Mobile Browser Detection: How Does It Work?

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Mobile browser detection and redirect is a way to allow people to visit your website via mobile, without having to suffer through the usual hassle of blowing up the screen, pinching it, sliding it up, down, or side to side. Oftentimes when people visit a mobile site, they get frustrated because the ease of getting around the site is basically non-existent. This results in people leaving your site before actually getting into the meat and potatoes of it. If you install mobile browser detection and redirect, a service offered by yours truly, AnchorMobile, you will start to keep customers on your site, for longer periods of time, and ultimately increase sales through better customer experience.

In its simplest terms, mobile browser detection is a type of software you install on your website that recognizes when mobile devices are trying to access it. Once the device is recognized, the software will then redirect the end user to a dedicated mobile site, or adjust the format of the website to fit the end user’s device. Note the fact that it doesn’t matter what type of mobile device it is; it can be a smart phone, a tablet, portable digital assistant, or a portable media player. The software can recognize all these devices and make it significantly easier for users and potential customers to navigate your site via mobile.

Along with the software mentioned above, browser sniffing is a technique used in this
software that determines the type of browser the visitor is using. This determination
allows the software to send browser-appropriate content to the user. The purpose of this
is to avoid incongruity between different browsers such as the interpretation of HTML,
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and Document Object Model (DOM).

This software is important for a number of reasons. The first, and probably most
shocking, fact about websites is that only 10 percent of them are mobile friendly. That
means 90 percent of the websites you visit via your mobile device is going to be difficult
to navigate. That’s a lot of lost business due to a simple problem that can simply be fixed
using this software. Everyone today owns some sort of a mobile device. Making your website mobile friendly should be your top marketing priority followed by creating a complete mobile strategy that fits in with your other marketing and advertising methods.

Mobile Web Site Bounce Rate Case Study | HTML5 J query Mobile

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Your website’s bounce rate, which is a number or percentage that represents how many people are exiting your site once they visit the main page rather than continuing deeper into your site, affects the amount of leads your company will get. When your bounce rate is high, and high is usually considered anything over 50% by industry professionals, that means people are leaving your site rather quickly after visiting it. So a high bounce rate results in a low conversion rate, and a low conversion rate means you are getting fewer leads than you should be.

 So if your bounce rate is high and your conversion rate is low, how can you fix this? Well we here at Anchor Mobile have found a startlingly powerful, yet simple, solution to this problem. The power of this solution lies in how consumers are now mobile and your company is not. If you’re not mobile, your site is not reaching near the effectiveness it could be.

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With today’s new “thumb friendly” technology becoming increasingly widespread in everyday life, going mobile with your website is moving from something that was once something considered supplementary to your business, to something that is now a MUST have for your business. Customers are relying less and less on their home, personal, and work computers to initiate searches and, instead, are using their mobile devices, such as tablets and smart phones, to search for what it is they’re looking for.

AnchorMobile’s CEO and thought leader TJ Kirgin, recognized this trend in the marketing industry and decided to conduct analytics on a certain website and see how installing an HTML5 web app for one’s site can affect the site’s bounce rate. The results were nothing short of stunning with the bounce rate of the particular site dropping well below 50% after the HTML5 app installation. Anchor Mobile’s resulting case study titled “Mobile Web App Bounce Rate Case Study”, is designed to show you how simply installing an HTML5 JQuery Mobile web app for your site can significantly change the way customers view your company online, while also increasing your site’s traffic, the number of leads you are gathering, and ultimately the number of customers coming through your door which contributes to your company’s revenue.

SMS is the Workhorse of Mobile Marketing

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Mobile Marketing is a huge category of extremely technical stuff that includes Native MobileApps, Mobile Web Sites, Mobile LandingPages, QR Codes, Augmented Reality, SMS Text Messaging, Mobile Search, Mobile Video, Location Based Services and Mobile Commerce. If I had to name one of those as the de facto powerhouse of Mobile Marketing, it would be SMS.

SMS is the workhorse of mobile marketing strategy.

You can use SMS for Text to Win, Text to Vote, Mobile Couponing, Mobile Alerts, Push Notifications, Text to Screen and more. Each SMS use fosters engagement with customers by enticing them to subscribe to your SMS program and thus opt in to your mobile alert database for future communication until the day they reply STOP.

