SoLoMo seemed to be the new buzzword in marketing last summer. It stands for Social,Local, and Mobile and is a powerful marketing combination that capitalizes on the consumers increasing use of mobile, where businesses can influence the consumer’s purchasing power. Technology is finally at a point where we can see how consumers behave when making their purchasing decisions and free tools such as Google Analytics and Google Webmaster Tools are able to provide us with valuable data on how people engage with our websites. Many small businesses have and are jumping on the SoLoMo bandwagon, and here’s why you should too if you haven't already:
Social
Consumers don’t just look at brands for information. They are turning to social media platforms to seek advice, read or write reviews, and share experiences. In fact, 62% of online shoppers look at related products on social media and of those, 75% click through to the retailer’s site. Those are some powerful numbers for why social media plays such a big role in online lead generation. When it comes to making an impact with social media, make sure you have a solid social media strategy in place. Here's the link to a webinar recordingthat I co-presented on this topic.
Local
91% of the US keeps their phone by them 24/7. And more and more people are opting to buy local. 25% of consumers use location based services such as FourSquare, Yelp, etc. With SoLoMo you can do your own geotargeting where you can push messages such as sales, promotions, events, etc.
Mobile
Shoppers today are social media and tech savvy, they are using multiple platforms to connect with brands when purchasing. A fact: 82% of smartphone owners said they always have their phones with them when they are in-store.
So what can businesses start doing today? When looking at social media for small business, you can start using direct communication between the consumer and your brand. It can be something as simple as social check-ins, tagging tweets, redeeming offers, tagging photo’s, and leaving a review. Be active on apps such as FourSquare, Yelp, and Facebook Places.
Conclusion
So why not use a mobile app that geo-targets your consumers, where they learn about sales and promos just for coming into your store? When using SoLoMo campaigns successfully, you will see consumer engagement increase, they will feel connected to your brand and become loyal advocate, start building your brand through word-of-mouth sharing, and best of all they can offer feedback on how your business is doing.
I'll be teaching a number of SEO and digital marketing workshops and classes in Boulder and Denver, Colorado this fall and would love to meet you in person if you're in the area.
Feel free to connect with me right here on LinkedIn and Twitter to learn about upcoming events, tips and best practices.