Write Mobile Content Like A Pro With The Help Of These 4 Tips

When it comes to mobile, usability certainly is crucial, but you also need to know how to create content for your mobile users.

Reading content from a mobile device is different from reading content on a laptop. Users interact differently with mobile data than they traditionally have done with web based data and content must be created with that in mind. For instance, studies have shown that users pay most attention to the top two-thirds of the screen and content should be optimized with that in mind.

Reading content from a mobile device is different from reading content on a laptopConsider these issues and create a strategy for content before you begin start building your mobile application and then your iPhone application developer or Android application developer can help build an application that works with your strategy.

Here are 4 tips to help you write mobile content like a pro.

Start with a Killer Headline

First of all make sure that you keep you headlines short and sweet. You don’t want headlines that take up half the space on your screen and push key content down below the fold. Beyond that, you want to make sure that a busy mobile user can take a quick look at your title and not only know what the story is about but be interested in it. Assume that your users are busy and distracted while reading your content and that you need something brief with a lot of pop to grab their attention.

Grab Their Attention Early

Space is limited on mobile screens so you want to make sure you start off with key points and information that will grab a user’s attention. If your headline can spark some interest you must have strong enough early content to keep them reading. Its an old copywriters adage that the point of each line of copy is to keep the user reading the next. Perhaps no where is this more true than with mobile.

Don’t Forget Images

It has been shown in studies that on mobile devices people view images more than they look at text. Their eyes are just naturally drawn to the images over text. Don’t forget that it is the natural tendency of human eyes to be drawn to images and keep that in mind while creating content. A well placed and relevant image can help interest in your article.

Make It Concise

Writing more isn’t necessarily better. It’s easy to ramble on; it takes effort to be succinct.  Concise writing takes time and work and when it come mobile, concise writing is indispensable.  Think about the size of the screen and you will understand why. The key isn’t just to try and be short but rather to write what is needed and carefully edit so you can express the ideas in a succinct, cogent way. Make your content as long as it needs to be without wasting space. Make sure you format your text in short paragraphs that aren’t intimidating to readers. Short paragraphs require less concentration and are preferred by mobile readers.

Like anything else writing great mobile copy requires practice. There isn’t a magic wand you can wave and be a master but if you follow these principles and focus on writing copy that complies with these ideas you will find more users reading your copy on their mobile devices.

Photo: William Hook (Flikr) http://bit.ly/1PEwXJf

There’s No Better Time To Start Geo-targeting Your Marketing Than Now

When it comes advertising, context is king.

Simply having a bunch of people see your advertising is no longer good enough; your message now can, and should, be sent to reach the right people in the right place. Your ad impressions will mean something in the eyes of the right audience.

Mobile and geo-targeting allow you to deliver personalized content at the precise moment the user might need itFortunately with the growth of mobile, this is easier than ever before with Geo-targeting. Mobile and geo-targeting allow you to deliver personalized content at the precise moment the user might need it, while they are at a location that presents an opportunity for them to do so.

There are many ways to set up location based marketing programs. From the device’s own GPS to exciting opportunities with Augmented Reality the sky really is the limit right now for clever marketers. Add to this the opportunities to leverage near field communication or beacons and some incredibly powerful marketing opportunities exist.

One of the more clever location based marketing programs has come from Guatemala, where sneaker store Meat Pack has released a discount finding app called Hijack. Hijack will basically start a sale for a customer when they enter in a competing outlet. So if you were to enter a sneaker store in the same mall as Meat Pack, Hijack would send you a discount for sneakers of the same brand. The discount then goes down one percent per second so the faster you can get to Meat Pack to redeem the offer, the more you save. Meat Pack reported that more than 600 customers redeemed offers within a week.

On the other hand, Chrysler saw poor results when delivering ads near competitor’s locations. Purchases that require extensive research such as a new auto are different than impulse buys like shoes and marketing must be done differently. You will need to evaluate your business and competition to see what is best for you. Experienced mobile application developers can help, but be sure to take a good look at your product and customers before implementing a location based marketing program.

Chrysler saw success delivering messaging on their own lots. In fact, mobile has been so successful for Chrysler that 45 percent of the brand’s traffic now comes from mobile.

