Businesses leveraging mobile marketing strategies are using location-based campaigns to connect to their prospective customers, taking promotions directly to them based on their geographic location. Consumers have become quite savvy at using their smartphones, mobile phones and other handheld devices to research and find what they want online and while technology brings plenty of benefits, it also has its shortcomings.

When it comes to mobile devices there is an increasing concern over the tracking device in the phone. The iPhone, BlackBerry and Android phones have a location device embedded in the phone used by satellites to identify the coordinates of the phone’s location.  Location tracking has several advantages, for instance it can help the police or emergency services reach the owner of the phone quickly in case of emergency.  On the other hand, there are applications that make use of the user’s location to display information such as movie show times, restaurants in the area and other things the user might be interested in.  Sites such as Foursquare and Facebook offer their check-in feature based on location tracking.

It is in these situations that the lack of privacy and safety is highlighted as the information collected by these apps could easily fall into the wrong hands. As consumers download and enjoy their favorite mobile apps, it is difficult to determine who else can access their location information.  Even though devices, apps and sites have privacy policies on how they will use the information they collect, there is a good chance that it could leak. The obvious thing to do is to be wary about what we put out on the web.

Location tracking by Google and Apple was recently in the news and raised privacy and safety concerns with smartphone users.  The unencrypted data collected by these companies are stored on iPhones and iPads for over a year and synced to their personal computers. Even though Google and Apple both deny that any individual tracking data is collected, mobile marketers will adopt a wait-and-watch policy.

Location based marketing may be an effective way to reach consumers however, the fact that marketers can customise ads to consumers’ location may make consumers feel as if they are watched all the time.  What is your take on mobile location tracking? Share your views in the comments section.

Mobile marketing is fast becoming one of the most effective ways to reach an audience that marketers may not be able to reach with traditional marketing methods. One might assume that most marketers would already have some long-term strategies in place to leverage this mobile platform but that is not the case. Many companies are still getting accustomed to this innovative marketing method.

Do you need a mobile marketing strategy?

Millions of mobile devices are sold every year and this makes it a great way for businesses to connect customers with their brands. Handheld devices like the iPad, iPhone, BlackBerry and Android phones make it possible to stay connected 24 hours a day. For businesses, this means the opportunity to engage with their customers exist 24 x 7. People use their mobile phones to access the Internet and download apps and businesses can take advantage of this and build their mobile marketing strategy around it.  Mobile marketing can come in different forms depending on the nature of your business. The predominant platforms are mobile websites (.mobi sites) and apps.

Your mobile marketing strategy would depend on your business. If you have an e-commerce business, you might consider offering an app or .mobi site so that customers can interact with you and easily buy from you. If you do not sell online, or if your purchase process is lengthy and complex, you will need to think of ways to keep your existing and potential customers engaged so that you can maintain healthy online client relationships.   This can be done by offering value-added content rather than hard-hitting sales messages. Consider generating a QR code that customers can use to access various types of content.   At the end of the day, your customers must perceive value and usability in what you offer and mobile marketing provides a great opportunity to build and enhance customer relationships.