Creating a cross-channel mobile marketing strategy in 2025

The average person spends over four hours daily on their phone, yet most businesses struggle to capture even a fraction of that attention. 

The problem isn’t just competition—it’s that most businesses approach mobile marketing backwards. They focus on reaching people instead of providing value. A mobile-friendly website checks a box. Blast SMS campaigns interrupt at the wrong moment. But a strategic mobile marketing system meets people where they already are, with content they want, across the channels they prefer.

This guide walks you through building that system. You’ll learn how to create campaigns using SMS, email, social media, and QR codes. We’ll show you how to track what works, make improvements, and personalize messages using branded links and analytics.

Whether you’re starting from scratch or fixing what you already have, this roadmap will help you reach people where they spend most of their time: on their phones.

Building your multi-channel mobile marketing strategy 

Think about your phone habits for a second. You might see a business on Instagram, click through to their website, sign up for texts, and eventually make a purchase through an email link. That’s not four separate marketing efforts—that’s one experience across multiple touchpoints.

That’s exactly what mobile marketing should feel like for your customers. Instead of treating SMS, email, social media, and your website as separate campaigns, you want them to work together like a well-coordinated team.

The magic happens when these channels complement each other. A QR code on your packaging might lead to a text signup. That welcome text includes a link to follow you on social. Your social posts drive people back to personalized landing pages. Everything connects.

Let’s break down the four core channels and how to make them work together seamlessly, so your customers have a smooth experience regardless of how they prefer to engage with your brand.

SMS marketing: Direct connections with your audience

SMS marketing delivers high open rates, strong conversions, and excellent deliverability at a low cost. You can also personalize messages easily. These benefits make SMS one of the most direct and urgent mobile marketing channels.

SMS campaigns generated better returns than email or social media, according to Bandwidth’s 2025 State of Messaging report. That’s why companies across various industries are investing in mobile marketing right now.

What makes SMS so effective is its versatility. You can use it to announce flash sales that need immediate attention, send order confirmations that customers actually want to receive, or even have real conversations with customers who need help. It works at every stage of your relationship with customers, from first introduction to post-purchase follow-up.

The immediate nature of SMS also makes it perfect for gathering feedback. People respond to texts quickly, so if you need a quick survey response or product rating, SMS gets you answers fast without the back-and-forth of email.

There are three main ways to use SMS in your marketing:

• Promotional messages work great for time-sensitive offers—the urgency of a text naturally encourages people to act quickly.
• Transactional messages handle the practical stuff like shipping updates and appointment reminders that customers need.
• Conversational SMS lets you have honest back-and-forth discussions for customer service or more personal communication.

Here are four best practices that will make your SMS campaigns more successful:

• Keep messages short, valuable, and urgent. You only get 160 characters, and many carriers charge by message length. Lead with value, use action-oriented calls to action, and create a sense of urgency to elicit immediate responses. 
• Personalize your content and segment your audience. SMS feels more personal than other marketing mediums. Use behavioral and demographic data to tailor content to specific segments. 
• Use branded short links to build trust and stay on-brand. Generic links hurt your credibility and deliverability. Branded short links from Rebrandly increase click rates by up to 40% while reinforcing your brand identity.
• Track and optimize performance with the right tools. Every SMS click gives you data. Platforms like Rebrandly enable you to track link activity in real-time, allowing you to improve future campaigns based on what’s working.

The key to making all of this work is using branded links in your messages. Generic links look spammy and don’t give you good data about who’s clicking what. Branded links not only look more professional, they also give you detailed insights into how your SMS campaigns are performing and who’s engaging with your content.

Social media marketing: Engagement amplified through branded content

Most people check social media on their phones. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X all build their platforms around mobile users first. Your marketing on these channels needs to work with that mobile experience, not against it.

Social media marketing works best for branding and driving e-commerce sales. But each platform has its own rules for sharing links and content with your audience.

Facebook mobile marketing guidelines

Facebook makes it pretty easy to share links in your posts and stories, which is nice. The downside? Their algorithm doesn’t love it when you send people away from Facebook, so posts with external links often get buried.

