3 Most Important Mobile Marketing Channels

Whether you have a mobile app or a mobile website, these channels can help your target audience find your mobile presence.

Estimates from eMarketer indicate that the population of mobile social network users will reach 79 million by 2015, which would result in mobile adoption rates that crush other technological adoption rates of the past. As with any new tech platform, organizations need to understand how to participate in and be found via mobile channels. Whether you have a mobile application or a mobile webpage, here are the top three channels that can help your target audience find your mobile presence:

Mobile Organic Search

A recent study by Google found that a smartphone was the most common starting point for online activities. It's crucial to show up at the top of organic search on mobile devices, because 65 percent of the study participants started with a mobile device when searching for information, as well as shopping, online.

The best way to optimize your website for a mobile device is to create what is known as a responsive website. A responsive website will auto-detect the visitor's device prior to serving up the website content. Upon detection, CSS will then tailor the website content to the specific device. Responsive websites will reduce clutter and avoid duplicate content issues that may arise from duplicating website content on a mobile subdomain such as m.yourdomain.com.

Marketers can also monitor performance using the mobile search data segment in Google Webmaster Tools. Use this tool to monitor the results of your mobile search optimization.

Mobile Content Marketing

The goal of content marketing is to create target-market-oriented content that informs, entertains, provides value, and inspires sharing. It's important to consider context when creating content for different devices. The same Google study mentioned earlier found that smartphone use is primarily motivated by communication and entertainment activities. By contrast, PCs are the most common starting point for more complex activities like planning a trip or managing finances.

It's important to serve the needs of your target market within this large mobile user group with content crafted with a mobile context in mind. For example, launching complex content such as a research paper or interactive survey wouldn't be valuable in a mobile context. Focus on content ideas that support communication, fact references, or entertainment. Be sure to always post mobile-friendly content using HTML and CSS rather than Flash or JavaScript.

The Google Keyword Tool also allows for mobile device segmentation, which can provide keyword research insights for targeting mobile users. Combine the most popular mobile search trends with top-performing activities in mobile such as social networking, informational search, and shopping online. This kind of focus will start you down the path to content built for success on mobile devices.

Mobile App Stores

According to Nielsen, mobile users are spending 10% more time on mobile applications than the mobile Web. There are tremendous opportunities in mobile application development for organizations that want to extend marketing reach through this highly interactive channel. However, deep reach in this channel requires great app content and a solid strategy to make sure your app is found on platforms such as the Apple App Store.

A new start-up promises to add some Ooomf to your mobile app marketing strategy by using a platform that mixes mobile app developers with users to enhance and promote their mobile applications. Founder Mikael Cho recognizes that building a great app is a challenge, but getting people to care about it is even more difficult. Ooomf will employ a promotional strategy that offers a curated list of mobile apps. The company also hopes to develop relationships with mobile journalists and mobile influencers to help them discover apps on the Ooomf website.

You can also monitor the top trending mobile applications by category on Chomp or 148Apps. Emulating the best trending apps on the mobile app store is the best strategy for success, according to the book App Empire.

Right now, companies have the opportunity to be first to market in the world of mobile applications and websites. Use these three platforms to jump-start success for your organization in the mobile space.

Aaron Aders is co-founder and chief strategy officer of Indianapolis-based Slingshot SEO, a national leader in online marketing, planning, and execution. Aders steers the strategic vision behind software and business processes. @SlingshotSEO