We’re going mobile.

And so are your prospects and customers.

It’s been 41 years since The Who released “Who’s Next” which included this iconic hit song. Mobile marketing isn’t that old but it’s nothing really new either. However, the fact is until now it didn’t usually pay off for small business marketing efforts. Sure there were a few exceptions such as sms messaging  but mobile marketing was still a very small and limited opportunity.

But, that is about to change. In fact it already has.

Pick your buzz term – “Inflection point”, “critical mass”, “paradigm shift” or whatever else there is no denying – mobile’s time has finally come. The small business mobile marketing figures speak for themselves but you really don’t need us to tell you as you likely see it every day.

So what now? How do you evolve and capitalize on using mobile to market your business.

First, the good news is that the major social platforms, where you should already have a presence, is mobile friendly and constantly optimized. So that piece of the puzzle is generally in good shape.

But, what about your company web site? Our own surveys show less than 30% of small businesses have mobile friendly web sites. Before you can really even think of mobile marketing you should make sure your web site is mobile ready.

If you outsource your web site – put it on this week’s checklist to contact your provider to discuss the state of your site for the mobile world.

If you are a DIY web master,  great, there are many resources to help you configure your site including easy plug ins for those on WordPress.

Another simple resource that you can use right now is B Mobilzed. This service will let you check the status of your site for mobile usage and even create a mobile site in minutes for you. There’s no shortage of places to turn for additional mobilization tips either. And once you are mobile then it will be time to dive into new marketing tactics just for the phone such as location based mobile marketing.

Moving forward watch for more mobile marketing tips and ideas but, before we get ahead of ourselves, make sure your web site is mobile ready ASAP.  Then you too can sing – I’m mobile ….Oooooh, yeah, hee! Mobile, mobile, mobile yeah!

image credit – azzcat design