Mobile Must Join Your Marketing Mix

It’s great to see newspaper circulation making a comeback in many markets, as I reported in my last blog, and Americans watch more broadcast and cable television than ever – five hours a day.  But marketers shouldn’t overplay traditional media’s resurgence because it is mainly the older population that is driving that rejuvenation.

Today, both young and old consumers are more plugged in as the world is speeding up and more technology-based than ever before.  The customer journey has become fluid, bouncing around from static to mobile, from online to in-store, from individual to social.  We are in the midst of a paradigm shift brought on by digital technologies and the emergence of exciting new digital marketing channels and applications.

The truth is that the digital revolution will continue to bring change, and younger people will drive that change.  They spend more time on mobile devices than viewing television, reading print publications, or listening to radio.  Media trends continue towards the proliferation of digital over the next many years.  According to a 2014 benchmark report from eMarketer, by 2017 U.S. digital media advertising will equal TV and assume the crown by 2018.  A key driver of this is mobile, which accounts for 50% of digital media forecasts.  The growth and technological advances of mobile devices – especially smartphones – has not only taken us far beyond traditional media marketing, it is fast surpassing traditional eMarketing.

Mobile marketing has the benefit of ubiquity.  People almost always have their mobile phones handy, so connectivity is almost instant.  The ability to serve rich content, video and interactive applications also can dramatically enhance the engagement levels and impact of your message.  And once users have your message, they can keep it, carry it with them for future use, or easily share it with their social spheres – further extending your reach at no additional cost.

And, as with online advertising, mobile device response is highly trackable, making it easier to analyze the user’s behavior than with traditional channels.  Mobile is also opening up new avenues to micro target down to precise levels to match a person’s interests and location.

For all of those reasons, mobile marketing must take a leading role in most businesses’ marketing mix, especially if your audience skews younger.