Marketing or promotional messaging via channels like SMS and chat apps are a vital aspect of revenue-growing businesses. In fact, 77% of B2C brands that used SMS to send promotions or offers reported revenue growth in the last fiscal year. Not only does SMS have a 98% open rate (compared to only 15% for email), text messaging also reports a 40% click-through rate and 30% conversation rate – far outpacing other channels.
Today, more businesses are beginning to understand how critical messaging channels are to reach their customers, but there is still an opportunity for brands to optimize these communications. By implementing the tips below, in addition to ensuring that the brand has an omnichannel approach to reach the consumer on the channel they prefer, marketing messages stand a much better chance of moving the needle and creating stronger brand-consumer relationships.
The recipe for optimizing marketing texts
Brands may spend a lot of time crafting their messaging strategy and promotional campaign, but do not understand why it is not leading to conversion – many times this is because the messages were not optimized for success.
- Be clear – clarity is the first step in creating effective messaging. If the receiver does not know or understand who the message is coming from, they will either not open it or will be confused. Be sure to identify the brand in the first sentence or implement an additional tool such as Verified SMS that clearly identifies the brand.
- Personalize – consumers are much more likely to do business with a brand if they feel the interaction is personalized. Refer to them by name, mention their interests or past purchases and relate this to the reason for reaching out. For example, if there is a special deal taking place that connects to their hobbies – highlight that you know this and are helping them by providing this information.
- Be simple – no one has the time to read pages of marketing material so craft the content to be simple and to the point. Let the customer know what you are offering and what you want them to do – all while providing an easy way to do so quickly, such as including a link to the exact sale you are promoting.
- But urgent – while simplicity is critical, if the consumer believes the information does not need to be acted upon soon then they may put it off and eventually forget about it. Create a sense of urgency by sharing that the offer may expire soon or that there is a limited amount of the product or service available as this will encourage them to act quickly.
- Always add to the brand – recipients don’t want to feel as though they are interacting with a robot so end the message with something that is “on-brand.” If the business is a pet store and your brand personality is aiming to be interesting and upbeat, then close the message out with a fun fact.
A sample message may look something like this:
- Identify yourself: “Hi Gwen, it’s Third Street Petstore.”
- Personalize the message: “Happy one year to your dog, Max!”
- Call to action: “To celebrate, here’s 20% off all dog supplies.”
- Create a sense of urgency: “The coupon is only valid today, so act quickly!”
- Add to your brand: “Fun fact: some dogs are so fast they could even outrun a cheetah!”
Without interested customers, the messages won’t be grasped
Brands can craft the perfect message, but it all comes down to a customers’ openness to receiving the information. The first step in increasing consumers’ receptiveness is to ensure you are warming your current and future customers up to promotional messaging.
- Gather consent – with regulations like GDPR and CCPA, consent is key and many countries require customers to opt-in in order to receive messages from brands, while also providing an easy way to opt-out, if they so choose. Before the first official brand-consumer interaction, be sure you have their consent to contact them – whether that was gathered on the website or through a brick-and-mortar store.
Consumers are much more likely to view a business positively if they are anticipating the marketing messages rather than randomly receiving information, which could lead to distrust or even aversion.
- Provide value – always find a way to share your brand’s value with the message recipient. Rather than just simply asking the consumer to purchase your product, instead, advertise a new release and offer a discount with a presale link for more information. Digital coupons can be a great way to acknowledge the relationship and make the consumer feel valued, while also increasing the likelihood that they will purchase additional products or services.
- Always be innovative – try to be one step ahead of what your customers need. Contactless was one of the top buzzwords throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and businesses who continued to see success during that time were showcasing their new safety protocols and new contactless policies, including pick-ups and returns. Consistently being innovative and working to provide what your customers need before they even know they need it will help to continue to establish a positive environment.
While creating effective content and warming up customers is the best place to start, continually fine-tuning the details is vital. By experimenting on which marketing strategies or messages lead to the best consumer response, you’ll ensure success with the brands’ promotional materials and establish greater customer loyalty.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Milorad Mitrovic
Mitrovic is an experienced sales executive with over 10 years of experience in the Cloud Communications as a Service (CPaaS) market, currently overseeing global Sales operations for Mitto. With a software engineering degree and Master of Business Administration (MBA) from MIB School of Management, Mitrovic combines his technical training with a passion for partnering with customers to solve unique challenges and uncover new opportunities for growth