Five Things Every Marketer Needs to Know About SMS
There’s no better time to take a closer look at SMS marketing – could it fit your marketing strategy?
Smartphone penetration has leapt from 52% to 81% in the UK in the last four years, according to consultants Deloitte’s Global Mobile Consumer Survey 2016, and is expected to continue to rise steadily in the next couple of years. We’re increasingly connected to the things and people around us technologically, but the humble text message has shown almost no sign of losing its appeal. With nearly 100% of phones on the market able to accept text messaging, it’s a channel with the widest reach – something that allegedly fuelled Coca-Cola to spend 70% of its mobile spend on SMS. A study in the US has found that 78% of consumers believe that SMS is the fastest way to reach them, and an astonishing 90% of all text messages are read within three minutes of delivery. Hard to ignore? We think so.
So, what should be at the forefront of your mind when you look at whether SMS could fit with your business? Here are five things you should know before getting started…
1. The Name of the Game: Does it Fit Your Objectives?
It’s easy to approach SMS as a self-contained channel, ready for immediate use. However, before you jump into all that SMS marketing could help you achieve, take a moment to review your marketing objectives against its promises. Will it help you generate the right sales, or develop relationships in the kind of way that fits your business? Approaching any marketing channel as a silo is dangerous – and it’s important to evaluate how SMS might slot into the rest of your marketing activity. Set SMART goals for it from the get-go (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Bound) so you’re continuously looking at whether it fits you. Having clear goals will also help you communicate what you want to do with SMS internally, which as we all know, can be half the battle.
2. Collaborate and Cross-Pollinate
Don’t just give your SMS strategy to one marketing team member. It’s designed to work best when integrated with other marketing activity. For example, M&S famously targeted customers with promotional texts for their dine in for £10 offer, timed to be delivered just when most people leave the office, chiming true with advertising in-store, online and on TV, with corresponding extra discount codes as a little thank you for responding to SMS. Build a cross-functional team around it and you’ll get the most from it: customer services, sales, retail, in-store, digital creative, email, IT, social media, promotions… Together you’ll drive home SMS marketing’s effectiveness by integrating it within cross-channel campaigns, but also embedding it into your culture and way of working.
3. Be Clear on Responses: What Do You Want People to Do?
All too often the message you’re trying to get across is lost in the method. For example, TV shows have famously experienced problems when asking viewers to respond by text to vote. And billboards, where keywords appear with quote marks around them (‘Text “FREE” to 80119’) are notoriously problematic. If the customer misspells the keyword or mistypes the number, they may be left with charges on their bill and an inferred negative impression of your brand. This kind of response also relies on instantaneity. A customer is unlikely to remember the keyword and the number for more than a handful of seconds beyond viewing the initial creative, whatever format that may take. Then, for SMS campaigns where you require customers to click a link within your text, this can also create frustration amongst customers who may not have access to the internet to respond immediately. Effectively, the lesson is this: SMS works best if customers can read and respond immediately. Nothing less than ‘now’ will do.
4. Up Close and Personal: Make the Most of the Intimacy
Our mobile devices are one of the most personal possessions we have. Those customers who welcome you into their phone should be considered some of your most loyal, and should be respected. Take advantage of this level of permission by offering them extra offers just for SMS subscribers. In the early stages of building subscribers, discounts can be an effective way of spreading the word and growing your list. Once you’ve got a loyal following, show them regularly that you value their permission with offers you know they’ll value. Consider carefully the timing and frequency of your campaigns against industry benchmarks and any past performance data: SMS customers are hard won and easily lost, but incredibly valuable and loyal when treated right. Remember, it’s not all about the money. You could offer incentives based on personalisation (‘Your favourite item is now back in stock’), reminders (‘Your parcel will be delivered today’), engagement (‘Tell us how we can help you’), access (‘Access our online sale 24 hours early just because you’re an SMS subscriber’), or even privilege (‘We only share this with our SMS VIPs’).
5. Permission is Vital; Compliance is Essential
Like email, SMS is an opt-in channel. Customers can either opt-in by texting a keyword from another channel to your virtual mobile number or giving you their number via a web form or in store. Whatever the method, it must be crystal clear to customers what they’re signing up for. While legally you can send messages to your existing customers as long as it relates to that existing transaction – it’s advised you run an initial opt-in campaign to these customers to double check they want to receive promotions from you going forward. SMS marketing is highly regulated in the UK. Do your homework before sending anything to anyone by reading the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) rules and the Data Protection Act (2008) for starters.
In short, the benefits of SMS marketing can be huge, providing you know what you’re doing, you’ve set up the right support internally, and you’re fully briefed in on the law.
Related Articles
12 Great Quotes to Start Your 2018 SMS Marketing Campaign
SMS Marketing Techniques for Copywriting Agencies
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.
Don’t Worry, SMS Messaging is Still Perfect for Marketing
Brits feel “bombarded” by too many messages from brands on mobile. Does that mean SMS marketing doesn’t work anymore? Actually no, it just means most brands are probably doing it wrong. Find out why UK consumers feel that way and how your brand should be using SMS marketing the right way.
Improve SMS Marketing ROI By Giving Your Customers Options
SMS messaging offers some of the highest click through rates in mobile marketing. But did you know it could be even better? See how one retailer improved their click rates by offering their customers different options in their messages. Then see how you can do the same.
Do This One Thing and You’ll Improve Your SMS Marketing ROI
SMS marketing is not quite like most other marketing. You have such a limited space to get your point across, just 160 characters, more or less. It’s not unlike having to create a print advert for a small space, but somehow it can seem more intimidating. That’s why sometimes it seems like marketers forget one basic rule about writing offers: Always lead with the offer! Sounds simple, right?
9 High Conversion Power Words for SMS Marketing
What are the Worst SMS Marketing Messages You’ve Received?
Just for fun, I asked people in a marketing focused Facebook group to share the worst SMS marketing messages they’ve ever received. I was expecting a deluge of responses, but actually only a few trickled in. But those horrible SMS marketing messages are out there…the comments on my post proved it even if no one wanted to share (I guess they’re all shy).
5 Ways to Build Some Football Fever With SMS Marketing [Infographic]
What You Can Learn From a Bad SMS Message
In last week’s blog I covered how the Trump campaign sent unsolicited SMS messages to voters. This week I’m stuck on the same topic, but from a totally different angle: what we can learn from that failure. Because honestly, their biggest issue might not be violating the law. It might be the people they have writing their SMS messages. It’s time to dissect the message that spawned the law suit, and learn what we can from it.