Shamu Knows Mobile Marketing

July 13, 2013
Mike Dolpies

Shamu’s Mobile Marketing Secrets…

English: Survey on a mobile phone

English: Survey on a mobile phone (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Interesting.

I’ve been talking about Mobile Marketing since 2010.

Wrote a book on the subject in 2011.

Mobile Marketing Book

What is Mobile Marketing?

Has it changed much in the last three years?

Mobile Marketing…

Mobile Websites:

That’s when your site works just as good on a smartphone or tablet as it does on the desktop or laptop.

In some cases a “responsive site” that fits to each screen works fine and many times a separate “smarthone site” is the way to go.

A smartphone site or “mobile site” is a site that looks great on a small screen.

It’s fast, easy to navigate and most importantly… the phone number is clear and click-able.

Other aspects of Mobile Marketing…

Apps: If you have some scale and enough repeat customers/clients this might make sense for you.

Then we have the “good ole fashioned” QR Code:

QR Codes work if you know how to use them.

QR Codes are really the bridge between print and online media. Other forms of bridging print with online media are… NFC and “Augmented Reality.” Both are pretty advanced for the small business owner. So I would recommend you stick with QR Codes for a while.

How about something even more OLD SCHOOL?

Text Message Marketing!

Yuuup. Seems like this marketing medium came in blazing as a new Bright Shiny Object!

Now… Not so much.

Here’s what happens with the whole “BSO” thing. (Bright Shiny Object)

A concept comes along. In-experienced business owners with false expectations and lack of fundamental knowledge rush to it.

They do it wrong.

Abandon it.

And then say… “That didn’t work!”

Mean while you catch the “big business” using it right and confirm… “Wow – it really works!”

While I was in Orlando we caught a couple of Shamu shows at Sea World.

While we were waiting for one of the shows to start I witnessed Sea World using Text Message Marketing.

Here’s what they did…

Big screen in the stadium and loud music entertaining everyone before the show.

On the big screen you had the chance to “make friends with a fishy.”

You could text your name along with a “keyword” to a “short-code.”

Then – a few moments after you’d see “Hi “ (your name) on the big screen.

So…What did they do and WHY did they do it?

Text Message Basics…

1- An offer that’s instant.

Their offer: Text and we’ll give you some fame on the big screen.

2- Build an opt-in list.

Jamie, My wife, sent in two messages with our girls’ names.

Since then she has received one new marketing text from Sea World because by playing along she “opted-in.”

Are you Shamu?

No, of course not.

But the fundamentals of text marketing apply to all businesses even if you don’t have 7 million gallons of water and a bunch of skilled whales in your possession.

 

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About the author

Mike Dolpies Mike Dolpies (aka Mike D.) owns “Ocean View Publishing, LLC” - a diverse media/Internet Marketing and Consulting Company. He started his first business when he was just 18 years old. By the time he was 23 that business had generated well over a Million Dollars in sales and was consistently in the top 20% of its industry. He's the Author of 6 different books. His first book, “Motion Before Motivation, The Success Secret That Never Fails,” became a bestseller on Amazon.com He's been a guest on the Fox Morning News several times and has been written about in many newspapers. His work has also appeared on Entrepreneur.com and Fox Businsss.com