10 SMS Marketing Tactics that works

There is no doubt that people want to receive text messages from their favorite brands. In one survey of more than 6,000 consumers, 85% wanted to get text messages from brands. SMS marketing, also known as text marketing,” is a favorite among marketers because of its highly receptive audiences, unmatched open rates, and promotions that succeed because customers and prospects receive it on the mobile devices they carry with them all day.

The open rate for SMS is nearly 98%. Push notifications pale in comparison, topping at 3.10% (for Android vs. 2.38% for iOS). Meanwhile, Facebook posts get delivered to the targeted audience just 2% of the time.

But how do you collect phone numbers in addition to email addresses? What do you offer your subscribers to get them to sign up to receive texts? How do you send both text messages and emails to subscribers without over-sending? You can quickly implement an SMS marketing strategy through: You can quickly utilize and implement these marketing strategies.

1. Discounts and sale text campaigns – Sending offers and promotions is the most engaging and cost-efficient way to engage prospects and customers. Try to make that message more exclusive by making them feel they are a part of something special.

2. Personalize your SMS marketing campaigns. – Market like a human. SMS marketing is unique, but it also has the power of running a mass message campaign to users, so how do you make your user feel that the message was specially intended for them. Make it more conversational. Cater the message to the individual, even If you can’t personalize it any other way, using their name is the easiest way to approach.

3. Send at the right time – Timing is the key! The idea of sending any SMS is such that the recipients open their messages instantly upon receiving them. Like, when your customer is trying to order food during lunchtime, and they receive an offer with a 40% discount, they will open your SMS immediately, leaving them with an enriched experience.

4. Keep your message short and concise with a Clear CTA – When communicating via chat, limit your messages to 200 characters. A quick sentence and a call to action or a question, for example, works great. Any marketing campaign without a clear Call To Action fails. Especially when it comes to SMS marketing, your messages should include a clear CTA to prompt the recipient to take the next step. Like, Check this out!, ‘A link to more detailed information.

5. Ask questions or send surveys – Gathering feedback and data via surveys is again an engaging activity with the customers. It helps you gather the real-time feedback of your product and make your customer feel they are a part of the product roadmap. You can repeat this activity every time you launch a new feature or take a new initiative.

6. Gain Consent First – The absolute first step in any text message marketing campaign is to gain consent. Companies have to follow the specific text guidelines and send a text inviting users to their SMS program. Users have to respond and opt-in to receive the texts.

There are a few ways to go about obtaining consent from your subscribers. One of the most straightforward methods involves keywords like ‘START’ to subscribe and ‘STOP’ to unsubscribe. This gives your customer a certain sense of privacy and security.

7. Back-in-stock notifications – It’s another way to re-engage with your customers. They might have set back-in-stock alerts. Utilize this opportunity to send text messages as soon as the item they are after is back in stock. This not only increases the chances of the product purchase but develops trust within you.

8. Customer Service via SMS – Apart from using SMS just for sales, it can be used by your customer service team to proactively address your customer issues. It becomes more of an intimate channel to provide a human side to the brand. Like, Reassuring the customer about their delayed deliveries or in case of payment failures. SMS can be utilized to build a strong relationship with your customers.

9. Assure with Reminders and Confirmation – There are always some useful messages if when sent via emails, can be missed out. For example, a confirmation of their Doctor’s appointment or a reminder to attend an event. Customers report SMS as the most convenient way to stay in touch with service providers and businesses.

10. Keep the conversation going – To increase connectivity and avoid disengagement, try to respond as quickly as possible. The average response rate of an SMS is 90 seconds, so ensure to keep the turnaround time from your business as quick as possible. For example, 75% of consumers expect healthcare providers to respond within the day to appointment requests made via social media.

SMS is a fast-growing marketing communication application but getting started with it is easy. There are many ways you can engage your target audience and build sales and loyalty. The first step is to sign up for an SMS service to use for your marketing. Ask your customers if you can send them messages. Start sending them the relevant messages when they want to receive them, and they will love having you in their inbox. The more you use SMS messaging — and review your results, so you know what to tweak in the future — the more powerful this marketing tool can become.

Unica Deliver, a product of the Unica Suite, helps you extend your digital marketing capabilities more than ever before. The product can now cater to your multichannel messaging needs over email, SMS, Mobile Push, and Whatsapp communications with a user interface so intuitive that you already know how to use it. To learn more about how Unica Deliver can change your digital marketing game, you can reach out to us, and we’ll be happy to help.