How to Choose the Incentive for Your SMS Marketing Opt-In Campaign
When you’re just starting out an SMS campaign, the main dilemma is what to use for an opt in. If it’s too “small” an offer, no one will bother. If it’s too “big”, then you might get lots of people who opt in, then opt out.
It reminds me of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Daddy’s things were way too big and didn’t suit the child. While Mummy’s things weren’t quite right either. What you want to do for your offer is to find the “just right” size. The trouble is your customer is Goldilocks, and you won’t know what offer they like until you give them one, or a few, to try.
You may think it’s incredibly difficult and expensive to test out multiple offers. But it doesn’t have to be. Let’s say you go big (like Daddy’s bed). Your offer generates lots of opt ins, and then people opt out. That might not be so bad. I’ve found some evidence that says that the large incentive opt out rates only run 2-6%. That equates to just a few per hundred opt ins. While I’m not convinced that number holds true for most campaigns (as the source used a limited data set), it is a good starting place.
At the very least, it offers some evidence that going with an incredible (e.g. “Big”) initial opt in offer could be what Goldilocks, I mean your customer, wants.
Try It and See
Assuming you want to grow your list fast, create an amazing offer and see what happens. If your unsubscribe rate is too high, then you know it was Daddy size and not right for your customers (or rather, great for your customers, but not great for growing your list). But at least you hopefully made some money on that single promotion, even if your list size didn’t stay as big as you wanted it to.
Next, try something a little “smaller” like Mummy’s chair or bed (am I taking the analogy too far yet?). If you hit the sweet spot, you’ll likely get people on your list who will stick around and love your brand, product or service. And they’ll also be more likely take action on future messages.
Ideas To Get You Started
If you’re convinced you should start with a big incentive, you might still be wondering what that will be. So here are some ideas to help you narrow down your choices:
- What was the best promotion you ever ran? Could you use that exact offer again, just for people who sign up to your SMS list? If that’s not possible, maybe you can offer something that’s similar enough to draw people in.
- Make a list of the most popular offers you already run in other channels. You can take one of those directly, but consider tweaking it to be just a little better and more exclusive to your SMS list.
- Ask your customers. Send a survey out via other channels – email, or social media – and simply ask them what they’d expect in exchange for their mobile number. This is the best place to start if you have no idea what your customers actually like, or measurements on your other promotion’s performance. The bonus here is you might find out more information that you can use across in other aspects of your business, such as customer service or product development.
Once you decide on your offer and have it advertised anywhere and everywhere you can (but nowhere it can’t be easily changed), don’t get too complacent. Make sure you get right in there and check redemption rates, click through rates, and the unsubscribe rate. Make adjustments based on the results and keep on going. SMS marketing offers one of the highest ROIs you’ll find in mobile marketing – once you find what Goldilocks likes best.
Related Articles
SMS Marketing Campaign Basics
Advantages & Disadvantages of SMS Marketing
SMS marketing is very different to most other more traditional marketing tools, specifically because of its short-form, text only nature. This certainly shouldn't put you off though. We have put together our guide to both the best things about SMS marketing and some of the potential problems, and how to work around them.
Is SMS Marketing Complicated?
How hard is it to use SMS marketing? If you’ve been told it’s complicated, you heard wrong. Using SMS is simple, though there are a few things you should know. This blog shows you how simple it can be, and provides links to useful resources.
5 common SMS marketing mistakes
Are Emoji the Next Big Thing in SMS Marketing?
One of the best things about instant messaging is the ability to send emoticons and emoji to convey a feeling with just one image. Many companies are trying to use them in their SMS marketing. There are technical issues with using them though, as well as questions on whether it’s good marketing practice.
Proof SMS Messaging Gets Results: Giveaways and Contests
Companies use contests and giveaways all the time. It turns out that doing them over SMS messaging works really well, and offers some advantages over other channels. Read our blog to see the types of results various companies achieved when using SMS giveaways.
Have IM Apps Made SMS Messaging Irrelevant?
Earlier this year there was big news. WhatsApp users were sending more messages each day than SMS users were sending. According to the Telegraph, WhatsApp was 50% more popular than SMS messaging. And the truth is the number of SMS messages sent each day has declined over the last few years. In the UK it was down almost 25% from 2012 to 2013. But is that the whole picture?
Work 24/7 Without Being in The Office! The Benefits of SMS Scheduling
In our demanding, 24/7 world it is difficult to stay on top of your SMS marketing campaign but with scheduling you can ensure you are getting your message to your audience whatever the time.
Top Three Things Retailers Should Do to Keep Customers on Their SMS Opt-In List
You've run a successful SMS opt-in campaign for your retail store. Now that you have your list, do you have a plan to keep them from opting out? Wait, you mean there's more to this than just sending out coupon codes? There is if you want to keep your customers from opting out.