-time data from your member’s mobile devices, which you’ll be able to use and analyse.

From that, you can gather which Profiles received your SMS, how many unique clicks it had and how many members unsubscribed from your SMS marketing. This is a real win-win as it allows organisations to stay in touch with their members while using the data they receive to make informed decisions about the next campaign.

Manage consent with ease

None of this works without strong consent management. Providing a clear unsubscribe button at the bottom of your SMS gives members a way to opt out of your comms, but it also gives you better consent management practice.

Cost-effective

SMS marketing is incredibly cost-effective. It’s quick, inexpensive and has a highly impressive open rate of 98%. This makes SMS one of the most economical marketing techniques available - once you know that, why wouldn’t you consider making it part of your overall strategy?

Create fantastic personalised mobile messaging

One of the more direct and personal ways to get in touch with your members using digital marketing. You can use data tags and segmentation to create relevant and personal customer messages that hit home.

We know that personalisation is incredibly important to all marketing efforts, especially when your customers are paying a fee to be associated with your organisation, ensuring they feel valued and wanted is more important than ever.

People respond well to personalisation, so make sure you use proper data tags and filter your audience using segments. If you’re a big networking agency and you’re hosting an event for graduates and entry-level positions, the last thing you want to do is send out that big mobile campaign to executive-level employees! 

Imagine spending all that time creating mobile-optimised landing pages, emails and an SMS campaign to send it out to the wrong audience - there’s nothing worse. With segmentation, you can make sure the right message gets to the right people.

Personalisation is great, but it’s only one part of the puzzle. Put all the pieces together to see the whole picture and experience a successful mobile marketing campaign.

• Make sure you have consent! It’s important to tick this box across all your channels. Getting consent makes sure you’ll only send mobile messages to people who want them, plus it increases open rates, reduces bounce rates and unsubscribes.
• Be a ruthless editor. Every character counts in SMS marketing, so make sure you know how to get your message across in the most succinct way. Don’t be afraid to cull lines and sentences, it’s encouraged! Get ruthless. 
• Include a link. Make sure you direct your members somewhere. If you’re asking for donations, include a link to your page! If you’re reminding them about an event, include a link! If you’re asking for feedback, include a link to the form!
• Let them go. Don’t be afraid to let your subscribers go if they want to. Include an unsubscribe link, it’s better for you in the long run because it enables you to practise good consent link hygiene.

Use an all-in-one marketing platform

An all-in-one marketing platform can help modern marketers to build up great member experiences through all their channels!

You can use platforms like APSIS One to create fantastic campaigns using tools like email, SMS and marketing automation while better understanding your audience thanks to its unique 360 view of customer profiles. Native integrations also make it easy to create relevant experiences at each stage of your members’ journey with you.

To find out how APSIS One can help your membership organisation, head here! And to read how SMS marketing can benefit your organisation, follow this link and book a demo!