How SMS Marketing Strategies Can Help Small Businesses

One of the most effective business promotion strategies ever devised is SMS marketing Services. This is especially true for the smaller business brands. More than 90% of people use their smartphones to access the internet and stay up to date on the latest news and information. You can instantly reach millions of clients, including those you’ve specifically targeted. There are numerous SMS marketing cases to back up the value of this strategy. The quickest and least expensive digital marketing method is texting, because practically everyone reads their texts, while emails often get ignored..

The ideal small company advice for growing your brand is to attract your clients’ attention. This requires you to provide them with content that is customized to their interests and requirements. Small business owners can use small business texting app to send out customized messages regarding promotions, deals, and even birthday wishes to their customers.

Improves relationship with your customers

By using text alerts for small business, you can stay in touch with your clients regularly and ensure that they have a great and lasting experience. Developing good client relationships is the first step to achieving business success, so do it right away. An SMS campaign is a great technique to create client relationships since customers enjoy being treated like VIPs. You may reward your consumers with special incentives by sending them personalized communications at the proper time to show that you care about their experiences.

Simple to track

Advertising focuses on the return on investment (ROI). You’ll have trouble measuring the return on your marketing investment if a campaign is tough to track and analyze. Small business text messaging, on the other hand, is simple to track. This results in valuable information that marketers and other departments may use to their advantage.

Attracts customers

If you’re a very new small business, it can be challenging to follow small business recommendations about ‘catching attention.’ Best SMS service for small business can greatly increase client awareness. There is no better avenue for communicating with clients about your expanding brand than SMS. It’s also an efficient tool to utilize during high-volume retail seasons, such as the holiday season or when your store is having a sale or discount. If you offer targeted discounts to your clients during peak seasons, you may expect to see a significant increase in your sales. Customer awareness is critical for small businesses, so rather than printing hundreds of fliers to distribute in-store, engage in SMS marketing to communicate your message.

Expand your Brand

SMS marketing can greatly benefit travel and event planning businesses in several ways. Firstly, it provides an efficient and effective method to keep both clients and staff well-informed and updated on event schedules, travel times, and any last-minute changes. This real-time communication ensures that all stakeholders are on the same page and can make necessary adjustments accordingly.

Additionally, SMS marketing can be utilized to streamline ticketing and program distribution processes. By sending tickets and programs directly to clients’ mobile devices, it reduces the need for printing physical copies, thereby cutting down on printing costs and paper usage. This not only contributes to cost savings but also aligns with environmentally friendly practices.

 

Why use text messaging?

Small business mass texting is unquestionably the finest technique to reach a greater number of clients, and the following are a few strong reasons to support this bold claim:

Spam

Due to special permission-based marketing criteria that Business SMS messaging must follow, SMS marketing is not considered spam. It’s completely opt-in only. This means that buyers must give their consent before they receive the SMS messages over their phone

It’s possible to accomplish this in one of three ways, for example:

 

  • Through a web widget, any new subscriber can perform a double opt-in.
  • Use a sign-up form that requires their phone number, or
  • To participate, simply reply with a text message.

 

Of the above three possibilities, the last one appears to be the most widely used.

 

An auto-reply will be sent to the new subscriber to confirm their acceptance and subscription once they were opt-in. If an opt-in is made by mistake, the subscriber can simply reply STOP to stop receiving messages.

 

Read

According to various studies, nearly all send and receive text messages are opened within the first three minutes they are received. The response rate for bulk SMS advertising campaigns is about one-third of the total. It also implies that nearly half of this group purchases in the future. Due to the findings of this study, small business owners and marketers are encouraged to use SMS marketing as a business marketing strategy.

Do Not Call

Given that all citizens have the right to register with the “Do Not Call” registry, the research results speak for themselves as to the success of such campaigns. It doesn’t appear that this has anything to do with sending and receiving SMS. Even though a significant portion of the population has already registered with the registry. Before you jump to this conclusion, consider that this assumption is based on conjecture and that the Do Not Call registry only safeguards consumers against unwanted phone calls, not text messages as some claim.

The Do Not Call registry was set up to prevent telemarketers from harassing customers who have made purchases via phone call, this list does not include SMS.

Straight Forward

Text messages should always be straight and to the point, this is because of the limit of up to 160 characters. That is the main reason text messages concentrate on offering deals on their palette that helps in driving the sales in large numbers. This is the most advantageous feature of text messaging and has a two-way effect. Firstly, the company does not need to work on long messages. Secondly, the subscribers are only interested to either opt-in or opt-out of your special offer. They don’t want to know how your products are built or how and when you launched your business.

 

To help you get started, we’ve compiled a list of SMS marketing ideas for small businesses.

 

  • Use a business phone when texting customers: Even though it may be tempting to jump right in, avoid texting consumers using the default texting app on your phone. Aside from the lack of marketing capabilities that businesses require to effectively reach their clients, texting from a personal phone that does not have texting software installed could be a problem for your company in the long run.

