Innovative “Geo-Fencing and GPS Alert” Push Messaging Marketing Tactics
tim rich and lesley katon via Compfight
Push messaging is a feature that is available through a native mobile application (NATIVE = an app that is downloaded rather than viewed through a browser) that offers marketers an incredible amount of functionality. Since native apps require users to download an app, the user has invited marketers into their pocket, living room, office and basically wherever the user brings their smartphone. Therefore marketers can capitalize on contextual messaging to deliver sales promotions, product awareness messaging and other direct marketing tactics.
Geo-fencing or GPS Alerts
Due to the mass adoption of mobile and smartphone technology, users have begun to demand tailored messaging that meets their needs and objectives. GPS has become an incredible feature for marketers, because it allows them to deliver contextual messaging to their customers and prospective customers.
Interested in mobile statistics and mobile marketing? You may also like: Charts: Worldwide Smartphone Market Share and Trends, What is Push Messaging and why is it so Powerful?, 6 Things to Consider when Building a Mobile App
I am going to use a big box store as an example. A user watching television notices a big box store, they frequently shop at, has a mobile application. They download the application because they were made aware that the app offers deals, sales and other benefits such as a store locator and hours of operation.
Upon download the user is asked a brief set of questions to determine their preferences.
- What are the departments you shop in most (secondary and tertiary as well)
- What are your favorite brands?
- What type of products would you like to receive alerts about
- Where are your favorite stores (GPS based through a store locator)
Upon completion of an initial customer assessment, the user is telling the mobile application their preferences. Therefore since they have set their favorite departments, brands, products and stores, marketers are able to deliver relevant messages.
Let’s go through the purchase decisions, involvement steps and channel relationships
1. The user/customer wakes ups in the morning and decides they would like to go to a big box store
2. They get in their car and drive to the store, not expecting to buy more than one new product
3. Since they have preset their preferences (favorite stores, products, brands, departments) and they have downloaded the app, as soon as they walk into the store push messaging, is sent to their smartphone with contextual content
4. The user opens and views the contextual content and puts their phone back in their pocket
5. Since preferences have been set, geo-fencing can provide messaging when a customer walks by one of their favorite brands, departments, products etc.
6. The user puts items in their cart that they may not have noticed and checks out
7. The application stimulates buying and improves sales and ultimately channel relationships because the big box store is making more purchase orders through their suppliers
8. Not only, does the app provide increased sales and channel relationships, but it also provides data about consumers who own smartphones and what they are looking for while at the point of purchase. Therefore retailers are able to improve their supply chain through demand metrics.
Read More5 Benefits of Branded Mobile Games
When marketing a brand through mobile, there are two challenges that must be taken into consideration. First, the ability to gain the consumer’s attention on their own personal device, and second, ensuring they continue to engage and interact with your brand. A growing trend in solving these problems is the development of branded mobile games.
Games have some of the highest customer retention rates, therefore they have become a logical and increasingly popular solution for brand marketers . It is important however, to do it properly and exploit the gaming industry’s unique marketing opportunities.
- Rewarding vs. Solicitating- You are able to insert your sales tactics as a reward (5% off for passing level 10) instead of simply giving it to your consumer. This has numerous benefits on the consumer’s mindset, and encourages continued interaction with your application.
- Social Interaction Opportunities- Top scorers, challenge winners etc. can be tweeted at or featured on pages as extra content. This opens up avenues of advertising from your social network to theirs, creating clout.
- Viral Advertising Opportunities- If your game is structured to promote sharing with friends (through competition, rewards etc.), every single download of your game can create multiple active users.
- Extra Revenue Stream- If you choose to charge for your game, you open up an additional revenue stream for your company. This is a strategic decision based on your market strategy for the game, but is definitely a benefit to not overlook.
- Proven Success: Large companies like Audi and Red Bull have created their own branded games that have driven a massive amount of traffic to their websites. Audi in particular sees more traffic driven to their site through this game than any of their other marketing efforts.
Are interested in creating a mobile game? FloatPoint can help strategically develop, implement and market your branded mobile game.
5 Reasons to Build a B2B App
1) Competitive Advantage
Your business will be established as an innovator, and on the cutting edge of the industry. The development of a successful business to business app puts you a step ahead of your competition.
2) Increased brand equity
Development of a creative application that solves a problem for your customers can create brand loyalty. Those using your application will see your logo as they use it, and will therefore associate the convenience and utility of the application with your business and stimulate sales.
3) Immediate Call-to-Action
By embedding your phone number or email within their Smartphone’s application, it is possible for clients to contact you immediately through “click-to-call” and “email-to-call”.
4) Simplified Worldwide Marketing Solution
Smartphones are a worldwide trend, and the app distribution platforms (AppWorld, the AppStore etc.) are available globally. By developing an application you are able to reach customers a massive scale, increase brand awareness and attract new customers in difficult to reach markets.
5) Innovation Attracts strong Partners
If your application is of high quality and provides utility, large businesses may seek to work with you. Whether this is a large sales deal or just discussion, there is strong benefit to be had in making powerful business contacts and getting on their radar.
There are many benefits of developing a mobile app for your company. Triangle Fluid Controls Ltd. (TFC) is a wholesale supplier, manufacturer, and distributor of industrial sealing and pump products. It was identified that choosing the correct gasket for a job was a flawed process, and while not directly TFCs problem, they saw benefit in developing a solution. They contacted FloatPoint Media to help them create develop a mobile application for this process. The resulting application was an enormous success, helping TFC to build brand equity, strengthen customer relations, and has gained increased interest in its products.
If you would like to read more about TFC’s application you can view the BlackBerry Customer Success Story here: http://bit.ly/Lg48mn
Contact FloatPoint Media to discuss development.
Read MoreInfographic: The Pyschology of Colour
Although The Psychology of Colour infographic explores the significance of colour and how they are are used for web design, the colour chart also applies to mobile applications.
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