Do you know the SMS Marketing? This is a digital marketing resource that is increasingly present in every digital marketing strategy because it makes use, in fact, of a channel that we all use today : the mobile phone.
Have you ever received a text message with a commercial offer or a birthday greeting from a store you are a member of? This is precisely what is done with SMS marketing.
But, of course, this is just an example. It is best that you continue reading because we will explain in detail what this resource is, how it is used and why .
Index:
What is SMS Marketing and how can you use it to grow your business ?
SMS Marketing is, as we have advanced, one of the resources available to digital marketing to reach the user through a digital medium , regardless of redundancy. Like any other, follows guidelines that define it and, at the same time, can be very diverse depending on elements such as objectives, the audience we want to reach, etc.
What is it?
This consists of the design and sending of text messages to one or more users , customers or not, with the intention of achieving a specific effect with the communication , that is, an objective. This is the basics.
The rest is already configurable and modifiable . We can vary the number of recipients, the type of message, the amount of these, the moment they are sent …
How does it work? Tips for creating your campaign
As for how it works, SMS marketing has a lot to work on and that, of course, you cannot forget to succeed when creating your communications with users.
Sender
The sender is usually a shorter number than we usually see, up to 6 digits. This depends on the provider from which you contract the services. For this reason, our first advice is to make it clear who the sender is , that is, who is sending that message.
This is achieved by modifying the sender’s information. However, this is not always possible, so if your service does not allow it, do not forget to include your company information in the body of the text.
Objectives
Obviously, and as we do before taking any step in marketing, we have to define some goals . It will be based on these that we design the text of the messages. Are they focused on direct selling? To loyalty? To improve customer service?
Strategy
Strategy is the way you want to achieve your goals . That is, you have to answer the question, how will I get it?
Database
Get a segmented database and very easy to understand . It is not enough to have hundreds or thousands of numbers, it is necessary to sort them in such a way that we can easily select them according to our objective.
The 160 characters
SMS can be written with up to 160 characters . This means you can’t roll up. It is never recommended but it is that, in this case, it is also not possible because there is no space, plain and simple.
This means that you’ll have to be clear, get right where you want and, of course, summarize to the fullest giving the essential information.
The right moment
Although there are situations in which the schedule may not be so important, you should always avoid resting hours. Starting from here, yes there will be circumstances in which we can choose a date and time in which you will be much more successful .
You don’t believe SPAM
It is important to know this concept and avoid it at all costs . Nobody likes SPAM and, without a doubt, if users consider your content to be, they will not be very happy to hear from you.
The best software
Find a shipping software that meets your needs . Is it necessary to know if the message has arrived? Do you want to change the sender? Do you need a special alphabet?…
A special client
Feel free to strive to make customers feel special . This takes time, we know, but it is one of the most effective ways we have to approach and build loyalty.
Campaign analysis
Use the information provided by the SMS mass sending software to analyze it and obtain data on how the campaign went in order to be able to incorporate changes in the future .
Is it effective?
Well … like everything. There are users who will never open one, just as they ignore emails, but there are also yes and, of course , the text message usually inspires more confidence than an email electronic by simply having a bad image of junk mail full of malware.
On the other hand, we must consider that SMS is much more at hand , so that it is easier for the user to remember the message that came a few hours ago, open, with a couple of drives; It is more convenient than an email or to see a card or a coupon hidden in the last pocket of our wallet.
It should be noted that the rate of opening text messages is overwhelming . To this it is important to add that 9 out of 10 users do it before 3 minutes have passed after receiving . Mail, on the other hand, can be hours without consulting.
It is also necessary to consider that the correct message can work as part of a larger strategy , being a complement to finish a conversion that we could start differently.
Finally, indicate that this is a much more effective resource in the countries of emerging economies in which the use of internet on smartphones is not so common, so if you want to expand, This is your resource!
Most effective SMS text message types to send in your marketing campaigns
Of course, not all text messages are the same, nor are the emails sent to us by companies that use email marketing and neither are all the strategies followed in social networks.
The creativity of professionals, objectives and many other factors have allowed us to categorize this resource and therefore have various types of SMS to use in digital marketing .
Infographic: Reasons to use SMS Marketing in your company
Custom SMS
Are those that are designed for a small audience segment and even for a single person. Within these, of course, we will see several subtypes depending on their objective.
So, we find:
- Birthday messages . More personalized, impossible. It offers a special discount, a free session, a detail if the user comes to buy on that special day or … just congratulate him!
- SMS-reminder . Ideal and highly valued. They will not make you sell more directly but they will greatly improve the image that the user has of you. Do it for appointments, to remember carts, last moments of promotions, visits of the technical service at home …
- Informative SMS . You inform the user of a certain circumstance exclusive to him, for example, that he has his points available for redemption.
- Confirmation message . It will serve to let the user know that their purchase or order is in order and that everything is going well, increasing their confidence in your team and, therefore, in your brand.
- Welcome SMS You will make a good impression as soon as you win a customer or subscriber if you write only and exclusively to welcome them and offer your assistance if necessary.
- Cross Selling . It is a text that is sent to offer an additional product or service that complements the user’s previous action.
- Reuptake message . We write to get the attention of an inactive user.
- Thank you SMS . It has no mystery; You feel grateful for something and you prove it. You can thank for a year of subscription, for the last purchase, for your suggestions, for getting your acquaintance to become a customer, etc.
promotional SMS
Of course, it is the one we send to offer an offer of any kind. Ideally, they should include a link so that it can be enjoyed immediately and not forgotten.
SMS unicode
The 160 characters of text messages are only in the common alphabet, so they are left out Cyrillic or Arabic, for example. With the unicode messages we give way to these alphabets and, in general, to all existing characters .
SMS landing
Living up to its name is a brief message but that includes additional information through a link . Thus, the content is not heavy and is available for the user to consult freely when they consider.
Invitation SMS
With it we can invite anyone we want to events such as inaugurations, presentation of new brands, professionals, informative cocktails, open days or simply hours in promotion; What you offer is your thing!
help or support SMS h3>
They are those that are offered during a transaction , so that they serve so that the user can respond quickly to him and get in touch with customer service.
informative SMS
It is, perhaps, the most general, the one that is used when we want to communicate for something other than all of the above : changes in the menu, replacement of out-of-stock items, vacation days and other circumstances due to which we will remain closed …
They should not be invasive , simply, that, informative, designed to give value showing that the user is important and that we take it into account for anything, and nothing else.
Examples of effective campaigns via SMS marketing h2 >
To support everything we just told you, nothing better than to leave you some examples of real campaigns that have been done via SMS and that have had a shocking success.
A Memphis restaurant
The way in which this restaurant used the text message in its marketing strategy was to offer free food during the days of its inauguration in exchange for users signing up for the local subscription .
Steak My Day
The strategy combines social networks and SMS. The first offers a succulent promotion, nothing more and nothing less than a 2 × 1 , which requires the delivery of the phone number. This achieves two things: attract new users and design a list of leads.
The Good Guys
His messages were part of a strategy of promotions and discounts based on consumption, the most common. His own style, based on the use of capital letters, in combination with a short, easily understandable message, made the users, attracted by a succulent promotion for which $ 25 was returned if 100 were spent , consume like never before In addition, its policy of constant offers makes the user always keep them in mind.