With statistics showing that; economy-wide spending fell for the first time in 13 months in September. Can you afford to miss any sales opportunities?
No matter the size of your business, ensuring your customers have a seamless experience across all channels promotes long-standing relationships, repeat business and positive word of mouth.
Email Marketing is a bit like Speed dating. With Speed dating you have 5 minutes to “capture “their interest, lets say you succeed, you’re keen, they’re keen, they give you their number, you work up the courage to call……..and you can’t find their number. How do you feel? Disappointed? Frustrated? Well that’s how your customers feel when they see your email drop into their box and the subject line grabs them, the content is relevant to them, exactly what they were looking for, fantastic! They click on the link to complete the transaction online and? Your website is not mobile friendly; they can’t find the contact page or the ‘add to cart’ button, so what do they do?
Press the home button?
Perhaps think they will check it out when they get in front of the computer, but more than likely they won’t.
Maybe they will google what they need and go to a mobile friendly competitor?
Possibly they will just read their next email.
Either way, YOU MISSED AN OPPORTUNITY. All that hard work, for zilch.
FACT: In 2012, a global study of over 200 million shoppers on mobile commerce websites, aimed at determining “which nation most often shops on the go”, found that Australians are the leaders with 47 per cent of all our traffic to commercial websites coming from mobile devices.
Not only are people searching on mobiles are looking to make decision then and there, mobile users are more likely than desktop users to open emails immediately. But if your site is not mobile friendly, you have lost them and what is worst still 71% of people that have a bad mobile experience will go to a competitor. (Bantermob article: Back to the mobile future)
But there is something you can do.
You can streamline the action of opening an email to a conversion on the web.
6 steps to mobile friendly emails
Offering a mobile friendly version of your newsletter so the growing number of people reading email through their phones and tablets can access them.
Simple look and feel:
- Enlarge Fonts aim for body copy of 14px and headlines of 22px
- Make links and buttons obvious (there is no ‘hover’ on mobiles) try using outlines and subtle shadows
Easy navigation
- Most mobile users hold their device in one hand and use their thumb to navigate, keep important links and buttons in easy reach but consider button sizes and white space breathing room to allow for ‘fat finger errors’.
Single column
- Trim emails to 320 x 550px wide this accommodates smaller screens and helps to increase legibility.
Keep info to top of screen
- Call to action front and centre min size of 44x44px
Short simple and focused content
- Know your audience, what do they want? When do they want it? Is it product information such as prices, contact details, store locations? Screen real estate on a mobile is valuable, simplify headers and navigation.
- Prioritise your links by popularity
- Images can be blocked, and can take up this precious real estate, use images carefully.
Take advantage of phone functions
- Link or button for direct call (it is a phone after all)
- Link or button to view address on inbuilt maps
- Find nearest store, take advantage of GPS
- QR codes for more info
This past month I have attended three different events where Mobile Marketing was a hot topic.
At LBDG Business forum, Kelly Slessor a mobile marketing expert spoke passionately and inspiringly about mobile marketing strategies based on consumers mobile habits. To find out more about Kelly visit BanterMob.
Also this month I attended a University of Sydney Course on Effective Web writing for Business, where 2 of the 5 parts were dedicated to email & mobile marketing best practises.
And only this week the annual Westfield Breakfast Series 2013, The Future is Coming, Ready or Not. Where there were four international and local retail marketing experts giving their perspective on the future of retail for 2014. Jamie Gutfreund, chief strategy officer, The Intelligence Group, US kicked off with recent research and an overview on how to capture the attention and loyalty of young shoppers. Followed by David Roth, CEO The Store, UK; who spoke about how History Shapes the Future, and explained how the past is a powerful predictor. Steve Brown, Intel chief evangelist and futurist, US; presented a unique perspective on where technology is taking retail. Jon Bird, chairman IdeaWorks ANZ, Australia spoke about The Changing Retail Brandscape and shared the best and most inspiring case studies and experiences including highlights from the 2013 Westfield World Retail Study Tour.
The Westfield Breakfast Series is appropriately named not only due to the hour it commences or the meal that was served but I definitely walked away feeling intellectually nourished. It was a breakfast of information and inspiration, where the future of retail is only limited by imagination.
Mobile marketing is here to stay and stay in a big way. Are you?
Contact 6R today for business process and strategy advice. 6R Retail Consultants keep up-to-date on your industry.