Your best bet is to focus on native content first—regular posts, photos, and videos that keep people engaged on Facebook itself. Then strategically use links when they really add value.

When you do share a link, Facebook will create a preview automatically. Take a minute to customize that preview so it looks good and matches your brand. And if you’re using a lot of links, consider a tool like Rebrandly to create shorter, branded URLs that look more professional than those long, messy links.

The key is making everything look and feel native to mobile. Test how your content appears on different phone screens before you hit publish.

Instagram mobile marketing guidelines

Instagram is kind of frustrating when it comes to links. You can only put clickable links in two places: your Stories and your bio. Everything else—captions, regular comments—won’t be clickable, which means people have to copy and paste URLs if they want to visit them. (And let’s be honest, most people won’t bother.)

That’s why the “link in bio” strategy exists. Instead of trying to cram individual links everywhere, create a simple landing page that houses all your important links in one place. Tools like Link Gallery make this easy—you get one clean URL for your bio that leads to a mobile-friendly page with all your current offers, content, and ways to connect.

Instagram does have shoppable posts if you have a business account, but they keep everything inside the app. You can’t link out to your own website’s checkout page, which limits how you can use this feature.

One more thing about captions: you get 2,200 characters total, but only the first 125 show up in people’s feeds before they have to tap “more.” So if you’re asking people to do something—like check your Stories or visit your bio—say it right up front where they’ll actually see it.

TikTok mobile marketing guidelines

TikTok makes Instagram look generous with links. You can only put clickable links in your bio, and only if you have a business account. Links in video captions or comments? Nope, not clickable. People would have to type them into their browser, which almost never happens manually.

TikTok also gets picky about where you can send people for shopping. Unless you’re set up in TikTok Shop (their marketplace), you can’t easily link to your online store. They want to keep commerce happening inside their app.

So again, the link in bio strategy becomes crucial. Create one main landing page that houses all your offers and content. When you’re promoting something in a video, just tell people to “check the link in bio.”

You do get plenty of space in video descriptions—2,200 characters—so use that real estate to tell a story, share context, or build excitement. Just remember that any links you type there won’t work as links.

The key with TikTok is keeping things simple: create great video content, direct people to your bio, and make sure that TikTok bio link delivers on whatever promise you made in the video.

X mobile marketing guidelines

X has become strict about what links you can share. They don’t allow generic URL shorteners like Bitly anymore—only “approved” domains make it through their filters. This means you must use branded short links to make sure your content isn’t flagged for review or blocked. 

When you do share a link, X creates a preview automatically, but unlike Facebook, you can’t edit how it looks. You get what you get, so make sure your website’s metadata is set up correctly before you share. If you use Rebrandly, you can automatically customize that metadata into your short link manually or using AI.

The character limits depend on whether you pay for X Premium (formerly Twitter Blue). Regular users get 280 characters, premium subscribers get up to 4,000. Either way, X automatically shortens any URL to 23 characters, so even your shortest links will take up the same amount of space in your post.

QR code marketing: A physical-to-digital bridge

Remember when QR codes felt gimmicky? COVID changed all that. Now people actually use them—scanning menus at restaurants, checking in at events, or grabbing product info while shopping. They’ve become the easiest way to bridge what’s happening in the real world with what’s on someone’s phone.

The beauty of QR codes is their simplicity. Someone sees something interesting, pulls out their phone, points, and boom—they’re connected to your digital world in seconds.

Smart places to use QR codes:

• Restaurant tables (way easier than handing out sticky menus)
• Product packaging (instant access to reviews, instructions, or reorder links)
• Store windows (let people browse your stuff even when you’re closed)
• Business cards or flyers (no more typing long URLs)
• Event signage (quick registration or additional info)

Make your QR codes work harder

Here’s where most businesses mess up: they create a QR code, print it, and forget about it. But the smart move is using branded, editable QR codes that you can update without reprinting anything.

Say you put QR codes on 1,000 signs for a spring sale. When that sale ends, instead of throwing away the leftover signage, you just change where the QR code points—maybe to your summer collection or email signup: same code, new destination.

