Page 364 - Social Media Marketing for Dummies

Here are a few types of mobile searches:

» Search engines: Just as the web does, search engines and portal sites, such
as Google and Yahoo!, have mobile versions. One big difference between the
Internet-based and mobile versions is in how results are displayed. For
example, when you search for restaurants in a particular city, the listings show
the address and phone number (allowing you to easily click the phone
number and call the restaurant).
» Directories: Local search and mobile directories are often available through
the phone carrier. Some directory services use GPS (global positioning system)
technology to help determine where you are and provide the right informa-
tion. Directories assist users in finding sites and are just like the yellow pages
of the mobile web.

» Recommendation services: Similarly to technology on the Internet, mobile
recommendation engines help users by providing similar or related content
as their next step.

For the consumer, mobile search helps unlock the mystery of using the mobile
device phone so that people can get the most out of it. As a marketer, you need to
make sure that consumers can find the sites and campaigns that you work hard
on. In order to be “found” by a mobile search engine, you have to take into account
a couple of things:

» Make sure that your mobile site has “good code.”

Search engines don’t like messy sites that contain code errors.
Have your mobile site tested, and make sure that it gets a passing grade by
the code police. Two mobile site testers are http://ready.mobi and
https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly.
» Follow search engine optimization (SEO) best practices.
SEO describes how to get websites to appear in search results for specific
keywords. Use your most important keywords — the words that your
customers use when searching for you — in your pages and your titles. Make
sure that the site is accessible by using text links throughout the site. And then
submit your mobile site to the mobile search engine, which involves a simple
process of going to the mobile search engine submission page and filling out
the form.

We’ll say it again: You must make sure that your social mobile site is search
friendly so that people can find you by phone. People may hear about an applica-
tion or a fun mobile site from their friends and have to rely on a search service to

348 PART 5 Old Marketing Is New Again with SMM