Making the Case for Mobile Marketing: Bringing in the SMS Fans with Oklahoma City Bricktown

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Key takeaways

• Bricktown revived sagging visitor numbers by combining SMS and social media to build a lasting contact list and stronger digital presence.
• Primary goals were to boost foot traffic and community interaction while increasing the value of advertising inventory.
• Sign-up acquisition used on-site signage, social posts, website banner ads and incentives. Visitors texted CHEVY to short code 62582 to join.
• SMS content included upcoming events, brand news, giveaways and coupons/limited-time offers, value-driven content beyond discounts.
• Measured success by growth in Facebook followers, similar monthly gains to the mobile list and higher ad rates for on-site and website placements.
• Best practices: promote the SMS programme across every channel, offer varied value in texts and leverage combined SMS/social reach to enhance overall marketing operations.

Introduction

The impact of mobile marketing can’t be overstated. According to IDC, more people in the U.S. will access the Internet through a mobile device than through their PC by 2015. In this new series, Elite Email takes a look at highly successful campaigns to uncover their mobile marketing lessons. This week’s case study: How the Bricktown tourist attraction in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma helped boost sagging visitor numbers with a savvy SMS and social media campaign. While every city has a “trendy” spot, few compare to Bricktown in Oklahoma City. With a sprawling variety of specialty shops, restaurants, and major regional events and concerts throughout the month, it probably doesn’t sound like Bricktown needs much help in the marketing department, right? Unfortunately, sometimes it takes a new approach to reinvigorate a flagging audience and gain a little extra traction for the other marketing operations included in a branded initiative. To find out how the team at Bricktown did just this with a savvy SMS and social media approach, let’s spend some time breaking down the particulars of this stellar mobile marketing campaign.

Building the Foundation Brick by Brick

At the core of this approach, Bricktown wanted to accomplish two things – build a lasting SMS contact list and a strong presence on the various social media networks. By doing this, the team managing the marketing side of this premier tourist attraction in Oklahoma City not only hoped to boost foot traffic on site and more interaction with the community, but also leverage this enhanced digital standing to generate additional value for its online advertising partners. Essentially, Bricktown hoped that building the foundation of a strong SMS approach would improve all aspects of the attraction’s marketing operations.

Spreading the Word about Bricktown

So how did Bricktown spread the word about its revamped SMS contact list? To start, signage around Bricktown’s various attractions, as well as in the digital world via social media posts and website banner ads, helped get the on-site and web communities excited about upcoming events and new additions to the area. Additionally, Bricktown also offered a variety of giveaways and limited time offers for those willing to join the club. In order to redeem their membership, consumers simply had to text the keyword “CHEVY” to the short code 62582.

Gauging the Success of the Campaign

To say that this campaign was a success might be selling Bricktown’s efforts a little short. Since the initiative’s inception, the marketing team at Bricktown has reported hundreds of new followers on Facebook, as well as similar gains on the mobile marketing list each month. In turn, this enhanced presence in both the physical and digital landscapes has significantly increased the value of advertising spots in Bricktown proper, the center’s website, and even in promotions that end up serving as part of the various deployed text messages. Today, the campaign still continues to stand as a shining example of what a smart and effective mobile marketing campaign can do when promoted from a variety of different angles.

Finding Your Own Path to Success

Even if you’re not in the business of standing as a civic attraction, there’s still plenty of powerful tips and tricks to pull from Bricktown’s successful campaign. First off, don’t be afraid to support your mobile marketing initiative across every format possible. While it might take some extra work to build a comprehensive campaign, having a strong backing and enhanced awareness across social media, in your local community, and within your site’s visiting audience goes a long way toward maximizing an SMS contact list’s potential.

From here, the content you share via text messages doesn’t have to be only in the realm of coupons and limited time offers. Bricktown made a major name for itself by promoting upcoming events in the shopping center, as well as utilizing this platform for brand news and giveaways. Value-driven content starts with discounts, but there’s nothing in the SMS rulebook that says your campaign can’t offer even more.

Finally, building a strong following on the SMS, social, and digital fronts isn’t just great for your brand awareness and foot traffic in-store, it also enhances the value of the rest of your advertising operations. Leveraging this increased position in your industry like Bricktown did helps add even more potential to an already powerful process. Whether you’re a local staple like this civic center or you have aspirations for global business operations, squeezing every last ounce of value out of text message marketing can help reach even the loftiest of goals.

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