So you've read about the power and reach of mobile marketing and advertising and you're ready to launch your first campaign? That's great! But before you go running headlong into something that might get you in trouble please read on!

Planning is the Key to Mobile Advertising Success! 

The first step to developing a successful local mobile advertising campaign is no different than launching any other "old school" advertising campaign. You need to develop your plan. Sounds boring, I know but answering the following questions up-front will save you time, energy and money down the road!

Local Mobile Advertising Campaign Development Questions 

1. What are your advertising campaign goals?

If you are familiar with any of my previous marketing writings (rants?) you'll know right away that I believe a small business should only invest in advertising and marketing that will do one of two things 1) generate a lead or 2) sell something!

If you sell a high ticket item, something with a long decision-making process or something that requires a fair amount of customer education prior to purchase then the goal of your advertising campaign should be lead generation.

If you sell something that is relatively inexpensive, is consumed by customers who are already out and about and is a relatively easy decision to make then the goal of your advertising campaign should be to sell something.

2. Who is your target audience?

Are you selling something with broad mass appeal? Is your product or service only for women? Only for men? Only for teens? How large is your geographic coverage area? While people might drive 45 to 60 minutes to eat at a very special restaurant they probably will only drive 5 to 10 minutes for carryout pizza.

All of the mobile advertising platforms have some degree of targeting by demographics and geography but some allow tighter targeting (sometimes with a premium price) so not all of them will be a good fit for your particular target market. Knowing this up front will help you choose which platform(s) to advertise on.

3. What is your mobile advertising budget?

Unless you're budget is greater than several thousand dollars per month you will likely want to focus your efforts on mobile search advertising, mobile display advertising and mobile organic search marketing. If your budget is substantial, greater than several thousand dollars per month then short code SMS advertising could also be a possibility for you as would “app” development.

4. What is your campaign flow and most desired response?

Having a clear understanding of exactly what you want your potential customer to do is critical to the planning process since the options of what you can have them do are so great.

For example, do you want your customer to:

• Click on your ad to be connected to your office?
• Click on your ad and be directed to a mobile optimized landing page?
• Click on your ad and be presented with a map to your location?
• Click on your ad and be presented with a coupon?
• Click on your ad and download a free report?

It’s important that you think all of this through.  In fact, I encourage you to draw out a process map that shows exactly how the campaign will flow.

5. Will your mobile campaign stand alone or be integrated with other mediums?

Mobile advertising and marketing can stand alone or easily integrate with other mediums.  We’ve all seen bill board advertising urging us to text or visit a site, right?  Do you have a location with a lot of drive by traffic? A banner or sign out front can be a great way to augment your mobile strategy.  A direct mail piece that promises to text coupon codes weekly could connect these two mediums and create a synergistic effect that is greater than either campaign separately.

By now it should be clear that local mobile advertising and marketing present tremendous opportunities for you and your business.  However, this is one area where you probably don’t want to “go it alone”. 

Our approach is simple and effective. 

We’ll help you not only plan your campaign but we will also develop and manage it for you in a completely turn-key fashion. That way you get to do what you do best, which is take care of customers, cash checks and enjoy your business while we take care of all the details.

Still have questions? Pick up your mobile phone and call us! 888.505.6162 also, don’t miss your chance to grab our free comprehensive report on local mobile marketing and advertising.