This flexibility is huge because it means your offline marketing can stay fresh and relevant without constantly reprinting materials. Plus, you can track which codes get scanned most, helping you figure out what physical locations or materials work best for reaching your audience.

Email marketing: Still the workhorse of digital marketing

With over 375 billion emails sent daily, email is the backbone of how businesses stay connected with their customers. And since most people check email on their phones, getting the mobile experience right isn’t optional—it’s everything.

The biggest challenge with mobile email is making sure your message looks good everywhere. Different email apps (Gmail, Apple Mail, Outlook) and different phones can make the same email look completely different. Most email platforms let you preview how your emails will appear across various devices and apps, so use that feature religiously.

Think about how people use their phones: they’re scrolling with their thumbs, often while walking or multitasking. Your subject lines need to grab attention in a crowded inbox. Your content needs to be scannable. Your buttons need to be big enough to tap easily without accidentally hitting something else.

Here’s where many businesses mess up: they send the same message via email AND text, sometimes within minutes of each other. That’s annoying. Your customers signed up for both channels for different reasons—maybe they want texts for urgent updates and emails for detailed content.

Coordinate your messaging so each channel serves a purpose. Maybe the text says “Flash sale starts now!” with a link, and the follow-up email has all the product details and longer-form content. Give people a reason to engage with both without feeling bombarded.

Just like with social media, use branded short links in your emails instead of generic URL shorteners. Email providers are getting pickier about filtering messages with suspicious-looking links, and generic shorteners can trigger spam filters. Plus, branded links look more professional and trustworthy to your subscribers.

Key mobile marketing metrics to track your success

Along with performance tracking metrics, it’s essential to use the right mobile marketing metrics in your campaigns. As you build your strategy, consider:

• Channel-specific metrics (SMS open rates, social engagement, QR scans). Tracking metrics unique to each mobile channel helps you understand which platforms drive the best engagement. SMS marketing analytics, link CTR, Instagram reach, TikTok video views, and QR code scans all provide insight into the ways your audience interacts with content across devices.
• Conversion tracking across the mobile journey. Knowing how users move from a mobile campaign click to a completed action, like a purchase or form submission, helps you identify friction points and optimize the path to conversion.
• Attribution models for mobile marketing. Attribution helps you understand which mobile touchpoints contribute to conversions. Defining attribution goals allows you to optimize spending and messaging across the mobile ecosystem.
• ROI calculation methodologies. Mobile campaigns have shorter engagement windows, so accurate ROI tracking is critical. Comparing campaign costs to measurable returns helps you prioritize high-performing tactics and justify investment in SMS, mobile ads, or social promotions.
• Dashboards and reporting best practices. A custom, mobile-oriented analytics dashboard consolidates your most important KPIs and makes monitoring performance in real time easy. Dashboards also streamline reporting, helping teams spot trends quickly and align on data-driven decisions.

Rebrandly’s analytics also help you evaluate link performance across multiple mobile campaigns. You can easily see which branded links get clicked, where users come from, what devices they use, and how they engage, enabling smarter segmentation and more personalized retargeting.

Essential mobile marketing tools and services

To build an effective mobile marketing strategy, you need to understand what kinds of tools will be integral to your mobile technology stack.

SMS and messaging platforms

Your messaging platform is the most important tool in your SMS marketing tool stack. Here’s a rundown of the top five messaging services available today.

Mobile analytics solutions

Tracking mobile engagement across channels is key to iterating and scaling your strategy.

• Google Analytics for mobile: Provides behavioral data on the different ways users interact with your mobile app or website. Use it to track goals, funnels, and user flows.
• Mobile app analytics platforms: Solutions like Mixpanel, Amplitude, or Firebase allow you to analyze in-app behavior, user retention, and cohort performance.

Every click counts. Link analytics tools help you capture engagement across SMS, social, QR codes, and more.

• Rebrandly: Offers branded link creation, UTM automation, real-time tracking, and location/device-based data. Supports integration with Google Analytics and CRMs.
• UTM parameter automation: Standardizes campaign tracking across all links. Automating this process helps reduce human error and maintain clean, actionable data.
• Link expiration: Useful for flash sales or time-sensitive promotions. Tools like Rebrandly allow you to set expiration parameters for better control.

