10 Questions for B-to-B Mobile Marketing

March 3, 2010

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Mobile marketing isn’t strictly reserved for B-to-C marketers. Business consumers and prospects are on the go often and increasingly are relying on their mobile devices to stay connected. That leaves a wide open opportunity for B-to-B marketers to take advantage of this emerging channel.

On her blog, B-to-B marketing specialist Christina Kerley provides 10 questions B-to-B marketers should ask (and answer) to tap in to this underutilized channel.

1. What content do we need to optimize for the mobile Web, and how can we enhance our existing and planned marketing programs with mobile?
It’s imperative to optimize your existing content for mobile environments, stresses Kerley. Do this by creating mobile-friendly Web sites and providing shorter versions of lengthy content, she advises.

Also, she suggests reviewing all your marketing programs to see how you can enhance them with mobile. “For example, trade show events could include mobile content feeds and in-venue apps that improve the experience.”

2. What will help our audiences perform their business tasks better, easier and faster?
Kerley says you should ask yourself:

• What needs, challenges, problems and pressures does our business audience have? How can we start new dialogues, such as through SMS or content feeds?
• Are any of our customers' needs location-based? Which mobile platforms do they use? Which mobile apps, tools, widgets and features do they find helpful?
• What immediate, urgent and/or helpful information does our business audience require, or rely upon, to (1) make decisions, (2) perform tasks and (3) stay up-to-date?

3. What are our competitors doing with mobile, and equally important, what aren’t they doing?
Keep up with your competition, and look for ways to differentiate yourself as well.

4. How can we leverage mobile to provide unique value to our audience?
Kerley advises that you map your audience’s needs to mobile opportunities. For example:

• Aggregate a content feed of sector information.
• Create a dialogue through relevant SMS alerts.
• Produce visual demos.
• Develop location-based tools.
• Integrate social features.

5. What is our mobile marketing strategy, and how will we accomplish our goals?
According to Kerley, your mobile strategy should include:

• Informing your audience of breaking information.
• Interacting in new ways such as SMS for service questions and creating apps that solve business problems.
• Improving productivity/efficiency for your audience through tools and features.
• Incenting your audience to take action, like viewing a video or downloading a product trial.

6. Given our audience’s needs, our competitive differentiation, unique value and mobile strategy, which tools should we use?
Determine which of these tools work best for your audience: mobile Web sites, location-based services, apps and widgets, content feeds, Bluetooth hubs, mobile advertising, SMS alerts and campaigns, and video.

7. Which mobile platforms do our programs need to support?
Start with a mobile site to track and analyze which devices your audience uses, and go from there.

8. How will we communicate and promote our mobile programs?
Create a plan for promoting these new mobile capabilities, says Kerley. For instance, offer the choice to “view content optimized for mobile devices” or sign up for SMS alerts on your Web site. And promote your mobile initiatives through all channels, she advises.

9. Which internal marketing processes do we need to institute to ensure success of our external mobile programs?
Kerley says you should:

• Optimize content for mobile viewing—and create mobile-specific content.
• Secure internal and external talent vendors/resources to develop mobile marketing programs, support mobile Web site content layout, develop applications, manage SMS alerts, etc.
• Conduct and assess ongoing audience needs analysis, and monitor competitive and technological developments in the mobile sector.

10. How will we measure ROI? What metrics will we measure?
The metrics depend on specific objectives, but can include: tracking mobile Web site metrics, number of application downloads, number of SMS subscribers, number of online mentions of mobile programs, etc. The biggies, of course, are sales/revenues, brand awareness, brand relevancy and new communications channels, market footprint, CRM benefit, budget savings, competitive advantage and program impact.

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