If you have a small retail outlet, you rely primarily on foot traffic to prosper. In order to drive traffic into your outlet you have to market yourself. Traditionally this was done by billboards, signage, local press advertising or word of mouth. In today’s world these tools are still relevant; however your average consumer now demands that you communicate with them in a way that suits their lifestyle. Mobile marketing is being used more and more by big brands because it is the one thing that consumers carry with them at all times. But smaller businesses can take advantage of this channel too. Here is how.
Mobile phones basically have two ways receiving marketing messages. The first is via a text message or SMS. The second is via a multimedia service or MMS. MMS is where a photo, image or other media to sent to a mobile.
Either form of mobile marketing is great for small businesses. You can instantly communicate special offers on products, schedule appointment or renewal reminders via SMS.
But how do you build up your marketing list in the first place? This is where QR codes are useful. You’ve probably come across them in magazines, direct mail or signage (a black box of black modules). A QR Code is a matrix code (or two-dimensional bar code) which is readable by a QR barcode reader or camera phone. When you scan a QR code, it turns into data and will either show you a picture or send you to a website.
You can place a QR code anywhere; signage, business cards, marketing literature, etc. When your customers scan the code they can then be directed to a link where they can opt-in to a mailing list. This gives you access to your customers contact information without having to deal with any data entry and paperwork.
Once you have your customer base with mobile numbers, you then have a means of keeping your customers instantly up to date with exclusive offers and invitations, news and updates, reminders and confirmations.
