According to recent statistics, 94% of customers use online resources to research products and services before making a purchase.
Also, searches with local intent are more likely to lead to store visits and sales within a day so says Google researchers and these people are ready to buy once they are in the store, as 18% of local searches lead to a sale as compared to 7% for non-local searches.
These are startling statistics, but with the rise of mobile computing there are bound to be more and more statistics like these on the horizon.
To illustrate the point, do me a favor and perform this small test. Go to any Starbucks, Walmart, or even your local Hair Salon and observe how many people you see either talking, texting, or looking at video or photos on some kind of mobile device. What you will observe is Smart Phones, Kindles, Ipads, are everywhere.
Add 4G speeds to this mix and you have the beginnings of a marketing juggernaut. Yes, mobile computing is here to stay. It is possible to do things that were virtually unheard of not even five years ago.
But for the business owner who is still a little skeptical and hasn’t bought into all the hype, I can certainly understand your caution. So, here is a way you can prove to yourself that this new medium cannot be ignored…
Opportunities are everywhere
Any business owner worth his salt knows that for his business to grow and stay profitable he has to keep customers coming through the doors. Well there has never been a better time in history to find and retain customers than the present.
What you will be doing is leveraging the fact that mobile computing is virtually exploding in this country. In fact, the stats show that over 70% of smartphone subscribers consistently send text messages, and over 40% browse the web on their smartphones.
Pew Research Centers Internet project states that Minority adults use a much wider range of their cell phone’s capabilities compared to white cell phone owners, blacks and Latinos are significantly more likely to use their mobile devices to:
- Text messages (70% of all African-Americans and English-Speaking Latinos use text messaging, vs. just over half of whites)
- Use social network sites
- Use the internet
- Record and watch videos
- Make a charitable donation vie text message
- Use email
- Play games
- Listen to music
- Use instant messaging (this is particularly interesting to business owners because it is a very cost effective way to reach your target audience)
- Post multimedia content online
So, what can a local small African – American business owner do if they want to be a part of this revolution? While there is an ever burgeoning array of tools that can be used, for the business owner wanting to put a toe in the water before committing major resources to this endeavor, I’m going to recommend just a few simple tools for starters:
- E-mail, and although it’s been around for awhile, it’s still one of the most cost effective means to convert tire kickers into customers. The best time to signup customers is when they are most excited. Offer them some form of incentive in exchange for their email address and remember it has to have a high perceived value.
- Text messaging, all smartphones can now send text messages, you can create a simple text-message auto-responder. Here’s one example on how you might want to use the technology, let’s say you are the happy owner of a barber shop. On those days when business is slow, you could use that time to broadcast your message via text that you are having a sale on certain services that you offer. This is sure to increase receipts during slow times.
- QR Codes allow a customer to visit a web page address by scanning an image with their phones camera. This can be used in many marketing situations. you could link directly to a lead capture page where your customer can give you their email or phone number. This is technology that is just starting to take hold but one that has much promise for a business owner if used correctly.
These are but a few tools that a savvy business owner can use to increase sales and keep customers coming through the door, it just takes a little forethought and planning to pull it off.
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