It can require a significant amount of time and money to market your company. The volume of emails that most consumers receive on a daily basis and changes in social media algorithms can make it challenging for independent retailers to see results from their marketing campaigns.

Text message marketing, or simply text marketing, is another name for SMS marketing, which is an easy approach to reach clients and receive a considerably better return on investment. Customers are in favour of it as well; 70% concur that it’s a fantastic approach for companies to catch their attention.

What is SMS marketing?

Businesses can utilise short message service (SMS) marketing to send text messages with promotions to their clients. Stated differently, text marketing and SMS marketing are interchangeable.

Similar to email marketing, text marketing requires opt-in participation from clients. SMS messages are substantially shorter than email marketing, though, and are also more likely to be responded to quickly—more on that later.

Does SMS marketing work well?

Like any marketing, SMS marketing works best when your messages are carefully written and sent to the appropriate audience.

Is SMS advertising, however, specifically effective enough to make the effort worthwhile? We believe so. 97% of US adults own a cell phone, indicating that cell phone use is almost universal. Additionally, a survey of business owners revealed that their clients were 4.5 times more likely to respond to an SMS message than an email, demonstrating how deeply involved they are with their phones.

This is not to imply that SMS marketing should take the place of emails; longer text messages will always have a role in marketing campaigns. However, SMS messages can be a useful addition to a more comprehensive approach, particularly if you properly categorise your clientele based on factors like location or past purchases.

Advantages of Sms Marketing

Compared to other digital marketing strategies, SMS marketing offers a number of benefits.

1) It’s quick

Marketing with text messages is quick in a number of ways.

In contrast to social media or email marketing, you do not need to create any images to accompany your information. Text messages have a low character restriction, so you don’t have to write a lot. They are quick and simple to create and send.

Second, texts can reach your receivers more quickly than an Instagram post or email. When your customers get a text message, they receive immediate notification on their phone. In comparison, consumers would have to go through the extra effort of opening a social network app or email client to see your other types of marketing.

2) It has almost flawless open rates.

If you want individuals to open your messages, texting them is the most effective way to do so.

The percentage of times that marketing texts are opened is an astounding 98%, which is very nearly 100%. In contrast, a Mailchimp study discovered that the typical open rate of an email used for retail marketing is only 18.39%.

3) It receives a lot of responses.

SMS response rates are high due to their high open rates. Email click-through rates typically don’t rise above 7%, but the average response rate for SMS marketing messages is 45%. When you text a link to a customer, they are much more likely to click on it than when you email one.

Best practices for using SMS marketing

It’s not necessary for SMS marketing to be difficult.

Since there is no need for a design component, it’s actually even simpler than email or social media marketing.

The following actions are necessary for you to begin using SMS marketing:

Obtain a list of clients you are authorized to message.

It is illegal to text someone in the US and Canada if you do not have their express consent. Make sure you have permission to send messages from your list of recipients before launching an SMS advertising campaign. Anyone whose permission status you are unable to verify should be removed.

You can stay compliant and gather client data with the aid of loyalty software.

To send your mails, use a tool.

You don’t have time to manually email every consumer, therefore you’ll need software to help you automate your SMS marketing. You can choose to use an integrated system like Lightspeed Marketing & Loyalty, or there are services that specialize in text message marketing.

You would need to transfer a list of your customers’ contact information to a different SMS marketing system, which would track the results of your campaign independently of any other marketing campaigns. Selecting a loyalty program that works with your point-of-sale system allows you to gather information, handle data, and send messages all from the same location where you accept purchases.

Create a message.

Text messages don’t have to be as lengthy as newsletter emails.

The shorter, the better, in actuality. A phrase or two, or roughly 160 characters, is what you should aim to stay inside.

Make sure your customers know who you are by introducing yourself briefly in your message. Next, explain to them the purpose of your message—are you trying to sell them something? requesting a review or input from them?

Put a clear call to action at the end of your message and, if appropriate, include a link.

At the right time, reach the right customers

A customer who lives close to your flagship store and spends a lot of money there each month will be more responsive to various messaging than a customer who exclusively shops online or makes purchases over the holidays. Similarly, a satisfied client will be more receptive to alternative marketing than an indifferent or angry one.

You can increase your influence by grouping your consumers according to their behavior into buckets. Use a platform (like Lightspeed Marketing & Loyalty) that uses POS data to automatically split clients into groups for you to save time and guarantee that your buckets are always correct.

Monitor outcomes

Monitor the effectiveness of your message after you’ve sent it. Check the number of people who clicked on the link in your message, if you included one. If you created a unique discount code for your SMS advertising campaign, track the number of customers who utilized it and the amount of revenue you brought in. Check these numbers against the quantity of messages you sent.

Give clients the option to opt out.

If you want your clients to stop receiving SMS communications from you, you should provide them with an option to opt out. Opting out is not only required by law, but it also demonstrates that you are acting in good faith. You want to connect, not bombard people.

Try these SMS marketing techniques

Greeting texts

Try sending a welcome SMS once a customer joins your loyalty program, much like you would with an email. For new sign-ups, you can even provide a special discount to entice customers to make additional purchases from you.

New Products releases

Use an SMS advertising campaign to notify customers that they may begin shopping as soon as you post new items to your website or storefront. This is a great approach to promote new products and increase traffic. We advise against doing this more frequently than once a season as you could end up spamming your clients.

Quick sales

Offering flash specials to consumers who have joined your loyalty program is a fantastic way to thank them. Send out an SMS to your consumers informing them of a special offer that is exclusively available to them. A great method to let them know you appreciate their business is to give them first dibs on something or reserve a sale just for them.

Yearly sales

Notify your customers by text about your seasonal sale when it’s time to clear out your inventory.

To deliver more tailored messaging, think about segmenting your sends based on certain groups. For instance, send clients who have previously purchased shoes from you a text message with a link to your currently discounted shoes. Creating segments will be simpler if your POS is integrated with an SMS marketing platform, as you’ll have quick access to sales data.

Request that clients complete surveys

You may find out more about what your clients want from you by using surveys. Sending a survey link via SMS is a better way to boost response rates than using other marketing methods.

With programs like Google Forms or SurveyMonkey, you may quickly and simply build a brief survey.

Cross-promote on multiple social media platforms.

Expanding the social media presence of your company might take up a full-time job. Utilize your SMS marketing audience by urging them to follow you on social media through text messages. Adding a social media gift to this could make it more alluring.

Successful SMS marketing tactics as examples

Simple SMS marketing is possible; a couple of strategically placed texts can have a significant impact.

Follow the lead of retailers who have had success with SMS marketing to ensure that yours is too.

Reach out to your clients wherever they may be.

Your clients use their mobile devices and the internet extensively. You may quickly reach them in bulk with succinct and appealing offers by using SMS marketing.

Integrating your SMS messaging platform with your point of sale is the greatest approach to obtain customer behavior data, which will be the foundation of your most successful SMS marketing campaigns. To get the Best SMS marketing services, you can contact us.