What You Should Know About LBM

Should you consider location-based marketing for your business? If you haven't, you might be missing out.

In a previous article, we discussed SMS (short messaging service) as a strong marketing tactic.

But wait—there’s more!

Mobile marketing goes far beyond sending text messages.

Location-based mobile marketing (LBM) combines geotracking, mobile marketing, and social media, allowing companies to deliver highly customized messaging directly to consumers at a time that they can act.

Walking down a retail-heavy street, you might get a text message that an establishment up the way has a pretty sweet deal to offer—one that could tempt you to saunter in and make a purchase. Or you could search for a local Greek restaurant on Yelp! and discover that if you visit today and check in via Foursquare, you could get a free dessert. Sweet!

Platforms

Before you try LBM, you need to ensure your business is listed on local search engines, such as Google+ Local, Foursquare, Yelp, Facebook, and others. And make sure the listings are correct: You should have the right images in place, the right address down, and an accurate phone number, too. Can’t hurt to have additional information as well, such as menus and specials.

These tools help make LBM possible. In many cases, these sites offer tools that help you reward customers—and rewards and incentives are critical for successful LBM.

Make an Offer

What kind of offer? Consider a free gift with purchase—as with the Greek restaurant’s free baklava, mentioned above—or a discount, such as 10 percent off a pastry if you order a medium coffee.

Or be creative: Perhaps you offer a free consultation with a makeup artist or a minifacial. Or access to the elite lounge or room. Or perhaps a table visit from the chef. Incentives don’t have to be freebies or costly—they just need to be something your ideal customer would value.

Brief the Team

Planning LBM? The staff needs to know your offering and needs advance preparation for customer questions and requests. Many employees are front-line service representatives, making them critical to your branding and customer service. They’re also important to building customer loyalty.

And don’t forget to ask the team how the LBM campaign fares from its perspective. Staff feedback—which it’s heard directly from customers—will help you tweak campaigns as necessary to ensure they are maximally effective.

Let Them Share

Don’t forget: You must give customers an incentive to share your incentive via social media. Encouraging people to spread the word helps give your message and business a broader reach.

And what business doesn’t want that?