Sure, you may think you’re reaching consumers with text messages they want to receive and when they want to receive them…. but are you really?
Unfortunately, it doesn’t take much to get sloppy with your text messaging. So if SMS marketing is as important to you and your business as it should be, practicing safe text (that is, designing SMS campaigns that are most effective and least intrusive) is as simple as following a few critical steps along the way.
To better ensure that your communications are appreciated, useful, and capable of prompting measurable results, be certain to do the following:
- Keep it brief. Consumers want – okay, demand – something short and to the point. When you are crafting your message, make sure your content is as succinct and directly applicable to the consumer as possible. Above all else, keep it simple. If you are distributing a coupon code, be certain the message covers how to use the code and why a recipient should use it.
- Use real language. Don’t pump your message full of slang or sales jargon because it’s going to look like spam. “Text speak” doesn’t have a place in mobile marketing and it will make your business look unprofessional and cheap if you use it.
- Offer something the consumer wants and can use right now. This is the real secret sauce in effective SMS marketing. Smartphones are immediate gratification machines, so your message should play into that. Make sure recipients know why acting now is the best path, and make it clear that they actually can act now to gain something of valuable significance.
- Start with your name. If all your customer reads is: “Awesome sale, stop by!” he or she may not recognize your brand, especially if their phone doesn’t recognize you as the sender. Without at least some reference to what company is sending them this “awesome deal,” they’re just going to ignore the message and delete the text.
- Make your customers feel special. It’s no secret that when consumers feel that they are receiving something exclusive, they are more likely to use that promotion and less likely to opt-out of an SMS program. Just as you should never stop trying to win the affection of customers, your SMS campaigns shouldn’t either.