An article written by Julie Szabo in 2013 refers to the skyrocketing use in the US of mobile devices (smartphones and tablets) to surf the net. Local data suggests Australia is not too far behind in this trend. However, many not-for-profit organisations do not have a mobile marketing strategy and therefore are missing out on opportunities to engage with the wider community. With predictions showing that mobile net surfing might exceed desktop surfing during 2014, has your organisation embraced this trend or have you been left behind?
Julie Szabo outlines six strategies you should know about:
1. Mobile web development is a marketing matter
Your website visitors are now as likely to come from smartphones and tablets as they are from desktop computers. How does your website appear to these visitors? A website that appears professional on a desktop will appear disjointed & awkward on a mobile device unless it is built as a “responsive” or “adaptive” website. Such websites can be customised to accommodate various devices and the content will adjust in size to suit the visitor’s device. Szabo suggests such matters should not be left entirely in the hands of your technology people as this is a key marketing issue.
2. Think about your email through smartphones
Up to 41% of email is now opened on a mobile device with a large number deleted if the email is not mobile optimized. Do you design your marketing emails with mobile devices in mind? If you don’t use, for example, a mobile-enhanced email template, your marketing campaign emails will be significantly impaired.
3. Go with mobile web, not apps
Organisations are being persuaded to invest in building device-specific apps, despite the fact that most people only use a few apps. Szabo says it’s easier to build for the web, and ensure that your website will work on every web-enabled gadget, than to develop an app that will get limited use.
4. Use data to decide
Inevitably we need to convince others when promoting any new mobile strategy that will require some upfront investment of time and money. Szabo says it is vital that data is used in defining, refining and promoting your mobile strategy. You’ll need to know, for example, mobile visits as a percentage of site traffic; conversion rates, i.e. what are the drop-off rates for mobile; the mobile bounce rate.
5. Think about content for small screens
Content really needs to be reworked for each screen size. If you develop a responsive website that displays one site on all devices, then follow a strategy where you develop content with small screens in mind first.
6. Mobile fundraising campaigns and platforms
Don’t disregard an approach to using mobile that may seem dated, but which works. The example cited is from the US where millions of dollars were raised during the Thailand and Haiti relief efforts via old-fashioned text messages.
The thrust of the article is clear: with more and more people visiting your website from a mobile device than from the desktop, your organisation will suffer unless mobile marketing strategies are put in place.
Read the complete article by Szabo about Six Mobile Marketing Strategies for Nonprofits
Read related article ‘Laws’ of Great N-F-P Fundraising
