The Grand Strand offers over 60 miles of beach land for vacationers to enjoy, and with the Intracoastal Waterway and Waccamaw River so close, the Grand Strand is one of the most popular tourist locations on the East coast for water sports enthusiasts. However, only those vacationers who do research on the area’s offerings and proactively seek out deals will even know what is available. Where can boats and jet skis be rented? Where is parasailing available? Where are the best water parks? Where can people go to fish, and what are the requirements? Mobile marketing can be an invaluable tool for water-based attractions to draw in business by delivering all the answers and information to consumers directly. The customer does not need to ask around and depend upon random referrals, suggestions, or drive-bys; an SMS campaign can help drive up business by targeting water sports enthusiasts directly on their phones and then leading them to specific deals and locations that fit their specified interests.
Establishments that rent boats, jet skis, and other water accessories can easily incorporate a mobile element into their advertising campaign by inviting people to text a keyword in order to receive a coupon. Since these businesses typically offer print coupons anyway, why not expand the reach? Do not rely on the interested customer to pick up the particular print circular—of which there are many—where your coupon happens to be placed; make it available to anyone who owns a mobile phone. Once the consumer has opted in to a campaign in order to receive a discount, a business can find out the client’s other interests and advertise additional services accordingly.
Equipment rental sites and water parks can increase the benefits of mobile marketing by placing additional signs directly on site that invite people to opt in to the SMS campaign. Everyone standing in line at a particular business is obviously interested in purchasing its services or products, and many of those consumers will appreciate the opportunity to text for an immediate discount as well as additional VIP-type promotions for the rest of their stay in Myrtle Beach. Since many of the water attractions in the area appeal to families, SMS marketing can help turn one-time visitors into repeat customers throughout the duration of their visit.
It is not too late to join the interactive SMS campaign, txtMB, which aggregates promotions for a variety of area attractions and sends them directly to visitors’ cell phones. The campaign is permission-based so that only interested visitors receive the alerts. Visitors can specify which entertainment categories interest them and will receive promotions only for those sites that fit the selected interests. Boating rental sites, water parks, fishing-related shops, and any other business that caters to water enthusiasts can integrate mobile coupons and deals into their advertising strategies by joining txtMB or by initiating their own SMS campaigns.
Mobile marketing campaigns, including SMS campaigns, work best when the company has a website adapted to mobile. The widespread use of mobile technology has created unique opportunities for businesses to put advertisements directly in customers’ hands wherever they happen to be. Companies that make the most of mobile technology by having all of their pertinent information (location, prices, store hours, contact numbers, directions, etc.) readily available on their customized mobile site provide convenience for their clients and, thus, have the best chance of attracting visitors.
