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Small business marketing has certainly evolved since the days people set up a stand in the marketplace and hawked their wares.  Every time advancements are made new and exciting opportunities are available to the smart entrepreneur, and small business owners are smart to take advantage of a wide variety of advertising options.  Let’s take a short walk down memory lane to see how small business marketing has evolved. 

Word of Mouth.  In the beginning was the word…and not much more when it came to marketing options.  If you were a tent builder, people knew that because you spread the word.  People’s names even reflected their trade, letting everyone know what service they were skilled at providing (go to Abdul, the tent maker, they would say).  Over time, this expanded to the open marketplace where booth owners cat called over each other to customers passing by (still a popular form of marketing in many parts of the world). 

Written Word.  Written advertisement has probably been around since man took chisel to stone.  In our recent past and present, direct mail, flyers, and other print forms of marketing are still an integral part of our marketing efforts. 

Electronic Marketing.  Electronic marketing became an integral part of small business marketing with the explosion of computer use and the Internet.  Small business owners rely heavily on e-mail marketing, and more and more are taking advantage of social networking and other Internet marketing strategies in their marketing plans. 

The Future.  Computers and Internet have spurred customers and vendors alike to look for more and more advanced technology in their everyday lives.  Cell phones and mobile devices are becoming common place among Americans and world wide.  And all indications are that the future of small business marketing lies in capturing this passion for technology on the road through mobile advertising, also known as SMS or mobile keyword advertising.  With this type of promotion, small business owners can reach their customers any time with tempting offers prompting their continued loyalty. 

Because mobile advertising is opt-in (the customer has to type in a keyword to request receiving text messages from a vendor), the response has been found to be very effective and it has been well received by customer and vendor alike.  Because of the opt in nature, text advertising cannot replace other forms of promotion like print advertisements or email marketing.  But mobile phone advertising is becoming yet another logical way to reach customers and meet their needs.  Mobile advertising is truly the next logical step in the evolution of small business advertising. 

Be sure to visit SmallBusinessMobileAdvertising.com to learn much more about how small businesses can use mobile phone advertising to grow their business. Make sure to get your free mobile phone advertising trial (and mention the promo code “mobilenow” and receive double the credits during your free trial period).

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