E-commerce

5 good reasons to embark on SMS marketing

#1 Your text messages are read

In most of our mail inboxes, there are a large number of unread emails. For comparison, the statistics show that we often both open and read an SMS message. Compared to e-mail campaigns with an average opening rate of 20%, a survey shows that 90% of all SMS campaigns are not only opened but also read within 3 minutes after it is received.

Upon receiving an SMS message, the receiver is most often made aware of this with a sound or a vibration. If the text is not read immediately, the phone will continue to remind the recipient that there is an unread message. This can be part of the explanation of why the opening rate is so high.

#2 Consumers are positive towards receiving SMS campaigns

Despite the fact that consumers today receive a large number of promotional offers on various channels, 75% of consumers are in favor of receiving SMS campaigns from companies.

One of the reasons why consumers do not mind receiving offers and messages from companies via SMS messages is that they have actively chosen to receive this kind of advertising. Another thing is that they can quickly unsubscribe from this service.

#3 SMS marketing works for different kind of messages

The potential in using SMS marketing is great partly because of the high opening rate, but also because of its many possible applications. Here we give you a number of examples of messages you can convey through SMS advertising.

• Offers and discount coupons
• Loyalty points
• Keep customers informed of any changes
• Personal updates on account updates
• Organizing events.

If you want to use SMS marketing for promotional messages, SMS in connection with loyalty programs can be an additional option. Today, many consumers have a positive attitude toward loyalty programs. However, they are uncertain about their number of loyalty points and active discount coupons. A total of 53% of US consumers are uncertain of how many points they have in their preferred loyalty program, a study by 3Cinteractive shows.

In this case, SMS marketing can be a good opportunity to communicate offers, coupons, and updated loyalty points to your members. The survey shows that 4 out of 10 consumers will visit the store more often if they are aware of the number of points and active coupons.

#4 Large target audience

Today it is estimated that 2.5 billion people own a smartphone. Therefore, the target audience for SMS marketing is extremely large. The trick is to collect mobile numbers and the necessary permissions to send messages. For most people, the mobile phone is a big part of everyday life. We have it with us everywhere. Besides being a large target group, there are no situations where you cannot hit your potential customers via SMS marketing.

#5 Still a pretty unexploited market

Today, companies usually use more common channels for marketing their businesses. These include email, social media and Google advertising. SMS as a marketing channel is less explored. However, there are several companies who have started using SMS advertising over the last few years.

Due to the smaller exposure, consumers are not yet as fed up with SMS marketing as they are of many other channels. It can, therefore, be an advantage to jump on the bandwagon before the same happens with SMS marketing.