The last year has really been fun to be in marketing hasn’t it?  Think of all the “shiny new toys” that have come of age in the last year.  Facebook, Twitter, and of course the iPhone, Droid, Blackberry and numerous other smart phones.  All these new and exciting ways to reach out to your customers.

Of course all this new technology has come with a learning curve the size and shape of the Matterhorn.  Maybe “fun” isn’t the right way to describe this new landscape.

So on the topic of Smart Phones, what’s a local business to do?  Your winning strategy comes with four steps.

1.  Make a Commitment

The number of people here in the valley with smart phones is only going to grow.  So will their reliance on them as their primary communication / information gathering device.  And the more affluent your potential customer is, generally speaking anyway, the more likely they will be to rely on one of these little gems.  Whether you are ready of not, this is the new reality.  Whether your vehicle of choice becomes an ap, an ad, or a simple text message, you need to have a vehicle in this race as you can be certain that your competitors will.

2.  Don’t Overcommit

Caught you off guard with this one, didn’t I?  The major mistake I see local businesses making (more…)