  • TCPA Directives: Send text messages to the clients that specifically requested to get SMS messages from your company. The directions to opt-out must be clear and in simple language so that whenever a client wanted to opt out they can do it easily by clicking on a tab. The messages should be simple, short, and to the point.

  • Be available to your customers: Sometimes companies use a 5-6 digit number for sending bulk SMS to the customers, this is preferred in case companies want to inform customers about some mega offer or alerts or two-step authentication. The issue with this comes if customers want to text back with some questions. Lacking the ability to have genuine customer interaction will hamper your sales and growth. Therefore, text with companies’ phone numbers so that customers can inquire about any questions they may have. Even though it’s a small thing, making yourself available to your clients shouldn’t be undervalued. When your consumers can reach you, it distinguishes your company from the others. Two-way communication is always important.

  • Focus on copy:  Text messages need to be thoughtfully prepared in the same way that you would carefully prepare copy for commercials, retail signage, emails, and brochures. Their language should be simple and easy to understand. Focus on your company’s brand, so that customers don’t get confused, the message should be loud and clear. Make a strong call to action (CTA) that encourages your receiver to do something, whether it’s clicking on a link, taking advantage of a promotion, or visiting your business. Keep in mind that a copy sets the tone for the customer’s experience, even if there isn’t much to write (text messages should be brief save for a few instances).

  • Add images: Images are best to explain the message. Sending SMS marketing campaigns with images might help your customers remember your messages and take action. For example, create an eye-catching image to indicate your approaching sale, or use a combination of the two strategies.

  • Frequency: If you bombard your consumers with marketing SMS, they may view your messages as spam and will unsubscribe. If you can, be as specific as possible when asking for their consent, and then keep to it. Only send SMS to consumers who sign up for alerts for upcoming events, such as new product releases and first access to special offers, so that they know when to expect them.

  • Use keywords: Keywords are all around you in everyday life. An SMS campaign can be assigned keywords like TAKE20 or FLASH and when a customer texts that word to the company’s phone number, they will receive an auto-reply message with additional instructions or confirmation as a result. Shortcodes commonly use keywords, but there are limitations to shortcodes, as we previously stated (and they can be expensive for their limited capabilities). As an alternative, business-texting software is a lower-cost option that supports keyword use and includes additional features that can help your SMS marketing campaigns perform better. Keywords are used for Coupons for exclusive deals, Contests, Flash sales, Customer voting, and getting customers’ reviews.

  • Lead Generation: Texting is a great way to stay in touch with current customers while also generating new ones. It’s as simple as putting “Text or Call” with your phone number on ads, online forms, and chatbots. Texting is a low-pressure way to connect with people who don’t want to call your business. An alternative is to incorporate a Click-to-Text button onto your website. When a visitor from their phone or desktop clicks or taps on the button, a window will open up asking for their phone number and message. Following the visitor’s click on “send,” the message will be delivered to their default messaging app, where it will be picked up by an employee. Click-to-Text enables website visitors to contact you via text without pulling out their phones.

  • Measure performance: Measuring the success of your SMS marketing campaigns is critical for small business growth. When evaluating business texting software, look for tools that track texting volume so you can determine when clients are most likely to text. Additionally, explore products that include keyword reporting to assist you in determining which terms generate the most responses and interaction.

 

Conclusion

 

 You’ve got to deliver a simple and clear message to the consumer in the digital age of marketing if you want your business to grow. Don’t forget to use concise language and include a compelling Call To Action (CTA) in your communications. Although SMS can come out as pushy, this is true of any marketing strategy you choose for your company. SMS small business is a modern marketing tool for your business. Take advantage of its perks today.

 

Jacob Murphy

Jacob Murphy

Jake is CloudContactAI's Director of Content Creation. When he's not working, you can likely find him enjoying the great outdoors.

Related Articles

Innovative Uses for Text Messaging Services in Small Businesses

Innovative Uses for Text Messaging Services in Small Businesses

Many assume that only huge corporations employ text message marketing, but in reality, companies of all sizes can benefit from implementing an SMS marketing campaign. Customers love texts because they are easy to read, have a better conversion rate than email, and are perfect for marketing and communication. Plus, shoppers are on board; 75% of shoppers say that SMS marketing initiatives have affected their purchase decisions.

How to Attach a Picture to a Text Message: iOS and Android

How to Attach a Picture to a Text Message: iOS and Android

When it comes to text messaging, the art of visual storytelling reigns supreme. Whether you wield an iPhone or an Android device, the ability to attach pictures to your text messages is a skill worth mastering. Join us on a journey through the intricacies of iOS and Android platforms as we unravel the steps to seamlessly weave images into your textual tapestry.

Automated Text Messages

Automated Text Messages

Learn all there is to know about automated text messaging with our in-depth exploration. From scheduled messages to emergency alerts, discover the various types of automated messages and how to send them effortlessly using reliable services like CloudContactAI. Revolutionize your communication strategy and connect with your audience like never before!