The Power to Reach all LSM Groups
Every business should have a great understanding of who their target market is, that is however one side of the coin. Through today’s technology and in depth analytics we are able to follow the path to purchase and learn the demographics of our target audience. Once we know who these people are; their age, gender and LSM for example, are companies effectively using this data to maximise business opportunities? It is imperative for the success of any business to know these demographics and then be able to reach and communicate directly with them.
The online advertising industry grew substantially in South Africa during 2013 and is expected to continue in the coming years. Almost 93% of our population own a mobile phone and most people who access the internet do so using their mobile phone, and as smartphones become more affordable, more and more people are getting them. Smartphones have enabled people to constantly stay online, stay connected and smartphones have created a platform for marketers to speak directly to their consumers.
But what about the majority of our population that do not have smartphones? Can you still effectively market to lower LSM groups via mobile? Well I am so glad you asked.
Mobile marketing has the unique capability of being able to engage and communicate with all LSM groups. Let’s look at SMS marketing for example. An infographic published by TextSprout showed that 96% of smartphone users use SMS and 98% of SMS’s are read within minutes of receiving. This compared to 22% of emails, 29% of tweets and 12% of Facebook posts. Then there is the majority of our population without smartphones and instant messaging such as BBM and WhatsApp, who only have SMS at their disposal. Therefore regardless of whether you work at a car dealership, insurance company, or small deli – you have the power to speak directly with your customers.
The same applies to Premium Rate SMS, or more commonly known as short codes. With SMS available to all handhelds, companies can run competitions, build a customer opt-in database, generate sales leads and earn revenue, regardless of their target market.
Then there is USSD which is familiar to the majority of the mobile market thanks to “please call me’s” and airtime recharging. When you apply this to research showing that 80% of urban and 94% of rural South Africans have prepaid accounts, you start to get an idea of the potential.
USSD Codes can encompass once off requests or interactive navigation with a menu based application and is extremely effective when targeting a lower LSM as it is supported by all handsets and networks and requires no internet to connect – it therefore has great reach and adoption within your market.
Mobile marketing campaigns are so effective when targeting lower LSM’s as it is extremely cost effective for the user; be it an entry into a competition, completing a survey or just replying to a marketing SMS. There is also the possibility of incentivising the user; companies can send vouchers, coupons, airtime and mobile cash sends directly to the user’s phone. An example of this was a successful USSD Competition Channel Mobile did for Hunter’s Extreme, the results speak for themselves. Take a look HERE.
Whether you want to increase brand awareness, build a customer opt-in database, drive up attendance to events or visits to a store, https://www.channelmobile.co.za/productsrun effective competitions, improve customer loyalty or increase revenues – Mobile Marketing is your go-to solution, no matter the size of your business, who your target market is or the product or service you provide.