Todays Technology & Marketing & Real Estate

Mobile is the next new technology; if you have any doubt about that, remember how fast we went from not knowing what a website was to using the Internet in daily life?

Remember when a business having a website was unique? Remember how the companies that jumped on board early with the Internet staked a claim and earned their fortunes? Remember how quickly new technology such as the fax machine, email, and teleconferences became integrated into daily business life?

Mobile is the next new technology, and it is coming quickly. Around the world, Japan, Korea, and Spain are several years ahead of us in adopting and using mobile devices in daily life. A fascinating book about this is Digital Korea by Tomi T Ahonen and Jim O’Reilly (futuretext, 2007). Businesses in Asia and Europe are already moving forward in the new marketing era.

While the development and use of mobile technology is still in its formative stages here in North America, there is still time to be one of the first businesses to take advantage of this new technology. But there is no time to wait if you want to take advantage of using this powerful new marketing tool.

What Is Mobile Marketing Anyway?

Businesses and their brands can reap big rewards from mobile marketing if it’s done right. When mobile marketing is done right, you can reach your customers via mobile with a message they actually want from you. You can deliver a message to your customers that they are actually waiting for but might not know it yet. And the real kicker is that your customers will reach out and even ask you for a message.

But maybe I’m getting ahead of myself. Perhaps I should explain what mobile marketing is not. Contrary to what many consumers worry about (and what shady opportunists fantasize about), mobile marketing is not a barrage of unwanted text messages sent to the cell phone of someone who may not want, need, or have any connection with the business sending the messages. That’s just spam.

The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) defines mobile marketing as: “The use of wireless media (primarily cellular phones and PDAs) as an integrated content delivery and direct response vehicle within a cross media marketing program.”

My definition of mobile marketing is a bit different: Mobile marketing connects businesses and each of their customers (through their mobile devices) at the right time and at the right place with the right message and requires the customer’s explicit permission and/or active interaction. Based on this definition, marketing to groups who may or may not be interested in receiving your message is not smart mobile marketing. Instead, smart mobile marketing is all about reaching your customers or potential customers one at a time in a way that adds value to their day. You’ve undoubtedly noticed that the basic foundation of my definition is permission.

Mobile marketing will never work as an invasive marketing method and should not be undertaken in that way under any circumstances. It’s likely to backfire every time. When mobile is used as a marketing tool, it must be done with explicit permission by the end user or it will fail. Any mobile outreach that is done without permission not only impacts the business doing it, but it also casts a negative light on the entire industry. (Clearly, this does not eliminate mobile web advertising because anyone who goes online, even with a mobile device, naturally assumes that advertising will be interwoven with content somewhere.)

Busy women will undoubtedly be the next big market opening up to mobile marketing. Many of them are already part of the under-3D crowd and/ or the corporate data plan market, but the use of mobile to keep components (business, family, personal, and kids) in their busy lives organized will quickly drive this market to the forefront. Who needs the convenience of mobile more than a busy woman wearing many hats during the day? One thing that keeps them from being a more active market is the shortage of mobile web sites and other mobile services dedicated to their needs. If you can be among the first to help this market with mobile, you can reap great rewards. Don’t forget that women are the primary buying force in America and reaching this powerful group via mobile could certainly prove worthwhile.

Don’t expect this market to stay underserved for long. There are companies like SMSNinjas are taking the Indianapolis market by storm. They provide a five digit short code along with a 2-9 digit keyword to clients in the Indianapolis area. Get more information from SMSNinjas by texting smsninjas to 41513.