Remember the days when you left your desk and were totally disconnected and unreachable? You only received email and accessed the internet on your desktop computer and when the phone rang on your desk you had to answer it to see who was on the other end. The same was true at home, if you were lucky enough to own a home computer.
Things are a lot different today. Once we leave home and the office we are in mobile mode. The world of business is at our finger tips. We want instant gratification and so do your customers.
Let’s say you own a restaurant downtown in a medium sized city. A group of workers are leaving the office two blocks away. The usual conversation begins, “Where do you want to have lunch?” Some in the group are already on their cell phones texting other friends about meeting up for lunch. Another person types in “restaurants” into their mobile browser and a list of possibilities shows up. Will yours be there? If so, will it entice them enough to walk over two blocks?
In this scenario, the group needs some satisfaction in finding a place to eat and have a reason to choose one over the other. In your business, you need to figure out what it is your customers want, and then decide how you will provide it. Here are some things to consider.
1. Make sure you are fully optimized locally and for mobile search. This means setting up your business in local directories using the right keyword phrases, get great reviews posted, and add a new special at least once per month. That way, in this scenario, when someone searches as they are walking out to lunch you are showing up and offering a great option.
2. Once they find you, have a mobile website with the information they are going to want to see. In this scenario, a restaurant would offer a menu page, hours of operation, location map, and links to phone numbers. A specials page would also be enticing. The pages should load very quickly. Remember, they are already walking out the door!
3. To be even more aggressive, begin a SMS text messaging list and push out a special at timely intervals. In this scenario, if someone in the group had signed up at your restaurant to receive text message specials, and they receive one just at noon as they are looking at their phones, then you would be ahead of the competition!
Takeaway: We live in a society that wants everything right now and right here. Make sure your business is there when people are looking.