Source: Brien M. Posey

I like to share an excellent article by Brien M. Posey the eight time Microsoft MVP. 

Believe it or not, not everyone has a smart phone. Fortunately, users without ActiveSync-enabled phones can still access Outlook 2010 information such as calendar summaries, reminders and email via SMS text messaging. Here’s how to set it up.

To begin the configuration process, click on the File tab in Outlook 2010, then click Options. When the Options screen appears, click the Mobile tab. Next, click the Calendar Summary Settings button. When you do, you’ll see a message stating that you need to configure a text messaging account before continuing (Figure 1).

 

 

 

Figure 1. You must configure a text messaging account to use Outlook 2010’s mobile messaging features.

 

Click Next, and you’ll see a screen asking you to enter a service provider URL, a user ID and a password. You must obtain this information from a messaging service provider, which is almost always separate from the user’s mobile carrier.

 

Figure 2 shows a dialog box with a link to help you find a text messaging provider for your mobile carrier. Depending on which carriers your employees use, you may be able to find a free account or at least an account that offers a free trial.

  

 

Figure 2. Configure Outlook 2010 to use a messaging service provider.

 

After entering the aforementioned service provider URL, user ID and password, click OK.

 

Send Outlook 2010 calendar summaries via text

The Calendar Summaries option lets you send calendar information to mobile devices that don’t support Exchange ActiveSync. To do so, click the Calendar Summary Settings button. When you do, you’ll see a dialog box (Figure 3).

 

 

 

Figure 3. Outlook can send calendar summary information to mobile phones that do not have ActiveSync enabled.

 

As you can see, you have the option to specify what time of day the calendar summary is sent. You can also exclude specific types of events, such as all-day events, weekend events or events that occur outside of working hours.

 

I recommend choosing the option to send one text message for each appointment. Disabling this option reduces the number of text messages that are sent, which saves money. However, the text messages are a lot easier to organize when there is a separate message for each event.

 

Send Outlook 2010 reminders via text

 

You can also configure Outlook 2010 to send mobile reminders. To do so, click the Mobile Reminder Settings button. You can base reminders on how your name appears on an item, as well as on the item’s category (Figure 4).

 

 

 

Figure 4. Configure Outlook 2010 to send reminders via text messages.

 

President Barack Obama has proclaimed the week  of May 20 through May 26, 2012 a National Small Business Week, to recognize the importance and contributions of small businesses to the the American economy. To honor small businesses week, TXTImpact is offering a jump start text messaging marketing packages for small businesses.

TXTImpact is the one-stop mobile marketing company that provides businesses, brands, and agencies to engage customers via Mobile. TXTImpact allow companies to interact with customers via Text messaging, mobile websites, QR codes, social media, and HTML5 apps using its proprietary mobile marketing platform.

ON National Small Business Week, TXTImpact is offering small businesses a jump start package to start text message marketing.

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For those marketers and advertisers still not sold on the power of mobile marketing and the need to engage their customers and prospects via a mobile website, a report issued by IBM showed that sales via a mobile phone/smartphone/tablet on Cyber Monday 2011 increased an incredible 192% over last year. And you can expect that number to only go higher next year. 

The IBM report also showed that the number of people using their mobile phone/smartphone/tablet to just visit a retailer’s website increased 177% from last year to this year on Cyber Monday. Clearly boys and girls we are living in a mobile world, but you already knew that, right?

So riddle me, this Batman and Batgirl, why are so many retailers NOT engaging their customers and prospects via a mobile ready website?

According to a survey conducted by Brand Anywhere and Luth Research:

• 51% of consumers more likely to purchase from retailers that have mobile-specific websites
• 4.8% of U.S. retailers have mobile-specific websites
• 22.8% of the top retail websites (ranked by Alexa®) have mobile-specific websites
• Web retailers could increase consumer engagement by 85% with a mobile-specific website

Take out the word “Web” in that last bullet for EVERY retailer – whether they also have bricks-and-mortar locations in addition to their “regular” website, should have… operative words “should have” an optimized mobile website.

Among all Interactive Marketing platforms, Mobile Marketing is expected to grow 38% over the next five years with an estimated $8.2 billion being allocated to it by the year 2016.

That was the opening line of another post I wrote on mobile marketing, Mobile Marketing Spending To Have The Biggest Increase Over Next Five Years.

So let me see if I got this straight… Most marketers and advertisers see the need to spend money via mobile marketing, mobile advertising, etc., yet many – only 4.8% according to at least one study, do not see the need to engage consumers via a mobile website, even though the evidence is clear that more and more consumers are going online via their mobile phone/smartphone/tablet?