 However, SMS does not just end there. The power of SMS Marketing is visible when you look at how many other forms of mobile marketing strategies can be facilitated or made better by text messaging. This is possible because the SMS autoresponder and the SMS Alert CAN CARRY AN HTTP WEB LINK DIRECTLY TO THE HANDSET allowing the marketer to deliver mobile friendly web content directly into the palm of the consumers’ hand. Below you will find examples of what I mean.

When marketing a Native App via traditional media or at the point of sale, you can use an SMS Keyword to bounce back a link to a URL with browser detection and redirect to the respective app market for app download. Conclusion: SMS makes native app marketing and distribution more efficient.

Over 40 percent of Google local search originates from a mobile device.

Merchants and big businesses alike are scrambling to develop “thumb friendly” mobile web sites. Once the site is live, you can use SMS Keywords and SMS Autoresponders to “deliver” the mobile site to your customers via URL in the text message. Conclusion: SMS is a great way to distribute and promote your new mobile web site. You could also add an SMS opt in web widget to your mobile site to encourage subscription to your alerts.

When performing inbound marketing, it is crucial that you use landing pages to increase conversion.

This does not change in mobile. Mobile landing pages can be delivered via SMS autoresponder. A mobile landing page can include a form, or it can act as a graphical mobile coupon for users with mobile enabled web connections. Conclusion: Mixing SMS and Mobile Landing pages, you can create beautiful mobile coupons and increase mobile web conversions.

Most marketers use QR Codes to link the device to a mobile web site or landing page. However, you can also pre-program a QR Code to prepare an outbound text message to a predetermined number. We use QR Codes with a Call to Action that reads: “Scan this and Hit Send SMS on your phone.” The QR Code is programmed to send a keyword to the short code, thus gaining a subscriber in leiu of just a visitor. The web link is then sent via SMS.

SMS alerts can also include links to Youtube and Wistia videos which are inherently already mobile friendly. Thus, you can use SMS keywords or alerts to deliver mobile videos to your customer.

These are just a few of the ways that SMS empowers mobile strategy and why I call SMS “The Workhorse of Mobile Marketing.”

How To Price Mobile Web Sites for Maximum Profits

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It’s up to you whether you’re using an Enterprise Mobile Site tool to crank out sites, or you’re coding them by hand.

If you are using a tool like ours that has no activation fee, and just a low monthly fee of $8 per HTML5 mobile site, then you will want to price a low activation fee of $200-$400 up front and a monthly fee for the HOSTING and CMS that is more than the $8 you will pay each month.

So a good example is $299 for design and coding, followed by $19.95 per month for CMS and hosting. Using this model, your first 12-month cost for this package is $96 and your gross sales for this same time period is $538.40.

That means you have earned a profit margin of over 560%! Talk about maximum profits!

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If you are coding them by hand using a template that you have previously created, it should take no longer than 6-8 hours to create the HTML5 Mobile Site. It also takes NO SKILL! If you are using a template, a lower-level, $9/hr employee or intern can do the heavy lifting with just a little training, Dreamweaver, and an FTP Client.

In this case, you can choose to sell the source code of the site as a one-time venture, starting at $500 (Duda Mobile backed by Google charges $499, so they set the market).

However, if you can upsell to the client with more bells and whistles that help achieve the goal of the mobile strategy that you help them create, you can charge MUCH MORE. Let’s say you get $800 for the project, your intern does the work at $9/hr and the project takes 6 hours. Your total cost is $54, and your profit margin is over 1400%!

Think you can live with that?

Mobile Marketing Automation & SMS Lead Nurturing

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There is a log of buzz lately amongst enterprise size companies regarding Mobile Marketing Automation and Lead Nurturing as it pertains to Inbound Marketing.

Inbound Marketing is based on the concept that today’s consumer, whether B2B or B2C, has the power to regulate what types of marketing they receive. Both B2B and B2C consumers ought to be assessed with the same principles when it comes to inbound marketing. The power of receiving information is given to them by the technology at their disposal and in their hands. This technology is primarily provided through Google and other search engines, and is amplified by the ease of use and mobility offered by using the technology on smart phones and tablets.

The new consumer paradigm is defined as “Selective Consumption”, meaning that the consumer decides when they want or need a product or service, and then begin searching online for more information. This information is delivered in the form of web pages, articles, press releases, social media and online review platforms. It can also include premium online content like eBooks, case studies, white papers, webinars and videos.

