What will all these tablets, smartphones, and other sophisticated mobile devices mean to small businesses that market products and services online? Read this article to see how mobile technology will change how you work on the go, and the opportunities it offers for reaching your customers<\/p>\n
It’s Time for a Mobile-optimized Website<\/b><\/p>\n
If you sell products or promote services online, 2011 might be the year you need to optimize your site for smartphone browsers. In June 2010, a comScore study found that among all mobile users, 50 percent of Web browsing was conducted on a smartphone. What’s more, among mobile users, smartphone owners accounted for 54 percent of all application use, 54 percent of social networking activity, and 66 percent of video consumption.<\/p>\n
Think of it this way. If a growing percentage of Web browsing is done on, say, an iPhone, and you’ve got a Flash-heavy site (Apple mobile devices don’t support Flash), you could be missing some business opportunities. Mobile websites are only going to increase in importance; if you don’t have a mobile-optimized site, chances are your competitors do — or they’re building one.<\/p>\n
Also worth noting: Mobile search engines use different indexing algorithms than those employed for traditional Web searching, according to Search Engine Land. “They evaluate your website as if it was being rendered on a mobile phone, and they rank results partially based on how well the page will render on the type of phone that submitted the query.” For this and other reasons, having a mobile-optimized site can help smartphone users discover your products or services.<\/p>\n
Social Media Use Will Be More Mobile<\/b><\/p>\n
Facebook, Twitter, and other mobile versions of social networks grew in popularity in 2010 and are expected to continue in 2011. Example: Facebook says more than 200 million active users are “currently accessing Facebook through their mobile devices.” What’s more, those who use Facebook on the go are “twice as active on Facebook than non-mobile users,” the company says. Bottom line: If your business hasn’t yet established a social media presence, consider adding it to your New Year’s Resolutions.<\/p>\n
Location-based Marketing Continues Its Popularity<\/b><\/p>\n
Location-aware social networks such as Foursquare, Loopt and Yelp became a mini phenomenon in 2010 among GPS-equipped smartphone users. Research firm Gartner predicts that by year-end 2011, more than 75 percent of devices shipped in developed countries will include a GPS.<\/p>\n
Expect the location-aware trend to continue rising in popularity in 2011. Consumers, especially the young and tech savvy, have shown their willingness to “check in” at a location (such as a store, restaurant, or bar) to receive special offers. So it may make sense, depending upon your business and target customers, to add location-based marketing to your promotional campaigns in 2011.<\/p>\n
Advertising on the iPad<\/b><\/p>\n
Studies show that iPad owners are more receptive to ads, particularly video ads, compared to those who use other mobile gadgets. Of course, some of this willingness to view advertising is due to the iPad’s novelty factor, which is likely to dim over time. Nonetheless, developing ads for iPad or other tablet apps might be worth considering, too, especially for midsized businesses.<\/p>\n
Read the full article on SmallBusinessComputing.com<\/a> Mobile Marketing is on the rise. Read this article to see how mobile technology will change how you work on the go, and the opportunities it offers for reaching your customers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[63],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\nWritten by James A. Martin<\/a> , January 3, 2011
\nJames A. Martin has written about mobile technology since the mid 1990s and is the author of Traveler 2.0, a mobile technology blog for travelers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"