According to a research report, nine of ten people open their text messages. Moreover, most of them will do this almost instantly: within the range of one to five minutes. It is all thanks to push notifications set up default on every single phone. They signal and turn our attention every time we get SMS, unlike emails or other means of communication.
SMS marketing is an extremely efficient means for keeping in touch with the audience and promoting products. The most crucial thing here is to properly develop the campaign. This checklist is a perfect guide for your first SMS marketing campaign.
What Is SMS Marketing?
Promotion via SMS is closely related to text message marketing. Businesses send their offers descriptions and regularly inform customers of different exclusive deals through these communication channels. The main goal for texting is to focus people on your offer and lead or bring them closer to target action, like purchase. Texting is also widely used to provide customer support.
Why Use SMS Marketing?
Every incoming message to a phone is read within five minutes. Considering it, bulk SMS campaigns can be an outstanding marketing tool. And nearly a half of customers prefer texting instead of talking via phone. There are many other benefits:
- high engagement;
- wide outreach;
- ability to hit the target market;
- the majority prefers receiving SMS offers;
- high return on investment.
Using trusted and cost-effective messaging services to reach the audience is essential. For example, BSG World offers a great variety of tools. Here is the link: https://bsg.world/.
7 Steps to a Successful SMS Marketing Campaign
Now you know what stands for SMS marketing, and what benefits it may provide. Let’s check out how to prepare a campaign to help your business increase traffic and significantly improve sales.
1. Build an effective team
First of all, you need to think of resources and skills that you may need to successfully launch an SMS marketing campaign. Your teammates need to be skillful in:
- digital design;
- SMM;
- product promotion;
- financial analysis (to forecast and analyze ROI).
The list of the skills required and the number of members may change depending on your service/product type, budget, project scale, etc.
After building a perfect team, you need to set clear goals and targets. Think of the final result you would like to get from your bulk SMS campaign. What actions is your potential client supposed to do when they get a message from you? Do you want to gain traffic to your website, improve your brand recognition or increase certain product sales?
Figure out your objective clearly before starting the campaign. Analyze your current figures and stats and set a goal. The campaign adjustments and choice of tools for promotion depend on your targets first. Different techniques fit particular objectives.
2. 160 characters rule
Successful SMS marketing implies short, informative, and pithy messages. A typical message size on most devices is 160 characters. Always meet this limit and, be sure, it will work. Here is some advice on how to write an efficient message:
- make it easy to understand without effort or repeated reading;
- use the appropriate tone depending on your audience characteristics;
- be brief and highlight the value of your offer for a customer.
And one more decisive thing in text message marketing: provide your potential customers only with clear info. If you inform the audience about an exclusive sale in your shop, tell them how much they can save and the duration of the discount. Due to this, your clients will clearly understand all the value of your offer.
3. Just in time
Successful SMS marketing means the right timing. If you count on the last-minute impulse, you would better inform customers not so early. Otherwise, they may simply forget about, for example, the end of the sale.
To see what timing suits best to particular sorts of promo, try to vary the times you send bulk SMS. Then track and analyze the stats.
Avoid spamming. Sending numerous messages to clients may negatively cause engagement and even result in loss of audience. Practice shows that sending 1-2 messages per week is the best option in a text messaging campaign.
4. Make your offer special
To attract as many customers as it is possible, you should properly represent your offer showing its exclusiveness. Simply getting their attention is not enough. Your task is to keep them engaged.
For this, make sure that you send unique and exclusive offers. Make them available for subscribed people only.
5. SMS calls to action
Effective bulk SMS campaigns consider engagement. Texts need to be interactive and lead consumers to a target action. To achieve this, we advise using calls-to-action in your messages.
6. Mix your campaigns
Applying your SMS messaging campaign as the only promotion is pointless. Integrating and combining it with other tools means much better performance. A complex approach gives more options and directions for promotion.
For example, if you use mailing, you can provide your clients with instructions on how to subscribe to exclusive offers via SMS. Then you use automated text messages services to inform the audience of special deals.
7. Keep and analyze stats
Do not forget about analysis. It is an essential part of every marketing campaign. Gather the figures, compare them and estimate your performance. Determine the most efficient bulk SMS campaign of yours. Keeping statistics will also help you to see the mistakes and correct them in future promotions.
Summing up
Now you know everything about successful SMS marketing. Use this checklist to get the maximum from the promotion improving sales and engagement.
Nina Smith 
Kim Marks