The consumer formulates a list of preferred vendors BEFORE making first contact. Inbound marketing is the process of creating marketing that people love via the offerings of valuable, quality and most importantly FREE content online. The company that can do this on a regular basis floods the Internet with good, useful content and will win the heart of the consumer by reaching them at the exact right moment and with the right product information.

This is the key to selective consumption. Once they have selected you as potential vender, they need multiple EASY ways to contact you or request that you contact them. This is known as Calls to Action and Conversion Tools. Once these tools are implemented, the difficult part of engaging the consumer and getting them to come to your business has already been accomplished.

Mobile Marketing is a spoke in the Inbound Marketing wheel. Consumers typically use the mobile device to conduct online query and research. Since mobile devices have become so integral in the customer’s researching process, it is imperateive that mobile marketing be part of an inbound marketing strategy. This includes but is not limited to mobile friendly sites, mobile web apps, QR codes, SMS calls to action, mobile video and more. This will allow for potential customers to be met with relevant, useful marketing in a primary way in which they are apt to receive it.

What most marketers don’t yet realize however, is that Mobile Marketing can be automated, thus creating the need for Mobile Marketing Automation platforms. The benefits of automating these mobile marketing tools is that instead of flooding potential customers with spam, a relevant message is sent to potential customers based on their previous actions.

Examples of mobile marketing automation and mobile lead nurturing include:

  • SMS Keyword Opt-Ins with SMS Auto-Responders carrying links to premium mobile friendly online content
  • Time Release or Drip SMS campaigns triggered by select SMS keyword actions (just like email lead nurturing)
  • SMS Scheduling (the ability to schedule SMS marketing in advance)
  • SMS platform integration with Social Media (so when you release an SMS it also goes to Twitter and FB)

Mobile Marketing Automation can be achieved through the use of Mobile Marketing Automation platfroms. Like any marketing software as a service, you need to focus on training to create efficiency and deliver measurable results. The software essentially is only as useful and beneficial as the worker’s operating it behind the scenes. Furthermore, you must also focus on Mobile Marketing Association best practices, FCC Guidelines and Carrier regulations.

How to Price your SMS Packages for Maximum Profits

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As a matter of fact, when you do a competitive analysis of the pricing that is out there, you will find that it is all over the place. The one common denominator seems to be that every SMS Reseller is trying to sell on SMS Rates, and in doing so, only fueling the commoditization of the product which hurts everyone involved.

Our sms resellers don’t normally sell on sms rates. They sell packages with apparent value and using our model, they earn profit margins of over 400%. Most SMS Resellers look at what they are paying per SMS and double, or triple, that rate to create a retail cost. THIS IS NOT HOW TO PRICE SMS MARKETING.

My suggestion is that you start with a set-up fee. The set-up fee should be small, but include the apparent value that you will be earning by developing the campaign to be optimized for effectiveness. The set-up fee should include things like creating a mobile landing page, a GR code, SMS Keywords, auto-responder, and scheduled alerts.

Most set-up fees are between $99 and $400, but can be more depending on the scope of the project. The set-up fee is a COMPLETE PROFIT sicne you should not be paying a set-up fee to your SMS Platform Provider per account! Second, you should look at SMS KEYWORDS as a commodity that has a value for monthly billing.

SMS KEYWORD is synonymous with two things:

– Trigger: a keyword triggers an action at the application layer, typically an Auto-Responder.

– Database: each person that texts the keyword will be added to a HOSTED DATABASE.

I say hosted database for a reason. To justify keyword fees monthly, all you need to do is explain that it is a hosted database. If anyone owns a web site, they have heard that it costs extra fees to host a mysql or sql database.

Now as for pricing, we advise that the keyword be valued at about $35 per month retail with discounts for volume. So for example, if a hair salon needs 10 keywords, one for each stylist, you may discount these to $15 each. If a car dealer needs 300 keywords, one for every car on the lot, you may discount these to $3 each, per month.

Now for the SMS- your SMS Marketing Platform should allow you many SMS billing options including:

– One time Bulk SMS Purchase

– Monthly Rollover SMS

– “Use them or lose them” SMS credits

With a one time Bulk SMS Purchase, your client just buys a block of SMS and uses them until they’re gone, at which time they will buy more from you.

With Rollover credits, they get a fresh block of credits added tllldlddldo their account each month on the renewal date. So, if they are not using the full credits each month, they are actually accruing credits monthly.