QR code generators and trackers

QR codes are your bridge between physical and digital experiences, making them perfect for mobile-first campaigns. Dynamic vs. static QR codes:

• Static: Uneditable once created. Ideal for evergreen campaigns.
• Dynamic: Editable post-printing. Best for campaigns where flexibility is essential.

Rebrandly lets you generate dynamic QR codes linked to branded URLs with full tracking and analytics. There are also some design considerations. Use high contrast, avoid clutter, and ensure mobile-optimized landing pages. Branded QR codes improve scan rates and user trust.

Mobile CRM and marketing automation services

CRM tools with mobile-first features help teams manage relationships, automate workflows, and optimize messaging across platforms.

• Mobile-focused CRMs: Platforms like HubSpot, Salesforce, and Zoho offer mobile-optimized interfaces and app-based tracking.
• Automation tools: Tools like Iterable, Customer.io, or Braze support cross-channel automation that includes mobile push, SMS, and in-app messaging.
• Customer journey mapping: These tools allow teams to visualize and optimize the mobile customer journey across email, SMS, social, and app interactions.

Advanced mobile marketing strategies

Once you’ve got the basics down, mobile marketing gets interesting. The best results come from personalization and customization,  rather than blasting the same message to everyone. This means using what you know about your customers to make every interaction feel personal and relevant.

Personalization and segmentation

Think about how different your customers are. Some might live in New York, others in rural Texas. Some buy every month, others browse for weeks before purchasing. Some prefer email, others want texts. The more you can tailor your approach to these differences, the better your results will be.

Location-based targeting lets you send region-specific promotions or content in someone’s preferred language. Behavioral segmentation helps you group people based on what they’ve actually done—their purchase history, what they click on,and  how often they engage with your content.

One powerful time-saving technique is dynamic link routing, where the same link takes different people to different places based on their device, location, or past behavior. Someone on an iPad in California might see different content than someone on an Android phone in Florida, even though they clicked the same link.

A/B testing and experimentation

The only way to know what resonates with your audience is to test different approaches. Try sending the same promotion at various times of day. Test different call-to-action buttons. Experiment with short versus long messages. See if links work better at the beginning or end of your content.

The key is testing one thing at a time so you know what made the difference. Over time, these small improvements add up to significantly better performance across all your mobile marketing efforts.

Creating seamless cross-channel experiences

Your customers don’t think in channels—they just interact with your brand. They might see your Instagram ad, scan a QR code at your store, get a text confirmation, and complete their purchase through an email link. To them, that should feel like one smooth experience, not four separate interactions.

This means keeping your branding and messaging consistent everywhere, timing your communications so they complement rather than compete with each other, and tracking everything with a unified system so you can see which touchpoints drive results. When you can see thewholel customer journey, you can make smarter decisions about where to invest your time and budget.

Start building your mobile marketing strategy 

You don’t need to overhaul your entire marketing approach overnight. The best mobile marketing strategies start simple and grow from there.

Pick one or two channels that make the most sense for your business right now. That could be getting your SMS program off the ground, or making sure your social media links actually work well on mobile. Focus on doing those well before adding more complexity.

Once you’ve got a channel working, pay attention to what the data tells you. Which messages get the best response? What times of day work best? Which links get clicked most often? Use those insights to improve what you’re already doing, then apply those lessons when you expand to other channels.

The goal isn’t to be everywhere at once—it’s to be present and helpful wherever your customers are spending their time. Mobile marketing works because it meets people where they already are, with information they actually want, at moments when they’re ready to act.

Think of mobile marketing as the thread that connects all your customer touchpoints. When someone discovers you on social media, signs up for texts, makes a purchase, and gets follow-up emails, those should all feel like parts of the same conversation, not random interactions from different companies.

Start where you are, use what you have, and build from there. Your customers are already on their phones—now you just need to make it easy for them to connect with your business when they’re ready.

Explore how Rebrandly can help you track performance, improve engagement, and simplify link management across every mobile touchpoint.