SMS Marketing:
SMS marketing is a quick and convenient way to connect with your clients. You can learn more about your customers without having to spend a lot of money on market research. SMS or text messages have existed since 1992 when the first ever message was sent. In terms of how we use it, very little has changed since then, and the fundamentals remain the same. And, particularly for business, it’s still much more popular than ever!
Short Message Service, or SMS, is a well-known messaging program that enables mobile phones to share text messages of up to 160 characters. SMS is incredibly helpful as a marketing and customer support channel because it can be used by any mobile phone, anywhere in the world.
In 2023, SMS will play an important part in a marketer’s cross-channel marketing. Without SMS, you run the chance of losing money, losing opportunities, and having lower engagement. Businesses can reach customers immediately by texting them.
SMS Functionality:
The original purpose of SMS wasn’t to facilitate phone-to-phone conversation. The initial concept was to provide network providers with a method of updating their clients on occurrences in a single manner, like voicemail notifications. Additionally, the first text message was sent from a desktop computer due to most phones’ lack of an alphanumeric keyboard during that time.
Any network or hardware supplier could include SMS functionality in their goods and services while still being certain that it would work with other networks and devices. Another benefit is that SMS texts are sent over the mobile infrastructure rather than the web or email, so a mobile phone does not require an internet connection to send them.
Three types of SMS were included in the GSM specifications: SMS-MT (network notifications from the network operator), SMS-CB (broadcasts to every device on a network), and – most significantly – SMS-MO. (messages between mobile phones). Around the time that GSM networks began to spread globally, mobile phone users started to become knowledgeable of SMS.
Even in today’s web-connected world, there are still areas where SMS remains the primary and in many cases the only accessed text-based communication method.
Who are SMS Providers?
Short Message Service (SMS) service providers are frequently technology firms that have a solid understanding of the technology. They got the networks’ rights to send large numbers of text messages and then build their services on top of those, like software that makes creating and managing SMS marketing campaigns simple. Providers compete to offer the best customer support and expanded functionality across a variety of service levels.
Reasons to use SMS Marketing for Business:
Business text messaging adds a whole new level of efficiency and flexibility for your business to engage with customers, even if you previously only used emails and phone calls.
- Strong and Quick Readership: Mobile phones are always by our side, unlike our laptops and computers. In reality, they frequently stay two meters or farther away from us every single day! This indicates that SMS messages are usually read quickly, sometimes within minutes. Because of this SMS has an edge over email marketing and phone outreach.
- Engaging Marketing Activity: Customers might not be as engaged by TV, billboards, or PPC ads as they are by SMS. You can immediately turn customer interaction into a chance to grow your business if they follow up and ask questions about a specific campaign or promotion. Text messaging can be a fantastic addition to your digital marketing efforts, regardless of whether you run a small or big company. They are the only ones who can effectively transmit such important data.
- Economical & Affordable: If improving client contact and increasing sales are on your list of goals for this year, but you don’t have a lot of money to spend, SMS is your go-to tool in this situation! It is a marketing tactic that is economical and shouldn’t be undervalued. In addition to being an affordable choice for budgets of all sizes, SMS marketing also provides a decent return on investment. You can run profitable returns by designing programs that can be highly targeted for a few bucks per message.
- Recommended for Funnel: The best thing about SMS is that it offers a logical plan for carefully maintaining your audience’s attention. Without downloading a particular app or trying to establish an account, prospective buyers can simply receive a text message on their phone. Including SMS marketing in your sales process keeps customers engaged and increases conversion rates all around. It offers a higher return on investment (ROI) than any other form of advertising because you can target particular members of your audience with relevant and personalized content. It’s possible that some customers won’t need any additional rewards beyond a small initial purchase discount. You can also SMS a special deal to introduce them to the group.
- Diverse Technical Extensions: SMS is still evolving. Most service providers no longer restrict text messages to 160 characters; instead, software on the phone automatically “concatenates” (joins together) longer texts to make them easier to read. SMS is used as currency in some regions of Africa. Even now, brand-new apps are being created with SMS as their foundation. The same underlying technology is used by MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) to share images as well. Even in remote locations and with older technology, mobile-to-mobile payments are possible.
- Target Specification: Most people’s email and direct mail accounts are filled with trash and spam. Customers will only choose to receive SMS updates from companies they prefer to do business with, so you can be positive that the information is being sent to the correct recipient and won’t be lost or ignored. Personalizing each SMS is simple and won’t even take you any additional time to do if you want to give your customers a sense of value.
- Designed for any Industry: SMS marketing is suitable for companies of all sizes because it is flexible and suitable for various purposes. Many uses for SMS messages are possible, including marketing and sales, surveys and feedback, emergency notifications, payment reminders and updates, and much more. It also assists with one-time passwords, password updates, monitoring deliveries, and making bookings or appointments.
- Analytics and tracking: The majority of providers give delivery reports, which are a fantastic way to examine the success of your SMS packages and determine how well your campaigns performed. SMS can also be easily tracked.
- User-Directed Communication: It’s important to build connections with your customers. To get direct customer feedback and engagement, you should search for software that supports that. With this strategy, you can unquestionably maintain the “vibe” and quickly respond to the user.
- SMS instead of an e-mail: Compared to emails, SMS text messages have a much greater “open rate.” Additionally, if you use email, you run the risk of sending messages to customers who have long designated your name as junk mail. If your texts are not received, the channel offers feedback.= As they say, “The money is on the list!” emails still have a role and are very effective at connecting with customers and boosting sales opportunities. However, SMS is quicker and more secure altogether.
WRAPPING IT UP:
High-performing SMS marketing strategies are the most effective methods to stand out from the crowd and communicate with your audience. One of the best ways to reach consumers is through SMS marketing, and things will only get better from here. You’ll be ahead of the game and prepared for any future chances to use the technology by investing in SMS marketing. So, if you haven’t already started including SMS marketing in your plan, do it as soon as possible.
