Mobile shoppers have proven to be a valuable market both online and offline. Mobile shoppers will drive more than 50% of eCommerce sales in 2020. And when they bring their devices in-store, they are 31% more likely to repeat-buy from stores offering a high-tech experience, 22% more likely to stay in the store longer, and 19% more likely to spend over budget. In other words, mobile customers create a market worth courting!
If you’re looking to capture the attention of this lucrative group of shoppers, you’ll need a special type of brand awareness mobile marketing campaign. Rewarding desirable customer behaviors with incentives is a proven method for raising awareness, which in turn cultivates desire, translates desire into action, and encourages future interactions with the brand.
How Incentive-Based Mobile Marketing Campaigns Work
Offering incentives for brand interaction is a way to reward consumers for completing desirable actions. For a mobile shopper, this might mean rewarding a customer for:
- Walking into your store.
- Watching an online video.
- Flipping through a branded idea lookbook.
- Locating and scanning barcodes of a promoted item.
- Making the desired purchase and scanning the receipt.
- Inviting a friend to the brand’s mobile app.
Each reward incentivizes the customer to take the next step on the buyer’s journey. Since the average customer requires seven interactions before making a purchase, guiding shoppers through this process by encouraging interactions with rewards can greatly shorten the time-to-sale.
Best Practices for Brand Awareness Mobile Marketing Campaigns
Incorporate these mobile marketing best practices to gain share of the mobile shopper market:
1. Strengthen Ties With a Free Loyalty Reward Program
Loyalty programs are the ultimate example of “incentive marketing.” Rather than burdening customers with a monthly subscription, loyalty programs let shoppers browse and buy at their own pace, offering discounts or rewards based on consumption. A free program that gives back to loyal repeat buyers makes customers feel appreciated, which in turn steadily builds goodwill.
Some shoppers wouldn’t even entertain the idea of shopping with a brand that doesn’t reward based on repeat purchases—69% of consumers say their ability to earn loyalty points impacts their choice of retailer. Whether you have an in-house program or not, you can always partner with Shopkick—a leading mobile omnichannel solution—to offer reward points (“kicks”) to shoppers who engage with your brand, which they can then redeem for gift cards of their choosing.
2. Geo-Target Nearby Shoppers With an Offer They Can’t Refuse
Once a shopper subscribes to SMS marketing or downloads an app with geo-location features, a whole new world of opportunities opens up. Geofencing allows brands to create a virtual barrier around a particular location using GPS coordinates accessed by the user’s mobile device. Anyone within these barriers is then delivered an ad or special offer on their device. You can geo-target on a more granular level by setting defined criteria—such as demographics, behaviors, or interests—within a specified radius. Geo-conquesting involves the targeting of mobile users who are in a nearby competitor’s general vicinity, in an effort to sway business in your direction.
3. Use Gamification to Activate Reward Pathways in the Brain
Rewards don’t always have to come in the form of “points” or “dollars off.” With a mobile device, shoppers are essentially carrying around a handheld gaming console. By gamifying the shopping experience, you are activating the reward centers in the shoppers’ brains, making them more open to a purchase. After all, earning rewards is a dopamine hit on the brain. There’s a reason why two-thirds of the world’s leading brands have embraced gamification; mobile game experiences result in a 15% rise in brand awareness, 22% increase in brand loyalty, and 47% greater engagement. Brands have used gamification in a variety of ways—from virtual “scratch-off” tickets and “spin-to-win” prize wheels, to creating wishlists in a virtual reality setting and participating in a unique adventure around the store. Remember, the most effective use of gamification involves incentives linked to specific campaign goals.
4. Reward Mobile Video Views
Over half of customers (55%) watch mobile videos while shopping in-store. Increasing brand awareness is one of the main reasons marketers turn to mobile video; in fact, 30% of mobile users surveyed said video was the best format for “discovering new products.” Sixty-four percent of customers who view branded social videos go on to make a related purchase. The customer appetite for mobile video is nothing new, but big-name companies are starting to take notice and get involved. Last year, Google rolled out rewards for customers who watch in-app videos. Even consumer research firm Nielsen offers to pay consumers up to $200/year to watch partner video ads. Mobile shopping apps are a great avenue retailers and brands can utilize to incentivize views.
Mobile Rewards Garner Attention Wherever the Shoppers Are
The pre-trip planning phase is one of the best opportunities to capture consumer attention and drive brand awareness using a mobile marketing campaign.
Giving shoppers the ability to earn rewards wherever they are—at-home, on-the-go, and in-store—creates more opportunities for brand interaction, keeping you top of mind the next time they are shopping.
Improve your brand awareness mobile marketing campaign by incentivizing desirable user behaviors with Shopkick. Read our success stories and contact Shopkick to learn more about how we drive brand engagement with our innovative mobile omnichannel solution.
Image courtesy of LP Prod
