According to Forrester Research, Inc, investments in mobile marketing will reach over $1billion this year as retailers and consumers continue to embrace the growing mobile marketing trend. Mobile marketing campaigns, particularly those that make use of social marketing and social media strategies, are also expected to become a standard part of many online and offline retailer’s marketing strategies.
Combining social media and marketing strategies with ecommerce is seen by many businesses as a logical way to connect with customers on a personal level, and a way to offer them coupons, special offers, relevant content, and information.
Mobile commerce spending, rising gas prices and other economic factors have all helped to contribute to a marked increase in overall ecommerce spending. As reported by Practical Ecommerce, a report recently released by Internet marketing research firm, comScore shows a marked increase in ecommerce spending over the past few years.
“Faced with rapidly rising gas prices and stubbornly high unemployment, consumers continued to take advantage of the Internet’s lower prices by shifting their spending from offline retail stores,” comScore Chairman Gian Fulgoni told Practical Ecommerce. “In fact, in the first quarter, the growth in ecommerce spending was roughly double that observed at offline retail. While we would expect online buying to dampen slightly if gas prices continue to eat into discretionary spending, it’s clear that ecommerce has become a mainstay in consumer behavior, driven by the attraction of both lower prices and convenience.”
Automobile giant Toyota, for example, is launching an interactive campaign that encourages Toyota owners to “friend” their car. Using Facebook, Twitter, and a private, Toyota owner-only social network called Toyota Friend, consumers can “communicate” with their cars and check tire pressure, battery power, and even start their cars remotely. Electric and Plug-in Hybrid vehicle owners will be able to “friend” their cars beginning in 2012.
Even businesses that can’t afford to launch a social network of their own can still benefit from integrating social media, marketing, and mobile commerce marketing strategies into their overall marketing campaigns and budgets.
Building a presence on sites like Facebook and Twitter is becoming more and more of a necessity for businesses of all sizes, and the immediacy of mobile Internet and mobile commerce purchasing means that consumers can connect, interact, and purchase, right from their smartphones, with just a few clicks.
Is your ecommerce site mobile? If not, you are likely missing out on valuable sales and marketing opportunities.