Pestworld Magazine Focusing on the Business of Pest Management
For many of us in the field of marketing, and other disciplines I might add, the typical nine to five schedule has been over since the inception of the mobile phone. There are both pros and cons to this development; while our increasingly connected world tends to make purely off-hours a rare commodity, it also allows for an amount of flexibility in our work schedules that would have been impossible before. Thanks to sophisticated and easily transported smart-devices, it is possible to get work done from just about anywhere with a WiFi signal.
Thanks to mobile apps, there are increased opportunities throughout the day to connect with your customers, especially in the digital space. Powerful marketing software for your mobile device can ensure your message is being heard from wherever you are. For the pest control marketing professional, apps are an affordable and easily accessible addition to your marketing mix. Apps can assist with managing various social media accounts and content, monitoring the web for conversations about your company or brand and tracking key analytics.
With countless apps to choose from, we’ve taken the first step in putting together a starter list for you.
Social Media Account Management
While social media has made connecting directly with your customers easier than ever, it is only a beneficial resource when the appropriate amount of time has been taken to keep pages updated. However, it can also be detrimental when you post too frequently or aren’t posting content that is interesting to your followers. Fortunately there are plenty of helpful apps to manage all of your social media pages that will cut down on time and streamline the content distribution process.
Buffer
Buffer is a powerful app that allows you to share to Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest and LinkedIn all from one place. Within the app, you can schedule social posts for the future, saving time in a marketer’s busy schedule. Buffer can also automatically schedule posts at ideal times. Additionally, the app provides analytics for each social update including the clicks, retweets, re-pins, likes, shares, mentions and more.
Hootsuite
Similar to Buffer, Hootsuite is an app that allows you to manage your social media efforts across various platforms. Within Hootsuite, you can schedule posts to your networks, monitor conversations about your company, engage with followers and track content performance. The app is free to use for up to three social profiles.
Sprout Social
Sprout Social is another platform to assist marketers with social media management and engagement across the most popular platforms. With Sprout, you are able to view all of your messages in one place, post, schedule queue or draft new messages, view analytics for individual social posts, and monitor and share content from their newsfeeds. Give all three a try and see what may be best for your needs!
Content Procurement & Distribution
One of the most valuable ways to continue to connect with current and future customers is to provide them with interesting and valuable content. It can be time-consuming and challenging to find appropriate content and distribute it to the right audiences, at the right time. Check out the apps below which may assist in getting your content to the right people in a timely manner!
Feedly
Feedly allows you to subscribe to RSS feeds that will help you find content to share on your social media channels. The app organizes your favorite publications, blogs, YouTube channels and more so that all relevant content is in the same place and in a simple, user-friendly format. Quick access to news that matters allows pest control marketers to stay ahead of what’s going on in the industry. Feedly also integrates with other useful marketing apps such as Facebook, Twitter, Buffer and LinkedIn, making it easy to share the best stories with your followers.
Daily
Made by the folks at Buffer, Daily is an app full of content that is perfect for skimming while you have a few moments of free time. Each day, the app provides readers with a batch of new articles and posts that are catered to their interests. Users are able to swipe right for content they like, and left for content they would prefer to skip. Preferred content joins a queue in Buffer that is easily accessible for sharing later with fans and followers.
MailChimp
MailChimp is one of the most popular tools for email marketing distribution and management, and now the software is also available as a mobile app. The app allows you to manage their contact lists, add new subscribers, send campaigns and view reports with just a few taps. After creating campaigns on a desktop or tablet, the smartphone app can then distribute them to your subscribers.
PixxFly
PixxFly is a fully automated content distribution and performance tracking app. With one click, all content is distributed and syndicated to more than 30 top social and content rich platforms. The app also reports on which content produced the best results across all marketing channels, allowing marketers to more smartly plan future campaigns.
Other Apps for Your Mobile Marketing Toolbox
Mention
We all know how important it is to keep the trust of our customers. We’re in their homes and places of business. In many instances they treat us like family. That being said, if a potential customer reads a negative review or statement about your company online, it could cause them to turn elsewhere for their pest control needs. Monitoring for mentions of and conversations about your brand online can help you figure out where improvements are necessary, as well as identify your audience. It will also allow concerns or complaints to be addressed in real-time to ensure you remain in control of your digital reputation.
With Mention, users can create alerts for their company’s name, brand, competitors and more and receive real-time updates with the most relevant mentions on the web. Mention monitors millions of media, social media and blog sources for keywords, and also connects with your social accounts to allow for easy engagement.
Google Analytics
Analytics are the backbone of any successful digital marketing campaign. Whether you are in a meeting and need the most recent analytics numbers at your fingertips or are crafting a marketing campaign strategy from outside the office, the convenient Google Analytics app allows you to keep track of what’s working and what isn’t in real-time.
The Google Analytics app was designed with on-the-go marketers in mind and is optimized for mobile viewing. The app measures all the same data that is available on the Google Analytics website, including traffic statistics and campaign results to help you shape your digital strategies.
WiFi Finder
All of the aforementioned apps are valuable tools, but they won’t do much good without a stable WiFi connection! Fortunately, the WiFi Finder app provides you with a map of networks that are available in their vicinity. The app can be used both online or offline and is available for use worldwide. Users can view details on hotspots, such as whether they are paid or private, and the type of location, such as a café or hotel.
Conclusion
In today’s complex digital world, determining the most time-effective and successful ways to connect with your customers is an ongoing challenge and a great opportunity! We’d love you to share your favorite marketing Apps with us. Send me an email at [email protected] and we’ll continue to grow the list and post it on the NPMA board. Now that you are armed with some of the most popular and useful apps for marketers, it’s time to get to work—wherever that may be!
