These days, discounts and mobile coupons are always in demand. Everyone wants to save.
But what about providing value in other ways that better engage your target customers for the long-run?
It’s one thing to execute a few one-off or seasonal promotions that offer specific discounts or sales to your mobile marketing database. It’s another thing to create an ongoing perception that people on your VIP list are just that – very important.
How can you work to create exclusivity around your mobile marketing campaigns? To get the creative juices flowing, let’s look at an example from the luxury brand marketing play book.
According to online publication, Luxury Daily, American Express is teaming with Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ Hawaiian locations to introduce a bar code in print publications that leads consumers to an optimized mobile site with travel deals at the properties. A one-page ad, featuring a 2-D bar code, which will only be accessible to American Express customers, will be found in the August issue of Food and Wine Magazine.
Luxurious and more moderately priced brands and retailers alike can deliver a heightened interest in their offerings, using a SMS gateway like Trumpia’s All-In-One Multi-Channel Marketing platform.
For example, if you are a specialty grocer, why not offer a free, regular in-store wine-tasting to your VIP customers so that they can be up to speed on the latest award-winning wines?
On a recent trip to my local BevMo, I noticed that they were hosting a wine-tasting, which they had advertised in front of the store on sandwich boards. Imagine what kind of response rate and in-store traffic that store might have gained if they were to use a QR Code or mobile keyword and short code to encourage customers to opt-in for news about upcoming events such as this one?
According to Mobile Commerce Daily, while the crafts retailer Michaels is using a mobile-optimized site application and mobile coupons to drive in-store traffic, the company is also using QR codes and SMS text messages to give customers what they’ve been seeking – easier, on-the-go tools that can be used in stores.
“Our key strategy was to give customers the opportunity to engage with Michaels whenever and wherever they choose,” said Anthony Price, senior director of digital marketing and public relations for Michaels, Irving, TX, as reported by Mobile Commerce Daily.
“We’ve been able to add significant depth to our in-store experience by offering mobile versions of the project sheets to give customers ideas, instructions and inspiration whenever they want it,” he said.
Michaels is on the growing list of brands and retailers who are recognizing that consumers are on the go and are adjusting their advertising and marketing programs accordingly. Michaels seems to be the latest mass retailer who has harnessed the power of mobile advertising and SMS messaging to win the hearts and minds of its target customers.
Using mobile text marketing along with email, IM, voice broadcast and social media to further engage your customer through promotions, helpful hits, tools and interactive contests can surely make a difference in your bottom line. When it comes to building your business, the new rules of engagement include making your brand sticky enough to ensure repeat sales from your very best customers.
