What is SMS Marketing and How Does it Work?

SMS marketing is just another way to reach your potential customers and keep them in the loop about your services. Continue reading here to answer the question, what is SMS marketing and learn how it works.

Let’s face it, we all want to connect with a bigger audience through marketing. But it’s often easier said than done.
The ever-changing digital landscape has made target audiences more accessible than ever before. But the multitude of platforms and mediums can be overwhelming for even the savviest marketing minds.
Are you looking to expand your marketing reach? Are you trying to connect with more consumers without breaking the bank?
If so, you might want to consider SMS marketing.
What is SMS marketing? SMS marketing is just another way to reach your potential customers and keep them in the loop about your services. In plain terms, it is using text messages to communicate and market to your customers Keep reading to learn more…

What is SMS Marketing?

Before we dive into the benefits of SMS marketing, let’s first give an explanation as to what exactly it is.
SMS marketing is shorthand for short message service marketing. You send and receive text messages every day on your phone… well, an SMS message is a text message… they are the same thing.
SMS advertising is a form of mobile marketing that lets your business appeal to users on mobile devices. It’s a way to text your prospects, customers and VIPs. It’s a tried and true marketing technique that lets you share text messages to an individual, or a group of users.
How it works is simple. Your customers, prospects and VIPs opt-in to your marketing campaign to receive updates, specials, and important information. It’s a form of inbound marketing that lets you target users who have already expressed interest in your business. The goal of SMS marketing is not only to make sales. It’s also to build your brand and increase customer retention!
You can notify people of upcoming promotions, events, and sales.
Even better, since SMS messages are quickly delivered and quickly read, you can deliver time-based messages. You can set your system up to automatically send text messages to customers at a precise time… when they are most likely to be receptive to your offer.
For example, if you run a restaurant, sending a message shortly before dinner time is a smart thing to do… it will be better received, and your customers will be more likely to act on your message.

The Basics of SMS Marketing

You’ve likely been part of an SMS campaign before. But let’s take a quick look at the basics and terminology.
SMS campaigns revolve around a keyword and a short/long code. People will opt-in to a campaign will receive a welcome message with the keyword and shortcode.
For example, let’s say a hockey team wants to promote their upcoming deals and games. They might promote the following message through ads, banners, flyers, or any other marketing channel:
Let’s go Hawks! Text “PUCK” to (480) 508-9444 to get highlights, ticket deals and important info!
In this example, the subscriber will text the keyword “PUCK” to opt-in to the campaign. Afterward, the hockey team will freely send text messages to the subscriber.
Go ahead and try it out… Text SMS to (305) 393-8572 to see how it works.

Does SMS Marketing Work?

Does SMS marketing work? You tell me…
Do you read text messages that are sent to your phone? Did you test out our example above… did you read what we sent?
75 percent of modern consumers think businesses should use SMS messaging more often. Consumers are not the only ones who like SMS marketing. Businesses are turning to this form of marketing because it is a fast, efficient, and cheap way to access their target audience. In comparison to other marketing campaigns, the cost of SMS marketing is minuscule.
If you don’t want to pay someone like sentext2win.com to help with your text messaging, you can always pay top dollar for a special programmer (if you can find one) to build you a custom texting program.
Whatever way you decide to go, the costs are minor in comparison to the ROI you will see from setting up and running a solid mobile marketing campaign.

Why SMS Marketing Is Effective

Do you remember using the Yellow pages to find a business?
What about finding a business through a local mailer or flyer?
These old school marketing techniques may seem like a blast from the past. But there are still businesses relying on dated marketing platforms.
In today’s world, nearly everyone has access to a cell phone… and a smart phone at that! They also spend a significant amount of their time on these devices. Meanwhile, consumers are using smartphones at historic rates. In fact, U.S. consumers now spend five hours per day on their mobile devices.
That means there is a good chance that your SMS messages will reach your subscribers. Think about how fast you check your phone after you hear that “ding” come in for a text message. Engagement among other marketing platforms can be low: billboards, radio ads, even email marketing. You do not have to worry about engagement with SMS marketing.
Your audience is just a text away.

SMS Marketing Best Practices

You might feel tempted to send out a bunch of text messages to your list of subscribers… But hold off.
Keep reading before clicking that send button. You need to foster the relationship with your SMS advertising list. No one likes being overwhelmed with texts. No matter how loyal a customer is, if you annoy them with too many texts, you will lose them forever. Every business is different… but most text once a week… and some a few times a day – around a special event.
You should also be aware of the time you are sending out your texts. If you send a message too early in the day, it will be ignored or forgotten. Sending messages late at night can also be a problem. Again, this is business dependent. I know of a nightclub who sends texts on Friday and Saturday night after 9:00 PM.
Remember to respect people’s time! Want a quick tip?
Work to engage with the people on your text marketing list. The best way to get good engagement is to enhance your SMS campaigns by learning how to write great text marketing messages.
Here are a few tips:
  • Always let your customers know who is sending the text message. You may craft the wittiest, amazing text message only to forget to let your audience know who sent it. Do not let that be you.
  • You should also include a call to action in all texts. This will encourage your customers to take action and move down the sales funnel.
  • Your content needs to be something that is actually valuable to your customers. Cater texts around discounts, promotions, or sweepstakes.
  • You can also send your customers photos of new products, surveys to get their feedback, and even create a drip campaign.
  • There is no wrong way to text. But remember that a little bit of etiquette goes a long way. Follow these best practices to make the most of your SMS marketing campaign.

    • Your SMS Marketing Plan

    Remember SMS marketing is a great way to increase customer engagement, promote loyalty, and increase revenue for your business!
    I hope today’s article gave you some great ideas on how to use SMS marketing for your business. To learn more about getting started with SMS marketing, or to learn how to promote your small business check out our special report… 

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