What Is Text Message Marketing?
Text message marketing (also called SMS Marketing) is a type of marketing that is called permission based. This is similar to businesses online asking for your email address in exchange for some sort of offer. Text message marketing is based on the same concept.
Everyone on your text list is there because they have consciously made a decision to join (called “opt in”) your list. These people will be much more open to your offers and messages because they have actually requested that type of information.
You are basically building a list of people you can text to who are already warm leads. You won’t be interrupting and annoying these people either because they have given you permission to market to them.
If they ever tire of your offers, they can simply text “End” or “Stop” to remove themselves (called “opt out”)from your text list.
There is no wasted cost because you will only be sending text offers to people who have already proven to be interested in your offers. Imagine how much money you would save if you could ensure only interested leads got your direct mail campaigns, or saw your print ads and flyers.
The Benefits of SMS Text Message Marketing
SMS text message marketing allows you to communicate directly to your target market by sending a simple, quick text message. This permission-based program is perfect because your recipients have opted-in to receive your messages. It’s effective because they WANT to receive your promotions.
Another great thing about SMS text message marketing is the deliverability of the message. Almost all text messages are read within minutes of receiving them. In fact, recent studies show that 97% of text messages are read within minutes of receiving them. So this is the perfect way to get your promotions across to your target market.
SMS text message marketing is also more time-efficient compared to traditional advertising methods. Text messages have to be short due to character limitations, so putting together your marketing message takes just a few minutes instead of days and weeks to prepare.
SMS text message marketing is also highly trackable. You have the advantage of monitoring and finding out what happens with each message you send out. In other words, you can track down your campaigns to evaluate many metrics such as how many people viewed your message.
Can you do that with any newspaper, TV, or radio ad? Nope.
SMS text message marketing is also a great way to retain your customers at a very low cost. It’s the perfect recipe for customer retention because you can reach out to them very easily. These are customers who have already spent money with you, so chances are, they will come back to spend more and more money with you as long as you keep in touch with them.
Business owners have many different marketing strategies available to them today. However, not all of them are as effective and profitable as a SMS text message marketing campaign. As long as everything is set-up well and you are taking good care of your list, your business can bring in a lot more money with the use of this amazingly effective technology.
Five SMS Text Message Marketing Mistakes
If you are looking to build a massive list of customers who will buy from you over and over again, here are a few SMS Text Message Marketing mistakes you should avoid:
- Mistake # 1: No Call to Action
No matter how great your business is, you are still missing out on opportunities to get new customers if your mobile promotions do not include a call to action. Make people aware of your mobile presence on all of your marketing materials. Most importantly, tell people to join your mobile list to receive cool free gifts and future promotional offers. If you don’t tell them to join, most won’t. - Mistake # 2: No Customer Reward for Registering
Another effective marketing strategy is to offer sign-up bonuses. Customers will be encouraged to join your mobile list if they receive an immediate reward. For instance, if you are fast food chain, you may offer “FREE MEAL worth $ 5” as a sign-up bonus. The customer would have to present your text message offer on their next visit in order to redeem it. - Mistake # 3: Sending Out Too Many Offers
Though sending offers frequently can be exciting and may get your customers’ attention, it is annoying which may lead to some customers unsubscribing from your list. Also, sending offers frequently can have a negative impact as it does not give customers thrills on what they miss. Text offers sent weekly or twice a month is more effective because customers are given time to see the advantages of the offers and will look forward to future ones. - Mistake # 4: No Customer-Retention Incentives
Customers are likely stay on a mobile list if they are given “freebies” and nice discounts every once in a while. Don’t make all of your messages an attempt to sell something. Instead, make your list some nice offers that will make them happy as well as keep a steady flow of income coming into your business. Some examples of effective customer rewards programs would be “FREE STUFF,” “50% OFF,” and “BUY ONE, GET ONE FREE.” - Mistake # 5 No Referral System in Place
Of course, people tend to share and talk with their friends and family members about any nice offers they’ve received. When your customers are satisfied by your products or services, they will likely recommend it to a friend or family member. So, you can make this process very easy for them by implementing a mobile “Refer a friend” program. Give your “referring” customers a nice reward for referring others and watch your list and ROI quickly grow.
Want to learn more about Text Messaging? We have plans for any budget. Call MobiWebPlus.com now at (804)476-4086 or drop us an email today.