You know the saying, “to catch a lot of fish, you need to cast your net wide”? Well, in order to win the best consumers for yourself, you need to get noticed and reach out to them in a more targeted and efficient way. By using SMS business messaging, you could be enhancing your marketing performance.
Not convinced? Does it feel strange to send SMS messages to potential customers? Studies show that on average over 90% SMS marketing messages are opened and read within 15 minutes. Read on to discover the top benefits and let us show you how SMS could change the way you advertise in all the best ways.
Explore the Top 10 Benefits of SMS for Marketing
1) It fits perfectly with what you are already doing
SMS marketing can work alongside your existing mediums such as; search advertising, direct mail, social media and email. The other great thing is that there is no limit to how many SMS messages you can send out to your target audience, making it much more cost efficient than direct mailing and social media campaigns.
2) Beat the competition
Many of your competitors are still relying on their consumers to waste valuable time scrolling through their emails (which can often get deleted without even being read). They may have tons of ads on social media that are being scrolled past and ignored. Your targeted SMS messages could be in front of your consumers in a heartbeat.
By using SMS marketing, you will have time to send out more regular content with a much quicker turnaround time. So, you can keep your consumers up-to-date with whatever you are doing as and whenever you are doing it.
On average we look at our phones every 4 minutes and our response rate to a text is between 1 to 15 minutes. Even when our phones are not in view, the use of smart watches enables SMS previews at the flick of a wrist. This is a valuable leap against your competitors, your company name will be much more familiar to your consumers because of the personal connection you have created.
3) Reach your consumers instantly
Where traditional methods of marketing can take days, weeks or months to even reach the attention of their target, SMS messages are instant, so be ready to deal with new business from as early as a few minutes after you hit the send button.
4) Score more engagement
By now, we have all cottoned on to the fact that sending someone a text message is the fastest way to reach them and if you are looking for a two-way interaction, the fastest way to receive a response. It might just blow your mind when we tell you that the rate for opening SMS messages is around 97%, this is 4 times more successful than via email.
Even when we call our friends, they often don’t pick up, preferring to call us back later at a more convenient time. With SMS, it’s just more convenient all round. The recipient knows they won’t be tied up with a lengthy conversation and is more likely to ping you back a quick text. With text-back marketing there is a much greater chance that recipients will have a quick look at your offer and reply, or hit the link. It feels quicker and less intrusive than a phone call, but more personal than an email.
With SMS, you are able to reach many more people at a much faster rate instantly!
5) Fit in with your target audience
The sheer volume of communications we have to keep up with in today’s world can leave us overwhelmed and we are generally far busier these days than we were 20 years ago. We don’t have the time to engage in everything, so inboxes get messy, voice-call messages are ignored and post just sits on the side.
Did you know that most millennials actually hate talking on their phones and admit to never listening to voice messages (they are so last century). They are likely to receive less physical post since they have paperless accounts for everything, so mail through the door will mostly be treated as spam. That is a lot of opportunity lost and efforts wasted.
Now, more than ever, your customers are driving you towards new technologies and they want to control life from the palm of their hands. If it can’t be done on a mobile phone device then it’s likely to be dismissed entirely.
6) Enhance your brand and maintain loyalty
Via SMS you can build a more direct, personal relationship with your audience and allow them to get to know your brand and your story. With two-way SMS you will be able to engage your target audience with inspirational articles and educational information that supports your brand. You will start to nurture a closer connection with the recipient to grow trust in your brand. It will be naturally easier for consumers to commit to companies that they have received regular and meaningful engagement with.
Your recipients have the power to choose whether to opt-in or opt-out of your communications, which may sound like an easy way to lose subscribers, but it’s actually a plus point. With the option to choose to subscribe or unsubscribe to your brand, you can build better relationships with those who are interested in you and what you are doing. Meanwhile, for those who don’t want to hear from you, it’s simple for them to say goodbye, leaving your reputation intact. We all know those companies who plague their customers to the point of harassment – that won’t be you!
7) Target your campaign
With flexible SMS technology, you can pick and choose who you target. Maybe your target audience is varied, but one size does not always fit all. If you want to reach out to a smaller client base, you can simply select them based on a variety of factors. Alternatively, you can opt to reach out to your entire customer base at once.
8) Save on costs
Traditional marketing methods can be costly and the use of them are on the decrease. Competitors are finding more cost-effective, efficient and environmentally-friendly ways to reach consumers.
They are turning towards SMS, your marketing and admin staff can save valuable time and resources by using a simple, but successful SMS campaign. No need for visuals or designs or lengthy content, your texts can be sent instantly.
9) Track your levels of engagement
By using the latest in SMS marketing technology, you will be able to track your performance along the way at any time. SMS marketing data will tell you how each campaign performed individually, so that you can monitor your successes and those that failed to hit the mark. You’ll know who received the texts, which links were clicked on and even how many of your target consumers unsubscribed following your campaign. This will allow you to turn your campaign around quickly if things don’t exactly go according to plan.
10) It’s unfiltered
Unlike emails and voice marketing calls, SMS messages don’t get discarded or blocked by spam filters. All subscribers are opt-in members of your customer base. Therefore, messages are guaranteed to reach the right recipients.
So why wait? Make SMS marketing part of your company’s strategic plan today.
To summarise the benefits of SMS messaging as a marketing tool, it can:
· Allow you to reach more customers instantly
· Save you time and money on your advertising
· Reduce your carbon footprint, as it’s more environmentally friendly
· Be flexible and efficient
· Help to build brand loyalty and trust