The Social Media Factor…

One of the other key findings I wanted to share from the IBM report is this:

“Discussions on social media sites leading up to Cyber Monday increased in volume by 115 percent compared to 2010. Top areas of discussion focused on consumers sharing tips about using price comparison websites while avoiding cyber scams.”

Again, another opportunity for brand managers, product managers, marketers and advertisers of all shapes and sizes to engage their customers and prospects… that is if these same brand managers, product managers, marketers and advertisers of all shapes and sizes were monitoring what was being said on the social media sites then capitalizing where they could to converse and actively engage folks.

Sources: IBM Benchmark Cyber Monday Report 2011

TxTImpact annouced a SMS Marketing jump start package for businesses to launch their SMS marketing campaign with Dedicated short code.

Signup for $500/month plan before Dec 25th, 2011

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• 1 cent a Message for additional text messages
• $1500 one time setup fee

Through TxtImpact effective and affordable SMS Marketing and group text messaging services now businesses will be able to launch their mobile marketing campaigns without any hassle!

Click here to contact TxtImpact sales and learn more about Holiday promotions and their mobile marketing services

Record Black Friday sales have given retailers hope that business will pick up a bit this holiday season. For many people, that news conjures images of crowded mall parking lots and busy big-box retailers.

But the news also offers opportunities for small businesses like those that line Hopkins’ Mainstreet.

Hopkins Patch spoke with Doug Denny—a local marketing consultant and copywriter—about how local businesses can make the most of the season. His company, DeJa Local Marketing, has done work for businesses ranging from Hopkins Auto Body to Chili’s.

Here’s what he had to say.

1) Connect your business to local holiday events.

Hopkins has plenty of seasonal festivals that local businesses can often tap into better than big-box retailers. Small-businesses owners should tie their sales into these events in order to emphasize how local they are, Denny said. For example, stores open during Hopkins’ Old Fashioned Christmas celebration could offer an “Old Fashioned Deal.”

2) Tie in to local successes.

Hopkins’ sense of community is one of its greatest strengths. While the standardization of big-box stores can make it hard for them to capitalize on that sentiment, local businesses don’t have that problem. Their owners often live in the city and have a pulse on local happenings.

Find out what’s successful in the schools, in churches and elsewhere in the community, Denny suggested. Then connect promotions to those local highlights. When the boys basketball team won its third championship in a row, for example, stores could have offered three deals for the three-peat.

“Think local,” Denny said. “Don’t just think about your customers. Think about your customers’ lives.”

3) Connect with customers on the go.

That means going mobile.Use text message alerts, smart phone apps, mobile websites and other options to reach potential customers as they go about their day.

The good news is that these products are no longer the domain of big corporations. Small businesses can hire someone to put together a functional app for less than $2,000—with financing plans available to spread the cost out, Denny said. Mobile websites are even cheaper, as low as $750 for an easily navigable site tailored to smart phones.

When you have the mobile pieces in place, promote them heavily at point of sale locations and other traditional ways in order to let customers know the options are out there. Offer mobile-only deals with coupon codes.

Local stores may offer products and bargains as good as those in a crowded holiday mall. But that doesn’t help if customers aren’t reminded about what’s available.

“Reach them where they are, so we can shop Mainstreet,” Denny said.

4) Avoid “interruptive marketing” whenever possible.

These are messages that force potential customers to stop whatever they’re doing to pay attention to the ad—whether that’s a commercial breaking into a TV show or a newspaper ad interrupting an article.  Customers, especially the younger generation, have become adept at tuning out this type of marketing.

But what about the text message alerts and other messaging that Denny recommends? Those aren’t interruptive because customers opted to receive them, he said, noting that about 95 percent of text messages are opened.

5) Build in a time element.

All that mobile marketing means businesses are no longer communicating with people comfortably ensconced on the couch. Those messages are coming in while people are in meetings, transporting their children or otherwise going about their day. 

Including a not-too-distant deadline—“Come in during the next four hours for a special price.”—encourages customers to stop by on their way home and choose your store for the spontaneous decisions they make while out and about, Denny said.

6) Don’t sweat it if customers share the coupon codes with friends who don’t subscribe to your mobile products.

The whole goal is to increase the number of customers. As long as you’ve included some profit margin, your store will be better off for the extra people stopping by.

7) Make visiting your store enjoyable—especially throughout the holiday season.

“During the holidays, people are attracted to bright lights and fun,” Denny said.

Source: hopkins.patch.com

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