A traditional and most effective way to do marketing is advertising via SMS. Almost everyone has a phone with them, irrespective of whether it is smart or not; they all have message services. So, this digital marketing is the best way to reach out to your customers.
SMS campaigns achieve a 45% response rate, which is much higher than the 6% response rate for email campaigns. Now this is a significant difference. The top best practices for SMS marketing strategy are built with keeping the segments in mind.
Understand where are your audience, get their explicit consent, let them know exactly what they are signing up for, and so more that we will discuss later in this article.
So, exactly what is SMS Marketing?
text messaging service for business is having a direct interaction with your customers. Sending promotional sms marketing messages about, offers, updates, reminders and other communications.
It is an easiest way to reach customers. You can get prompt response and the engagement rate is high. The good thing is it is permission based meaning business can only send message to individuals who have explicitly consented to receive them.
Messages can include promotional offers, time-sensitive alerts, appointment reminders, and transactional updates like shipping notifications.
Multimedia messaging service (MMS) extends SMS by allowing images, videos, and GIFs to be included in messages. These types of messages are more visually appealing.
If you are a small business owner and want to grow? Achieve those sales numbers, create a brand then using sms marketing services integrating with CRM is a great choice. But how to use it? What are the precautions one must take before sending such messages.
10 Tips of SMS Marketing:
1. Keep texts simple and easy
What I mean by saying keep it simple is do everything in short way. Write greetings, promote your product, add CTA and that’s it.
Do not put more than needed content in message. The attention span of customer is very short. Hence, utilize that time to divert their focus on the things that matters.
Studies have found that messages with less than 160 characters have a higher response rate.
Use clear and concise language. Do not confuse the customers! Be straightforward in communicating and prompt the desired action from your customers.
Long and Boring Message: (Not effective)
“Hello, valued customer; we are excited to announce a special promotion for today only! You can enjoy a fantastic 20% discount on all orders placed today. This offer applies to our entire range of products, including best-sellers and new arrivals. To redeem this amazing deal, simply enter the code SAVE20 at checkout. Hurry, as this offer is only valid until midnight tonight!”
Short SMS Message (Effective):
“Hello, Special deal- 20% off on all orders today! Use code: SAVE20”
Simplicity in SMS marketing presents you as professional. The above example clearly dictates the differences you can make.
2. Know your audience and segment them:
Having a good data is the first step! While you can still rely on that, it’s crucial to understand your customers. They can come from any platform, so better to have a integration of CRM with SMS services.
AI plays a prominent part here by segmenting data according to area, their interests and more. You have to be clear about your offerings. Discuss with your team, you have the customer profiles, get to know about their interests and preferences then prepare a message.
In 2025, 84% of customers are open to receiving more text message marketing from businesses. This shows that they are comfortable with SMS as a communication channel.
Important Stats:
Gen X leads in SMS subscriptions, with 85% currently receiving texts from brands.
Women are more likely to opt into business texts than men, with 88% opting in compared to 78% of men.
Use AI SMS marketing. It can help automate by personalizing content and timing without human intervention. Isn’t that too good? Brands don’t have to worry about how well their capital is being spent because they can look at the reports at any point during the SMS campaigns.
People actually do buy when they are impressed by SMS content and brand value. All you have to do is talk about them rather than promote your brand.
The best example is Murad, a famous skincare brand:
Example SMS:
The short message service is accurate, addresses the customer, offers discounts, and includes a personalized code.
3. Focus on Creativity
Creative things take time! Don’t rush to create a message. Consider yourself a customer journey or as a customer. Now do you reply or take actions on every SMS? No one does that.
But my personal experience is if there is a creativity in the content or image, I am obliged to read more. Let’s say a brand creates curiosity, then majority of the customers would want to know what’s going on.
This showcases the ‘brand creativity’ and how well you play with the elements and align them with your goals. Being trendy is another thing, and being creative is a permanent one.
Don’t run SMS marketing campaigns just for the sake of it! We are exploring so many brands now that we are using social media more than ever. And there are so many creative ideas from which we can take inspiration.
A clothing and apparel brand Avenu using images in its. If you read the last 2nd line in the image below, ‘Get an exclusive sneak peek’ This text message services gives customers an upper edge, thinking that they will be the first one to get a peek in to the new collection and they are bound to click on the link.
4. Hey, don’t forget to Offer Exclusive Deals!
Deals are amazing; they are super exciting and create joyous vibes among your customers.
By sending personalized SMS messages with exclusive discounts or promotions, you can create a sense of urgency and excitement among your customers.
A simple message like “Exclusive 15% off for our loyal customers! Use code LOYAL15 at checkout” can drive sales and increase customer satisfaction.
Exclusive deals work because they tap into customers’ desire to feel unique and valued. When they feel like that the same offer isn’t available to everyone, they are more likely to take action.
These types of SMS campaigns show higher conversion rates than other marketing channels.
Note: A Study found that personalized SMS messages with exclusive discounts resulted in a 25% higher conversion rate compared to standard messages.
Coming back to the first point, keep your message concise and clear. Start with a catchy opening that immediately grabs attention, followed by a clear description of the offer, and end with a CTA, most probably a link to that particular landing page.
