Should You Be Using SMS Marketing

Did you know that 98% of text message recipients read them, with 95% opening the messages within three minutes? Also, 48% of consumers prefer brands that communicate with them through text messages.

These statistics prove that SMS marketing is a gem if you want to reach your audience. In a world saturated with marketing messages, SMS may be all you need to break through the noise and connect better with your customers and prospects.

Are you still hesitant about using SMS marketing? Read on to learn six of the top reasons why texting should be at the top of your list of business communication tools.

What Is SMS Marketing?

SMS marketing is communicating with customers by sending them short messages directly to their phones. People have to opt-in to receive your messages, and you have control over who can receive your marketing messages and when to send them.

The control you have over SMS marketing makes it a suitable tool for communicating time-sensitive offers to people who have subscribed to your business messages.

Benefits of SMS Marketing

Sending text messages to your customers may sound odd, and you might think it won’t work. However, you’ll enjoy various benefits when you send SMS to your prospects and customers. Here are some of these benefits:

1. Faster Communication

SMS marketing is a direct and immediate channel of communicating with your customers and prospects. If you have an important message that you need to broadcast within a limited time, text messages will make it possible.

Research shows that Americans check their phones 96 times every day. This means you’re sure that most people will get your message once you send it. The recipients can respond immediately, which allows you to make a quick clarification if need be.

The few characters in text messages allow you to send a simple message that people can quickly read and understand. It ensures that you send a clear, concise message that carries your main point.

2. Ease of Targeting Only Interested Customers

Many traditional and digital marketing strategies involve blasting your message to the widest audience possible. The idea is that the wider the audience you reach, the better your chances of reaching prospects who will convert. This type of marketing means you have to spend your resources sending out a message to people who will most likely ignore it or not see it.

On the contrary, an SMS marketing strategy allows you to send messages to only interested people. You text only those who opt-in or sign up for your SMS marketing services. Signing up means they’re interested in your deals, promotions, or anything else you have.

You don’t waste your money or time reaching out to customers who won’t buy your products or services.

3. Better Customer Relationships

Most consumers are interested in connecting with their favorite brands or businesses. But how do you connect with them when they are overwhelmed by thousands of advertisements and marketing messages? This is where SMS marketing comes into play.

You can send personalized messages to your customers to facilitate better engagement. For example, you can use SMS marketing to tell your loyal customers about exclusive deals. You can also text them insider information like special announcements before the message reaches a wider audience.

Such information will make them feel like they’re getting special treatment. As a result, you’ll build better relationships with them and encourage them to remain loyal. The personalized engagement in SMS marketing will make it easy to grow your e-commerce business.

4. Easy to Integrate With Other Marketing Channels

It’s easier to integrate SMS marketing into your other marketing software. The integration will make it easier for you to get the most out of your marketing strategies.

For example, if customers visit your page and leave without purchasing the item they added to their cart, you can use your marketing automation platform to send a follow-up message to them. The text will remind the customer to buy your products.

You can also use text messages for surveys or polls, which you can then use to improve your marketing operations. A text message can also remind your customers to read an email you sent days or hours before.

In addition, you can use SMS to get your customers more interested in your social media platforms or website. For example, you can inform your customers that they’ll get a discount if they order through your business website. However, your website design must be stunning to entice customers to stay and make a purchase.

5. Affordability

It’s more cost-effective to send text messages to your target audience than to use other forms of communication. For instance, it’s cheaper than using a billboard or a television ad to send a message.

One of the SMS marketing tips that can help you reduce the cost is signing up for web-based SMS services such as DialMyCalls. This service will help you send bulk text messages to people on your contact list within seconds. You can send thousands of text messages at a low rate using bulk SMS packages.

You won’t incur any printing, streaming, or production costs. You’ll simply leverage a popular channel to communicate with your customers.

6. Yielding Crucial Data

Once you send out SMS marketing messages, you can track the campaign results in real-time. If you include a link in your message, you will see the click-through rate.

You can also identify how many customers are willing to engage via messages, the delivery rate, and the sales per campaign. These analytics can help you create a more targeted campaign.

For instance, you can use the data to segment out people less likely to read or respond to your text. In turn, you can target these segments using other communication channels like email.

Leverage SMS Marketing to Grow Your Business

SMS marketing is a powerful tool that you can use to connect better with your target audience and improve your bottom line. Given that almost everyone has a phone today, you have no excuse not to reap the above benefits of SMS marketing.

Do you need help launching or improving your SMS marketing strategy? Our team at BitBranding is ready to walk the journey with you and will help you integrate SMS marketing with your other digital marketing strategies for better results. Contact us today to get started.