Keep in mind that offers don’t need to be targeted quite so precisely to be effective. Research has shown that ads delivered with a 2-5 mile radius of a business is optimum for performance. Meanwhile ads delivered 6 or more miles away saw rapidly reducing effectiveness, which just points to the power of location based marketing.

Photo: Vincent Lee (Flikr) http://bit.ly/1dsk3SM

Are You Losing Sales By Not Offering a Mobile Rewards Program?

Mobile-based rewards programs are incredibly popular right now. While people always love a bargain, the new economic reality is that consumers are now utilizing cost savings techniques like loyalty programs with greater and greater frequency.

Mobile rewards programs have exploded in popularity.According to Colloquy, U.S. consumers alone have over 3.3 billion memberships in customer loyalty programs, which is a sizable 26% increase over their last survey in 2013. In fact, according to their research the average American family has memberships in 29 loyalty programs.

Customers have come to expect loyalty offers from brands and may leave one to go to another that offers one.

Along with the overall growth of loyalty programs, mobile rewards programs have exploded in popularity and are expected to continue to do so. According to Forrester Research, consumers rank rewards high as a important element of mobile shopping. In fact, Forrester’s data showed 76% of consumers were interested in utilizing loyalty program points and rewards in a mobile digital wallet.

Choosing a mobile application developer that understand key touch-points with mobile loyalty programs can be helpful. As part of your mobile rewards strategy that you develop and implement with your iPhone application developer and Android application developer, make sure that you pay attention to how customers respond and optimize your program to meet your customer’s needs. With rewards programs its best not to take a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach but to tailor your program to your customer’s behavior and preferences.

What can a mobile loyalty program do for your business?

According to Harvard Business Review, loyalty programs can do 5 things for brands:

1. Keep customers from defecting
2. Win greater share of wallet
3. Prompt customers to make additional purchases
4. Yield insight into customer behavior and preferences
5. Turn a profit

How effective can rewards programs be?

When Kohl’s recently reviewed the effectiveness of their loyalty program they determined loyalty customers, made two extra trips to the store and spent $80 more per year. Keep in mind, as with everything in business, loyalty programs are not always successful. Building the right program and rewarding the right behaviors are critical for success.

The Small Business Administration blog gives this advice when it comes to loyalty programs, “Reward loyalty with some class. Freebies don’t always appeal to all and they can even de-value your services.” Furthermore suggesting,  “Experiential rewards are always popular. For example, a hair salon could offer a monthly workshop that offers free makeover tips to loyal customers. These experiences add value to your customers’ lives, build community, help your business stand out and give customers reason to keep coming back.”

What are the key elements of a successful mobile rewards program?

Analytics & Data

To create a successful mobile loyalty program you will need to understand your customers. Make sure you plan ahead to make data available so you can review if your loyalty program is properly engaging your target audience. Data and analytics will also help you be able to personalize the experience for each customer over time.

Personalize the Experience

The more data you capture, the better you can target and customize the experience for each of your users. Personalization is important in building effective mobile user experiences and it is not different with mobile rewards programs. Personalization helps build loyalty and engagement. Data will help you optimize each user’s experience to their preferences.

Rewards & Exclusive Offers

Make sure you reward customers for the appropriate behaviors. Leverage their mobile device to track their shopping behavior, such as purchases, and offer rewards based on that behavior.  Exclusive offers are also a powerful part of several strong loyalty programs as several retailers offer loyal customers priority access to exclusive products, offers and sales.

Customer Engagement

Utilizing tools such as push notifications have shown to increase response rates by up to 300%.  Other contact methods such as e-mail and SMS can also play an important role in your customer engagement strategy. A key part of loyalty programs is re-engaging customers, doing so with a sense of urgency can be powerful so don’t be afraid to try time sensitive offers.

Leverage in-store experiences

Many successful mobile rewards programs link loyalty to in-store experiences by offering product information and more. The future of retails involves improving in-store experience with powerful mobile applications that can improve the shopping experiences for you customers.

Photo: Omar Jordan Fawahl (Flikr) http://bit.ly/1ynqiAr

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