With “Use them or lose them” credits, they get UP TO XXXX SMS per month.

THIS IS THE PATH TO 400% MARGINS! I will now explain how to get there.

So let’s take a simple SMS Marketing Plan, say with 1 keyword and UP TO 1000 SMS per month*.

Set-up fee: $299
Keyword monthly fee: $35
Credits monthly: $90 (based on .09 per SMS when you pay .03 or less*)

*I suggest buying larger blocks of 100K messages to buy down your rate to .019

Complete package:

1 Keyword and UP TO 1000 SMS per month:
Set-up: $299
Monthly: $125

Require your client to engage in a 6-month agreement. Yeah, I know there are companies offering no contract but that is a fail waiting to happen. Explain that if they are not committed for at least 6-months, then it is not worth doing for them or for you.

At the end of the 6-month term, you have generated $1049 in Gross Revenue. If they sent every message, WHICH THEY WON’T, your cost at .019 is a whopping $114.

Your profit is $935 and your profit margin is 920%!!

DO NOT TELL ME THAT THIS WON’T WORK, I HAVE HUNDREDS OF CLIENTS WITH THE SAME BILLING MODEL.

With that being said, this billing model is BASED ON MANAGED MARKETING SERVICES, which means you are doing all the work for the client.

If you want to just give the client a user account and let them do everything, that is fine. But your churn will be terrible as they will not succeed because they either don’t have a clue what they are doing, or they won’t even use it. If you choose to go this direction for some clients, the following Do-It-Yourself Pricing is recommended:

DIY Package:

1 Keyword and UP TO 1000 SMS per month
Set-up: $99
Monthly: $89

Again, require your client to engage in a 6-month agreement. Remember, if they are not committed for at least 6-months, it is not worth doing for them, or you.

So at the end of the 6-month term, you have generated $633 in Gross Revenue. If they sent every message, WHICH THEY WON’T, your cost at a .019 is a whopping $114!

Your profit is $519 and your profit margin is 555%.

Not bad for doing nothing…

Mobile Marketing Methods

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If you’re looking to become a Mobile Marketing Reseller, you need to analyze your target market. Once you know who you’re selling to, you’ll have a much easier time deciding which type of mobile marketing method is right for you.

A complete lists of Mobile Marketing Methods can clearly outline which type of marketing strategy is right for you and your company. From location-based marketing to QR Codes to SMS text message blasts, there is sure to be something that fits your niche.

Have a look at all that mobile marketing has to offer so you can take your company to the next level as a reseller!

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(image taken from condoinphilippines.wordpress.com)

SMS Reseller: Terms That You Should Know

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When looking to become a successful SMS Reseller, it is important to know the terms that are associated with the industry.

 

A complete list of?Mobile Marketing Reseller Glossary of Terms?can prove to be a resourceful tool in your rise to the top.

Knowing the “lingo” of SMS Reselling will not only help with your understanding of the service that is being offered to you from your White Label provider, but will also prove to your client’s that you are competent in this industry.

Getting Maximum Profits out of your SMS Package

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If you’re looking for ways to maximize profits on your SMS packages, it’s vital that you price them adequately.

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With our SMS Reseller web-based Platform, we give our resellers access to grow their own SMS marketing business for long-term success. Our private White Label Resellers are able to offer outstanding benefits to their customers with unlimited keyword access, multiple SMS billing options and numerous mobile marketing services. Our billing model has proved time and time again that doubling SMS rates isn’t the way to go.

Following a few of our CEO’s simple tips, you can easily learn how to price SMS Packages for Maximum Profit effectively. By taking this advice and applying it to your SMS packages, you could be earning up to a 400% profit! Give it a try, we dare you!

How to Sell SMS as a Marketing Solution

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What do you do when your SMS marketing solution is going to be shot down? You leave it out.

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With so many new and exciting media marketing techniques, it’s no surprise that many company’s hear the word “SMS” and turn to run.

Learning how to sell SMS as a Marketing Solution is all about knowing how to appeal to your client. When your client’s see the fact that having a mobile-friendly website can really benefit them, they’ll be more apt to listen to what you have to say, not only about their mobile site, but also about the benefits that come with having SMS marketing.

We recommend you start in with the fun stuff, like mobile websites and QR codes, then introduce your clients to all the benefits of SMS with a live demo.

You’ll have them hooked. Line, sinker and all.