Big-name companies and brands are well-known for employing social media influencers, business strategists, public relations staff, brand ambassadors, consultants, advertising companies, marketing departments, and so on.
While small businesses may not always have access to these marketing tools, they do have a secret weapon in their arsenal – text messaging!
Hold on! Before you scoff at the idea of text message services, here’s something to consider -just about everyone you know owns some kind of smartphone or simply a mobile phone that does not require an internet connection which they look through for messages first thing in the morning and even all through the rest of the day.
Unsurprisingly, many small business owners are in the dark regarding the reach and efficacy of text messages as a marketing tool.
Text messaging should no longer simply be a choice but an essential component of your business functions and daily operations, with over 7.5 billion subscriptions to the smartphone network worldwide.
Text message marketing is crucial for small businesses because of this. Text messaging, which has an 82% open rate, helps you connect with your potential customers whenever and wherever they are most active— on their smartphones.
Still not convinced that text messages are the way to go for small businesses? Well, here are five reasons that should convince you!
5 Reason why Small Business should use Text Message Service
1. Simplicity and Amenity
Text messaging is indeed the simplest type of digital communication, in contrast to emails and phone conversations. This is because text messaging allows you to sidestep many of the difficulties associated with observing prescribed email protocol and having impromptu phone interactions with your customers. Let’s face it: calls frequently arrive at the most inopportune times, whether they originate from you or the ends of your customers.
Furthermore, anyone may read and respond to a text message without a sophisticated phone or other devices. They only require a simple feature phone which means that even smartphone users who might not be familiar with how to access the more sophisticated features of a smartphone can still be reached through a text message. This enables you to reach a wide range of customers of varying age demographics with vital messages using any basic mobile phone in a method that is both practical and completely non-intrusive.
2. Increased Engagement with Customers
Customers tends to be more engaged in text message services than on email or social media platforms because it is so simple to use. An explanation for this would be that text messages are the most accessible form of communication for users. You don’t need to navigate a lot of icons or applications or wait for a new dashboard to open to access your texts, read any text updates, or quit the app.
This indicates that opening a text message encounters less pushback. This makes sense because text messages have a considerably better probability of getting read than emails, which can remain unopened for weeks for any number of reasons, including falling into spam mail or, worse still, even being discarded en mass without being read.
3. Faster and Precise
A text message can be read and replied to in a matter of seconds. You can easily respond to it while doing any number of other things. However, that is not usually the reality with other platforms, though. Due to the anticipated workload, customers tend to delay opening them and take even longer to respond to them.
Additionally, text message notifications may be fully automated. This saves everyone time and effort, which is beneficial when a message needs to be repeated several times before it sinks in. Furthermore, they can be distributed widely and speedily to all of your clients or just a select group.
4. Text Messages are Personal
As a small business owner, you are familiar with the area’s residents. The connections you’ve established are more intimate than business-related. So it only makes sense to use text messaging, the most private communication method available to contact your customers.
Making your consumers feel special by developing a more personal connection with them can increase their loyalty.
By starting a two-way text dialogue with your consumers, you can demonstrate to them that your company values their business, which will keep them coming back to do more business with you. This helps to humanize your small business in the eyes of your consumers.
5. Tracking SMS marketing is Simple.
You’re off to a great start because SMS marketing is permission-based. You won’t appear obtrusive or to be violating your consumers’ privacy, for starters.
Additionally, you can readily track SMS messages by sending them to individual phone numbers rather than relying on marketing channels (like display ads) that offer little to no tracking.
As a result, you may more precisely develop your customer persona as you know your target audience. You may refine your campaigns to make them more focused and audience-specific.
What Can Small Businesses Do with SMS Marketing? – Types of SMS Marketing Campaigns
Sales or Promotional Text Message Campaign
The most typical applications for text or SMS campaigns are advertising and sales. It is assumed that practically everyone has a mobile phone, which they almost certainly check more than once every day, which is why this method is adopted. The average American checks their phone at least 46 times every day, according to Deloitte research.
A text or SMS campaign allows small businesses to communicate with a bigger number of clients or potential clients. The average open rate for SMS messages and campaigns is 98%, and the response rate is 46%! It is not surprising at all. SMS marketing messages are highly effective because of their format, which frequently conveys a sense of urgency.
Transactional Text Message Campaigns
Consumers receive transactional SMS, which is a text message, to assist them in their customer journey. When customers have questions, they want answers immediately, and a transactional SMS helps them.
Your small firm can quickly respond with a transactional SMS. After all, nothing makes a consumer more irate than seeking assistance with a problem and feeling as though they must wait an eternity for a response.
The customer experience can be enhanced with the use of transactional SMS messaging.
What to Focus on while Planing Text Message Campaign? – Tips for text message marketing
Follow these guidelines and best practices to get the most from your SMS marketing initiatives and ensure they’re compatible with the law:
1. Go with Opt-ins
Most nations consider it illegal to send marketing SMS text messages to subscribers without their consent. Before you plan and send your text message campaigns, you must get opt-ins to keep them compliant.
2. Offer them Opt-outs
Every time you reach your target audience, getting opt-in leads only is a bit difficult. Then it is better to offer them an option to opt-out of your marketing or promotional campaigns and ensure that your platform manages the opt-out smartly and accurately.
3. Send Customized Messages
For the greatest impact, incorporate the customer’s name in the text. Also, make sure the paragraph’s subject matter is really pertinent.
4. Strictly Manage the Business Hours
Sending too early in the morning or too late at night is not advised. Consider the times of day when your clients are most likely to want to hear from you.
5. Put in a Call to Action
Specify what you want your SMS recipients to do after receiving your SMS message, such as visiting your website, calling a number, making an appointment, etc.
6. Register with 10 DLC
If you are planning to send your text message campaign in USA or Canada, what you need at the first step is to get your brand and campaign registered with 10 DLC to stay compliant with the latest guidelines. It will also, in return, gives you better connectivity and delivery ratio. Read What is 10 DLC to get more insight on it.
What to Look for in an SMS Marketing Platform?
When searching for a user-friendly SMS marketing platform, seek one that provides a 100% compliant solution with the highest level of campaign automation, quick setup, and simple administrator controls. Of course, you want to use text message marketing without spending a fortune. To ensure that your messages reach their intended recipients, look for a platform that provides small businesses with low-cost access to enterprise-level functionality.
Last but not least, be sure to pick the SMS marketing platform with the greatest technical support because you may require a lot of help at first while planning and managing the SMS marketing campaign. The key to getting started will be a supportive staff that is well-positioned and eager to assist.
Summing it up
The Text message service is still a viable communication method and not as archaic as most people think. It is the perfect marketing communication medium for smaller retailers and microenterprises. It is really easy to use, powerful, and completely scalable. It also helps to reduce business costs since it is a significantly affordable marketing strategy.
Additionally, 54% of customers prefer to hear from your company by text. You could be losing out on a significant chunk of your audience if you aren’t already sending them! What better time to start taking advantage of that than now? Connect with our experts at your best time and get started with your most productive text message marketing campaign.