Source – https://www.attentive.com/texts-we-love
5. Say hello to automation and goodbye to errors!
Automation has taken control of SMS and email marketing and why not? If it’s delivering the desired results, why not to relax while your sales are going up.
Manually, your team will never have the time to organize the data in most efficient way. AI SMS marketing allows you to send automated text messages at the right time.
Mistakes like sending messages to the wrong audience or typos in promotional codes are reduced because such mistakes can harm your brand’s reputation and lead to customer dissatisfaction.
Personalization becomes easy. Customers are given first priority. Their behavior and preferences are at the centre. This is very important in cross-selling too. Let’s say a customer is buying a laptop then offer them external hard drive, a case and a mouse.
Such type of practice is very important in bulk text masseage services when your customer base is large and all you have to do is ‘segment’ ‘automate’ and ‘send’.
Now, you won’t know exactly when the customer is buying, so how would you do the cross-selling? That’s why you need automation.
Here’s an example:
6. Use MMS for Visual Appeal:
MMS are a great advantage because they provide an appealing experience. It allows businesses to send multimedia content such as images, videos and audio files directly to customer’s mobile devices.
Visual elements convey information more effectively than text alone, which makes it easier for customers to understand and engage with your brand’s message.
For example, a fashion brand can send an MMS showcasing a new clothing line with high-quality images and a video lookbook, creating a more immersive experience for potential customers.
MMS marketing easily grabs attention and boost engagement. Images and videos catch people’s eyes better than plain text, leading to higher open rates and click through rates. They are cost effective, allowing targeted messaging and increase in ROI.
It can be used to:
Product Launches and Announcements: Use MMS to create buzz around new products by sending multimedia messages that include images, videos, or audio descriptions.
Seasonal Promotions: Send visually appealing seasonal offers that capture the essence of the occasion, such as festive-themed images or videos.
7. Make Opt-out Easy:
Do not use sms marketing make it hard for customers to opt out of SMS marketing. Create a positive brand brand image and ensure compliance with regulations.
When customers feel that they have control over the various marketing messages that they receive, they will trust your brand and remain loyal.
By including a clear opt-out option in every message, such as “Reply STOP to unsubscribe,” you demonstrate respect for customers’ preferences and privacy.
It’s important to stay within the rules. Laws like TCPA in the U.S. and GDPR in Europe require businesses to provide an easy way for consumers to stop receiving messages. Deploy AI for texting services and they will remind you of the important updates in new compliance rules. This will save any legal problems.
Features:
- Clear Instructions: Include clear instructions on how to opt out in every message, such as “Reply STOP to unsubscribe.”
- Immediate Action: Ensure that opt-out requests are processed immediately to prevent further unwanted messages.
- Confirmation Message: Send a confirmation message after a customer opts out to acknowledge their request and thank them for their engagement.
It helps refine your audience by ensuring that only interested customers remain on your list, which can improve engagement rates and campaign effectiveness.
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8. Experiment with Emojis and Tone
Emojis light up the mood and are one of the great benefits of SMS and marketing channels. We use it in messaging to our friends and families. Because a single emoji can carry a lot of emotions in it. It also takes less space and you can demonstrate more.
Using just the right emoji can create a great vibe for the customer. They feel delighted and also using powerful emoji’s can set a reputation of your brand.
They convey emotions and personality, helping to build a stronger emotional connection with customers. Adding a visual element to text messages makes them stand out and get attention.
Tone is just as important as the content. It should align with your brand’s identity and fit to the audience.
A fashion brand might use a trendy and playful tone, while a financial institution might opt for a more serious and professional tone.
9. Highlight Call-to-Actions (CTAs)
Give a clear CTA rather than confusing the customers. It will drive more customer engagement and conversions.
It should tell customers exactly what to take next, whether it’s visiting a website, making a purchase, or signing up for a service.
For example, a message like “Shop now and get 20% off! Click here: [link]” clearly directs customers to take immediate action.
1. Use simple and direct language that clearly communicates what action you want customers to take.
2. Create a sense of urgency by using words like “limited time” or “exclusive offer” to prompt immediate action.
3. Place your CTA at the beginning or end of the message to ensure it stands out and is easily noticed.
10. Send Birthday or Anniversary Messages
Sending birthday or anniversary messages by SMS is a nice way to personalize your own marketing efforts. It helps you build stronger relationships with your customers.
These messages make customers feel valued. They also let us to inform customers and offer exclusive deals or discounts.
A message like “Happy Birthday! Enjoy 20% off your next purchase with code BDAY20” can drive sales and enhance customer loyalty.
It implants a sense of belonging and loyalty among customers. These welcome messages lead to higher engagement rates. The exclusive offers in these messages can boost sales significantly.
To send automated birthday messages well, use best SMS mobile marketing and software. This tool helps you save customer birthdays and send messages automatically. This ensures that messages are sent on time without manual intervention.
Conclusion:
SMS marketing is dominant in terms of reaching out to more customers, getting more response and more conversion. You have to take care of the things mentioned above and only then your SMS campaigns will be effective.
The best sms marketing platforms have already predefined values. Take CrmOne as sms marketing tool as an example; this software offers customizable text message templates.
Keep an eye out for trends! Text messages can be created instantly with a bit of creativity. You have the list ready, so press ‘Send.’ The audience is now more prone to open messages that have relevant information with trends.
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