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    Top Mobile Trends for B2B Marketing in 2012

    In 2011, we saw lead generation evolve into social media programs, an increased push for compelling content marketing, a focus on inbound marketing tactics and a general push towards marketing automation programs within the B2B marketing landscape.

    What can we expect for B2B Marketing in 2012? For sure we will continue to see inbound marketing tactics continue to grow and evolve as well as social media saturation. One trend that deserves some special attention is mobile marketing. Mobile marketing should propel forward to create a new marketing playground for many B2B companies.

    Smartphones and iPads have recently become highly valued business tools for many SMB owners. As the technology of mobile devices like smartphones and tablets continues to grow and prices continue to drop, these tools will undoubtedly become more pervasive for purchase decision-makers in business-to-business, “particularly for those buyers investing in riskier, high-cost industrial or technology purchases that require extensive research and consideration,” suggests a recent article from eMarketer.com titled ‘B2B Buyers Research Purchases on Multiple Screens.’ “In their own time and from their own desk, buyers can research, vet vendors and solicit peer advice to inform their purchase decisions.”

    With many experts predicting smartphones and other similar mobile technology to eclipse standard desktop computer access in years to come, it’s time to pay attention to the trends. A recent study conducted by TriComB2B and the University of Dayton explains that more than half (59%) of B2B purchase decision-makers and influencers used smartphones to gather such information, indicating a sizeable mobile audience likely engaging with company content assets like websites, catalogs and blogs.

    Information like this is hard to ignore, and as this technology grows in 2012 and beyond, B2B marketers will be forced to welcome mobile into their marketing strategies. People are already viewing your Web site on their mobile phones and this number will only grow in 2012.

    A mobile marketing trends to watch for in 2012:

    1. Location based tools going to be the next major movement in mobile.

    2. QR codes will become more important – within seconds, you can take someone from a scan with their phone to being on your site watching a webinar or signing up for your e-newsletter.

    3. Video will be one of the most important things you can offer on your mobile website – but make sure content is relevant, unique and under 1.5 minutes.

    4. The importance of thinking “inside the box” (mobile phone). Go back and imagine what the client is looking at on their phones—and create a way to help them get it better, faster and easier.

    One common mistake marketers make is adding fancy mobile apps to their site before considering a mobile-friendly website. It’s shocking how many people have put hundreds of thousands of dollars into apps—we’ve heard of some companies spending up to $250,000 on apps, for example—but they still haven’t optimized their websites for Andriod or iPhone. The very first thing B2B companies should do is optimize their websites for mobile media. If you don’t do anything else, do just that. And, with the emergence of HTML5, mobile apps may become obsolete altogether. Yet another reason to first invest in your current website!

    Further reading:

    Read more about the power of HTML5:

    More reading on Mobile Marketing Trends for 2012:

    How are you taking advantage of mobile marketing trends in 2012?