People in the U.S. spend an average of 5 hours per day on mobile devices. Here are five of the leading mobile marketing tactics for business in 2020 to help you drive awareness, conversions and revenue.

Mobile is dominating the internet economy. With people now seemingly tethered to their compact devices, time spent on mobile now outpaces time spent on desktops by 51% to 42%.

Since users are controlling the buyer’s journey from their mobile devices, the challenge to marketers is relevance. How can you deliver the targeted messages with precise timing and remain authentic with mobile users?

Here are five key mobile marketing tactics for business that will drive conversions for your next campaign:

  1. Promote your offers with paid mobile ads
  2. Create mobile-ready email campaigns
  3. Leverage search engine marketing (SEM) for mobile
  4. Captivate with mobile video
  5. Optimize your mobile campaign with data

1. Promote with Paid Mobile Ads

Mobile advertising enables you to target buyers when and where it matters – in real-time. Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a great way for brands to amplify their reach on mobile. To begin with PPC, you’ll bid on advertising keywords. Next, set a budget and pay only when your ad gets clicked.

Whether you serve ads for a special offer or your best piece content, PPC ads can be effective at driving awareness, signups and sales.

Review your buyer personas to help determine the appropriate advertising channels for PPC. How does your audience use social media? Which affiliate network would suit your product or service? Which keywords will be the most effective?

A variety of mobile ad types exist, such as:

  • Banners
  • Native ads
  • Video
  • Interstitials
  • SMS messages
  • Push notifications
  • Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

Mobile ad retargeting is also highly effective. Retargeting works by serving off-site ads to previous website visitors. The average click-through rate (CTR) for retargeting ads is 10x greater than for typical banner ads.

To ensure optimal conversions for any mobile advertisement, create a dedicated landing page for each.

2. Create Email Campaigns for Mobile

Mobile has officially overtaken desktop as the preferred way to check email. According to the recent US Consumer Device Preference Report from MovableInk, 66% of all email in the US is now opened and read on smartphones or tablets compared with 34% on desktop.

Assuming your headlines are relevant, mobile usage is a boon for click-through rates.

People opening an email on mobile are 65% more likely to click through on another device, according to Campaign Monitor. This confirms that users are screening their emails on mobile and then revisiting key correspondence on other devices.

Marketing automation enables brands to capitalize on this omnichannel shift in user behavior. These platforms allow you to segment, target, and trigger emails to create unique, personalized and impactful messaging sequences.

For example, say a mobile user clicks-through your email offer but doesn’t finish. To clinch the conversion, simply automate a follow-up email series to reach them in time for desktop use.

Email outperforms most other mobile channels with an average conversion rate of 3%. The key to mobile email success is using behavioral data to trigger the right message at the right moment.

3. Leverage SEO for Mobile

Mobile devices are handy at those vital micro-moments when people want to do, go, know or buy. As a result, almost 60% of all search queries come from mobile devices.

Optimizing your mobile website for search will help to maximize your visibility and revenue. However, mobile SEO is very different than for desktop. For example, long-tail keywords are used infrequently on mobile.

To succeed, you must target keywords that are specific to mobile users.

Here are a few ways to perform keyword research for mobile:

  • Use a keyword research tool, then look under “related terms” for shorter versions of desktop SEO keywords phrases. For example, a desktop search for a “Thai restaurant near me that delivers” would translate to a mobile search for “Thai food near me delivery.”
  • Add location terms in conjunction with your keywords. According to Google, 94% of mobile users search for location-based information. This is because many searches happen in transit or before departure.
  • Attach the phrase “near me” to your desktop search keywords. Think with Google reports that 88% of all “near me” searches are done on mobile. This search type is increasing at 146% year over year.

The next logical step is to register with Google My Business. This will literally put your business on the local map, helping both mobile and desktop users discover you.

4. Captivate with Mobile Video

People love video because it’s an easy, engaging and informative way to consume content.

A perfect medium for digital storytelling, video enables you to illustrate the benefits of your product or service in a memorable way. The best brands use video to develop meaningful and authentic user relationships that result in conversions and loyalty.

Video is a versatile way to drive targeted results throughout the marketing funnel. From branded content to social media, you can use video to educate your audience, generate engagement or drive sales.

Consider that:

Whether your goal is brand awareness or conversions, video is an impactful tool that warrants investment.

5. Optimize Your Mobile Campaign with Data

Between the push notifications, emails, and more, mobile campaigns generate huge amounts of data. Uncovering exactly what your audience wants will require some analysis and adjustment.

What length of video do users prefer? How are your paid ads performing? Does your mobile UX design need tweaking?

Look to your mobile analytics for answers to these and other key questions.

Identify user behaviors to help you create the most rewarding mobile experience. Gain visibility on critical KPIs, then drill down to discover how best to drive results. With plenty of actionable insights at hand, optimizing your mobile marketing campaign is a straightforward process.

Assess your mobile campaigns with metrics such as:

  • Mobile bounce rate: High numbers suggests an ineffective value proposition, misaligned ad messaging, or a confusing UX design.
  • Pages per session: Compare your numbers to industry benchmarks and your desktop site. Low page count likely indicates that content, usability, and navigability are lacking.
  • Mobile conversion rate: Low numbers suggest that your landing page offer is unaligned, your offer is unappealing, or the UX design needs work.
  • Mobile site speed: Slow loading times will affect each of the above metrics, plus your search ranking. Use Test My Site from Google to ensure you’re not losing revenue to a sluggish mobile experience.

Getting Started with Mobile Marketing Tactics for Business

Today’s mobile consumer creates their own non-linear path to purchase. This means that brands must fully engage with their customer base to succeed with mobile marketing.

To get found, leverage mobile-friendly SEO tactics that enhance mobile UX and promote visibility. Mobile advertising will help you reach your widest customer base with compelling content and relevant offers.

Targeted messaging – paid or unpaid – will be a critical function in your campaign. This is what enables you to open, orchestrate, and nurture a meaningful dialogue with users.

Mobile marketing is most effective when you stay in contact with users without missing a touchpoint.