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Mobile Marketing


HOW TO MAKE YOUR MESSAGE COUNT AND BEST SMS PRACTICES 

Explore how marketers can boost their business through SMS marketing. 

Doug Rubingh President, MessageMedia
May 10, 2023

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------




How SMS, in tandem with email, meetings, phone calls and other marketing
channels, allows marketers to quickly connect every part of your business from
prospects to customers and employees and why it’s still one of the most potent
tools for marketers, writes Doug Rubingh, President, U.S. and U.K. at
MessageMedia. 

When it comes to creating memorable experiences, the little things can make a
big difference. Businesses that go the extra mile to anticipate and deliver on
customer needs attract a loyal clientele, develop an invaluable trade in
word-of-mouth recommendations and strengthen existing customer relationships. So
for the coming year, please don’t underestimate the power of the humble text
message: it’s one of your most potent channels to connect with customers;
ubiquitous, familiar, instant, personal and unobtrusive, all at the same time.
Today, 89% of consumersOpens a new window  want two-way conversations via
messaging channels and apps. They want rich experiences that give them the power
to take action.

So when someone has entrusted you with their phone number, it’s best to make it
worth their while. And It’s the perfect time for brands to assess their SMS
marketing strategy and align it with their targeted goals. Here are five
essential practices to ensure your SMS campaigns create a lasting impact on your
customers.


REIMAGINE YOUR LOYALTY PROGRAMS

Nurturing your existing relationships works in two ways. By rewarding their
loyalty, your customers will likely shop more often with you. They’ll be more
likely to tell their friends about your business. It’s a win-win.

A loyalty program is a great way to share the love with your regular customers.
An easy way to get started is by using a text-based loyalty program to ensure
your loyalty card doesn’t get lost at the back of your wallet. Plus, it starts a
two-way conversation that can significantly impact business customer service.

Take it a step further by allowing your customers to tell you what they think
through a feedback survey. Simply sending an SMS to a customer and asking them
to rate their purchase or experience allows them to share their opinion while
allowing your business to assess feedback and implement changes to enhance the
customer experience.


GET PERSONAL — AND MAKE YOUR MESSAGE COUNT

The personal touches are often the most memorable parts of an excellent customer
experience. Setting out to achieve this for your own business is easier than it
sounds. For example, you can delight retail customers by creating unique landing
pages — using a template to customize them with relevant customer data — and
linking to them in SMS messages. Your customers get to open a website seemingly
made just for them, setting your brand apart from the crowd. 

While SMS is powerful on its own, using MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) can
also help enrich communication by incorporating product or service visuals,
invoking an emotional connection with customers and mimicking the intimacy of an
in-person customer service interaction. 

See More: The Extraordinary Effectiveness of SMS Coupons [Infographic]Opens a
new window


WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER

Using SMS for your business doesn’t mean that your team will be manually typing
each message and keeping up each text conversation with all of your customers —
that’s not scalable. Using text message templates, you can easily stay on-brand
and tonally consistent and prevent your employees’ carpal tunnel syndrome. These
templates simplify the SMS drafting process and remove the guesswork of writing
recurring messages. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel – keep it short, sweet
and personal. 

Automation is another way to reduce the strain on your team. Keyword triggers,
auto-replies, scheduled text reminders, opt-in campaigns and out-of-office
auto-replies are all ways automated text messages can help you run SMS campaigns
nearly hands-off while still delivering a smooth customer experience. 

If you already use other tools like Salesforce, Shopify or Hubspot, consider
integrating text messaging into the platforms. With SMS campaigns seamlessly
linked to your preferred CRM or CMS, you can add another layer to your marketing
toolkit and streamline the process.


DATA MATTERS

SMS can’t help your business grow if your messages aren’t being read. Tackling
your database is a key step to managing your contacts and ensuring your messages
reach the right people. To keep your database tidy and up-to-date, ensure you’re
routinely deleting duplicate contacts, culling dead numbers, and using delivery
reports or home location register (HLR) lookups. 

Once you’re prepared to send a message out, this simple formula is key to avoid
embarrassing typos and misguided autocorrects: Check, test, modify and repeat.
Once you’ve started a campaign, check response rates; if they are low or slow,
find ways to rework your copy. Ending a message with a call to action (CTA) can
help prompt an action or reply, so make sure your ask is clear. 


BE CONSIDERATE – AND MAKE SURE YOU KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER

When you send a text message, expect it to be read within ninety seconds. Being
read, though, is one thing; prompting action or eliciting trust is another.
Consider when and how often you send SMS to influence engagement. 

Optimize timeliness by adding urgency to promotional messages, sending them only
during socially acceptable hours, and always checking local times if your
contacts live in different time zones. Remember quality is more important than
quantity — don’t overdo it and risk turning off your customers by sending
messages too often.

Finally, it is important to follow SMS Compliance best practices as set forth by
the Federal 

Communications Commission, the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet
Association and the Mobile Marketing Association. By displaying clear
calls-to-action, providing applicable consent mechanisms, sending opt-in
confirmation messages and acknowledging and honoring opt-out requests, you can
ensure that you’re following the four Guiding Principles from the CTIA and
operating in the best interest of your customers. 

Any interaction between your business and a customer is a chance to
differentiate your brand. As the business landscape grows more competitive
daily, this may be critical to sustained longevity and growth. Utilizing these
SMS strategies through personalization, consideration and engagement can help
you reach key customers and work towards your business goals in 2023 and beyond.

How do you think SMS marketing can help you boost your business? Share with us
on FacebookOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , and LinkedInOpens a
new window . We’d love to hear from you! 

Image Source: Shutterstock


MORE ON SMS (TEXTING)

Why SMS Payments Are Crucial for Your Customer Experience Strategy
Email and SMS — A Marketing Match Made in Heaven
Why Texting is Suddenly the Most Valuable Tool in Your Marketing Stack
5 Reasons Why SMS Provides a Better Recruiting Experience



Customer Experience Mobile Marketing

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Doug Rubingh

President, MessageMedia

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Doug Rubingh is President, U.S. and U.K. at MessageMedia. His 27-year career in
the tech space has combined a unique blend of leadership, sales, management, and
operations at every level, leading companies to dramatically grow their business
and increase profitability. Importantly, throughout his career Doug has remained
committed to supporting his teams, fostering their growth and celebrating their
successes — recognizing the integral role that each team member plays. Doug uses
this human-first approach to drive global growth for MessageMedia, helping
businesses of all sizes to better connect with their customers.
Do you still have questions? Head over to the Spiceworks Community to find
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