If you’re a marketer or business owner, you've probably noticed the chatter around Short Message Service (SMS) marketing and the proliferation of brands using it. Here at G&G, we're excited about SMS marketing because it can potentially drive 6X more conversions compared to some digital services and has an average click rate of 36%.
We prioritized SMS marketing in 2021 by adding it to our repertoire of digital growth strategies, and we've seen excellent results. So, if you’re wondering if your brand is ready, let’s start with a few key questions.
If you’re unfamiliar with SMS marketing or feel intimidated by adding a new marketing channel to the mix, let’s get you up to speed. SMS marketing is simply another way for marketers to reach their customers by sending promotional content via text messages to subscribers’ phones. It may seem intrusive, but 54% of consumers say they would like to receive promotional texts.
Any business can use SMS as a marketing channel, but we only recommend it if we know the service adds value for our clients. Here are 3 questions we ask ourselves before launching SMS as a service.
1. Does it fit the budget?
As a results-driven agency, going well beyond the bottom line and reaching our goals is our main priority when recommending any new digital marketing service—SMS or text message marketing isn't an exception.
We've found SMS marketing to be a helpful addition that fits most budgets when our clients need a new channel to reach their clients. And while pricing differs based on strategic needs or depth, we appreciate that text marketing can potentially convert 47% of subscribers.
Answering if text message marketing fits your budget is the first step you should take. However, if you need help gauging costs, let us know if we can help.
2. How does it fit within the digital marketing strategy?
Digital marketing is like a highway. Every channel offers varying rules, but they ultimately need to drive your customers to the same destination: Your website.
When we propose SMS as a service, we consider how text marketing fits within a client’s overall digital strategy. For example, can SMS elevate email marketing? Yes. Can it boost all other channels? Maybe.
As digital marketers, we go analog by whiteboarding out each channel to visually understand where SMS marketing fits alongside all other services. Meaning, we only propose it if we learn that text messaging complements every channel.
3. How engaged are your subscribers?
Ultimately, your subscribers will tell you if you’re ready for text marketing based on their engagement. For example, low email engagement likely means you need to improve your marketing efforts there before texting folks.
Here are a few primary areas to gauge customer engagement:
While any business can and should use SMS marketing, list size should also be factored into whether or not you’re ready to text your subscribers. However, no list is too small, but we recommend starting with a goal of 100 or more monthly sends.
First, we know most marketers and business leaders are strapped for time. Full-disclosure: while SMS marketing doesn’t require the time or energy of email marketing, it does require a lot of attention.
It's important to know that every business using SMS marketing must implement and follow specific compliance laws based on their state and country codes, which can be time-consuming. Crafting, responding, and strategizing texts should also be factored into whether or not it makes sense to add it as another digital channel.
If you’re looking for more advice around SMS marketing or need someone to bounce a few ideas off of—let’s chat! If anything, we’ll let you know if SMS is right for your brand.
