Tips on How to Use Facebook to Reach a Mobile Audience

Facebook recently announced it will use the Timeline format for mobile devices. This step only shows that Facebook is taking the mobile market seriously—and rightfully so. With growing numbers of smartphone and tablet users, marketers should recognize the value in mobile marketing. Facebook will enable the use of Sponsored Stories for brands’ advertising purposes, which could very well be the first step of many mobile-targeted changes the network will implement. Facebook claims that around 200 million users access their Facebook account via a mobile device every day.

In that regard, the following are some tips for business marketers to use Facebook to reach a mobile audience:

–          Sponsored Stories: These will appear on users’ news feeds and increase brand visibility. Make sure you don’t post too many Sponsored Stories, since you don’t want to overload people with content. However, remain consistent and determine an acceptable frequency.

–          Ads: This is the most common way of reaching a mobile audience so far. If you want to promote your business and services, using the ads should be part of a basic mobile marketing plan.

–          Optimize page content: Make sure your page’s content is fully optimized for mobile interactions. Pay attention to engagement applications, functionality and the design; the design should invite users in, and it should be viewable on smartphones as well as on tablets.

–          Add locations: For local retailers it’s a must to include your location as this allows users to easily find your business and check in. Simple as it may sound, some marketers neglect to use this benefit.

–          Supporting campaigns: Make sure you reinforce mobile campaigns in your brick and mortar location and vice versa. Consistency is key for a brand’s stability.

–          Check-in deals: These deals allow you to connect with local customers, which is a good start to building relationships. There are four types of check-in deals:

Individual Deal: Local retailers can benefit from this deal in case they wish to get rid of excess inventory or launch a new product, for example.

Friend Deal: Choose this deal if you are offering discounts to groups of people (up to 8), as long as they check-in together. Multiple check-ins generate more stories, which is a huge advantage.

Loyalty Deal: This is the deal you choose if you want to show appreciation to your loyal customers. Customers can claim their rewards after a certain number of check-ins. It’s a great way to keep investing in existing customers.

Charity Deal: You can choose to make a donation to a charity, and in Facebook’s words, ”This is a great way for your business to give back to the community while adding a human touch to your business.”

If you’re planning to use all of the tips mentioned above, you will probably want to scale your efforts. Facebook has developed the Ads API, Insights API, and the Pages API. According to MobileMarketer.com, this enables third parties to help their clients efficiently buy and measure Facebook ads.

Marketers have a whole new world to discover on Facebook’s mobile aspirations, yet the social network is reaching out to marketers in every way possible. It makes you wonder what this means for the future of mobile marketing on social networks. The two are very likely to grow together and complement each other.

How are you using Facebook’s mobile opportunities for your brand?