Mobile Marketing Strategies & Trends: Key Learnings from the First Half of 2019

Mobile technology has disrupted the marketing landscape, with businesses taking the mobile-first approach for all their marketing plans. Let’s talk about the mobile marketing hails and fails in the first half of 2019 and how they can shape your mobile marketing strategy.

To gauge how businesses have devised their mobile marketing strategies in 2019, let’s take a look at some statistics compiled by MobileMarketerOpens a new window :

• Location data has helped boost ad campaigns according to 89% of marketers
• 20% of consumers shopped using virtual assistants
• Social media accounted for 9.1% of e-commerce sales in the first quarter of 2019
• 57% of Pinterest users browse the app while shopping in stores
• Adidas’ online sales increased by 40% due to Instagram’s direct selling feature
• 63% of advertisers continue to struggle with AR, despite its popularity
• TikTok’s in-app sales surged 500% in May as compared to 2018
   

Learn More: 5 Tips to Ace Your B2C Mobile Marketing Strategy in 2019Opens a new window

To help you keep up with the best mobile marketing strategies, we have identified the top trends and key learnings from the first half of 2019.

Mobile Marketing Strategies – 2019 and Beyond

In a mobile-first world, it has now become imperative for companies to reach out to their target audiences on mobile devices and deliver consistent and compelling mobile experiences.

Here are our key learnings for an effective mobile marketing strategy.

1. Location-Based Marketing
 

Marketing on mobile devices can help you reach your customers anytime, anywhere. If you can tie your marketing message into ‘micro-moments’ – where a customer reaches for their mobile device to search or look up a product or service on the go – you can capitalize on such moments and satisfy customers’ needs.

Location-based marketingOpens a new window is one such way to also capture customers’ attention. Most customers search for deals when they are out shopping, look for local specialties while traveling or visiting your competitors because they are unaware of your presence or better deals that you might offer.

You can leverage beacon technology, geofencing, and geotargetingOpens a new window in your mobile marketing strategy.

Example: Burger King geofenced rival McDonald’s locationOpens a new window s to send a discount voucher to customers entering the fenced area (near McDonald’s) stores. Not only did they build brand love but also wooed away customers with a discount.

Burger King Campaign Instructing Customers on How to Receive a Discount Near McDonald’s

Learn More: 4 Reasons Why Location-based Marketing is Set to Disrupt Marketing in 2019Opens a new window

2. Virtual Assistants
 

Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant are getting increasingly ‘smarter’ with the power of Artificial Intelligence. With voice and conversational searchOpens a new window gaining popularity, brands are looking to tap into sponsored search.

Loaded with customers’ search, check-in, and purchase history, brands can build deeper connections and recommend contextually relevant actions to create seamless experiences.

Example: If a customer asks her voice assistant, “Where can I plan a romantic candlelight dinner”?, apart from offering to book reservations in a popular themed restaurant, the assistant could also recommend an outfit from Macy’s or an Estée Lauder Perfume for the evening.

3. User-Generated Content
 

User-generated content (UGC)Opens a new window is undoubtedly the hottest trend because it is more engaging and authentic. UGC campaigns help you strike a chord with your customers, generate fresh and impactful content, and get your message across through word of mouth marketingOpens a new window .

UGC campaigns work especially well for your mobile marketing strategy, as users can send messages, tweet, click photos, create videos, upload, and do much more wherever they are.

Example: Marc Anthony’s True Professional LineOpens a new window ran a UGC campaign on TikTok where users made humorous before and after videos of themselves using the shampoo which went viral in no time. The campaign saw a 60% jump in sales.

4. Shopping on Social Media
 

Social media is now becoming a one-stop-shop for users. They build relationships, explore ideas, get inspired, and even shop on social media. With the launch of the Checkout feature on InstagramOpens a new window and Product PinsOpens a new window for easy shopping on Pinterest, shopping has become seamless on social media.

Example: Brands such as Dior, Huda Beauty, Kylie Cosmetics, Nike, Warby Parker, and Zara are leveraging the shopping featuresOpens a new window (currently in beta) to boost their online sales. Adidas saw a 40% increase in its year on year online sales for the first quarter of 2019.

5. Augmented Reality (AR)
 

AR is popular for the immersive and near-real experiences it creates. But marketers find it difficult to execute AR since it is expensive, and it isn’t clear how it can solve customer challenges.

If AR can be used to augment the user experience and help them understand how a product can be of use to them, only then can AR-based campaigns truly spell success.

Example: Popular AR-based game Pokémon’s, Pokemon Pass collaborated with TargetOpens a new window to boost their in-store traffic in select stores, where players could add Pokémon to their game by visiting a Target store.

The Official Ad Informing Players to Collect Shiny Pikachu and Shiny Eevee at Target

Fashion and beauty brands such as L’Oreal, Michael Kors, and more have used Snapchat lenses and Instagram filters to give shoppers a preview of the application of their products that helps influence purchase decisions.

Learn More: The 6 Best Augmented Reality Marketing Campaigns We’ve Seen So FarOpens a new window

Key Learnings for an Effective Mobile Marketing Strategy

Here is what we learned from the first half of 2019 that will help you create an effective mobile marketing strategy:

1. Capture customers’ interest during micro-moments.
2. Location-based targeting and hyper-local targeting are very effective to reach out to customers in real-time.
3. Use AR and voice technology to address customers’ pain points.
4. User-generated content will help you better connect with audiences and win their trust.
5. Try the shopping on social media feature for quick and easy conversions.
    

A mobile-first approach with an eye on resolving customer challenges and leveraging customer data with technology are the essentials of a ‘good’ mobile marketing strategy. Providing relevant, contextual experiences in micro-moments is currently the hottest trend to watch out for.

Share your favorite mobile marketing strategies & trends with us on TwitterOpens a new window or LinkedInOpens a new window or FacebookOpens a new window ; we’re always listening!