This article was written by Yael Warman, Content Manager at Leverate.
As the number of Forex brokers has multiplied extensively over the past few years, the marketplace has become particularly crowded. Forex companies are beginning to ask themselves how they can develop a unique brand, and offer their customers more than what is on offer from their competitors.
One way in which to do so is to take advantage of the more than 80% of internet users who own a smartphone, and invest their development budgets in ensuring that those people’s mobile online experience cements them as loyal customers. Other industries have quickly grasped that investments in mobile technology are essential, and the FX brokerages who corner this market will guarantee impressive profits.
One of the biggest industries to take advantage of the growth in mobile technology is online gaming. Statistics released earlier this year by NewZoo showed that for the first time ever, mobile gaming will take a larger share than PC in 2016, with $36.9 billion, up 21.3% globally, and the CEO of one of the biggest gaming sites said, “Gaming has spread to a number of platforms, but at the end of the day, the platform that is always closest to us, is mobile. Mobile is where the future of gaming lies.”
The question for FX businesses is both how to establish a mobile presence and how to promote the business through mobile devices.
There are a number of steps that can be taken to promote and establish your business, both to new and existing customers:
1. QR Codes
QR Codes should be included on all your marketing materials, allowing people to scan them on their mobile devices. You should set your code to allow the visitor access to a specific page on your website, a special discount or the download page for your mobile app.
2. Text/Email Marketing
Once you have obtained contact details, you can message your customers regularly. Texts and emails must include one-touch links that allow customers direct access to the content/offer that is being advertised in the body of the email/text. Regular communication with customers is important, but of far greater importance is the necessity of personalising all communication. A monthly generic email is expected, but customers quickly tire of these emails, and companies should ensure that the email is not only addressed in person to the customer, but also contains information suited to the trading history of the client.
3. Mobile App
Mobile apps are prevalent across all industries, and are usually preferred by customers to the alternative of entering a trading site through a website. The initial access is much quicker, with many trading apps requiring just a password for security purposes before a customer has full access to the trading options available on your site. The mobile app also allows you to provide a range of tools to your customer, thus ensuring that they can trade whenever they so desire, a crucial advantage in today’s world, when customers require 24/7 access to their trading accounts.
4. Mobile Friendly
Should you decide not to create an app, ensure that your website is mobile friendly. There is no bigger turn-off for customers than being constantly frustrated by a website that is incompatible with a mobile platform.
5. Push Notifications
Once you have an app, this will also allow you to create both push and in-app notifications. Push notifications allow you to communicate with your customers even when they are not currently on the app, thus allowing you to update them regarding their favourite assets or current trading news. In-app notifications allow you to send messages when the customer is live on the app.
6. App/Website Advertising
Depending on your marketing budget, you may want to consider investing in advertisements. These can be attached to emails or appear on other sites, but allow you to build a presence on mobile devices.
7. Social Media Marketing
Mobile devices are used extensively for accessing social media sites, and your company needs to take advantage of that. However, be aware that simply having a social media presence is of little use, and is even a hindrance, if the accounts look empty and bereft of content. Many Startup companies employ a social media manager, a full-time employee whose sole job is to ensure that social media accounts are updated daily, and that enquiries/complaints are dealt with promptly. The ability to tag a company on a social media platform is a double-edged sword, since it can also mean that complaints are more visible, but should you be monitoring correctly, your company can gain followers and ideally new customers.
The opportunities are there for trading companies to develop their customer base in creative ways by expanding into the mobile world. However, it is essential that a company has all the mobile elements in place before launching a mobile experience for the customer.
