You’ve heard the buzz about mobile marketing. Now with over 1 million mobile apps across all platforms, you can’t ignore the relevance this has to your business. If you’re asking how does it matter, then consider the simple fact that your web presence must be mobile friendly. That means whether your audience is viewing your digital presence on their phone, Kindle or iPad, they must be able to view your content as intended – or not at all.

Mobile marketing is serious stuff and there are a host of ways big businesses are already creating entire marketing departments out of it that can navigate its complexities. So what’s a small business owner to do if they want to step into this market? Check out the simple solutions below to get started.

Getting Started with Mobile Marketing

If you’re not sure you need mobile marketing tweaks, then spend a moment to test your site across the web. DeviceAnywhere and PerfectoMobile let you see what your site looks like to other users. You won’t just get one look, but a kaleidoscope of what your site looks like through multiple phone models.

Whether you need a complete site adapted across the board for mobile presence or you have a specific campaign that needs a mobile filter, it’s always best to get expert advice. Companies like Mobify.me, Netbiscuits, Winksite, dotMobi Site Builder, mobiSiteGalore, Wirenode and MoFuse, all offer custom site creation and in some cases optimization for your mobile marketing needs.

If you’re a WordPress user though, you just need to reach for the right plugin. WordPress Mobile pack, WPTouch, WordPress Mobile Edition and MobilePress all offer excellent plugin options.

Texting as a Vital Component in Mobile Marketing

Now that you understand the importance of your site’s adaptability and have some steps to fix what’s been wrong so far, let’s take it a step further. Mobile marketing is also about texting. Texting is a lot like an email campaign; it gets you direct access to your end user and lets both sides engage directly.

Texting is just as important in the mobile marketing world. There are companies that can help you with your text marketing goals. A great place to start is with any of the ones listed here, including EZ Texting, Text Hub, Mobile Storm, Involve Mobile and Cellit Mobile Marketing.

If you’re a bigger company with a bigger budget then you should definitely be considering mobile advertising. Mobile advertising is a part of mobile marketing, but it stands apart from content and texts by offering rich app and platform ready advertisements that are created and harnessed for maximum ROI. The leaders here are Admob (Google owned), Quattro Wireless (Apple owned), Jumptap, Google Adsense for mobile and AdTech mobile.

Why Small Businesses Lag in Mobile Marketing

The number one reason why small businesses are suffering with the fast evolving new markets is simply due to a lack of time and resources. They’re often just one person; and even with a budget for simple fixes, they’re slow to give up control to someone who can target key areas.

Small business owners need to take small steps to optimize as their budget allows – even if that means a simple code change to their site. From there, education is key.

While mobile marketing may be a new field for you, consider that 69% of small businesses consider mobile marketing crucial to their business growth over the next five years. This makes sense if you consider that 82.2 million out of 234 million U.S. based mobile users all use a smart phone. It doesn’t stop with a smart phone; consider Kindle and iPad users too.

Using the right tools and getting on board with a mobile marketing campaign can make the difference between existence and extinction in the next few years. Businesses already engaging in a plan have reported an 84% increase in business, and now understand that existing alone just doesn’t cut it in the new market.