If your business is not already investing in this marketing channel, then you are truly missing out on a huge opportunity to reach customers directly with the preferred form of communication 70% of consumers prefer anyways (Source). Millennials and smartphones go hand-in-hand, no pun intended, so it's no wonder 75% of millennials prefer SMS communications for deliveries, promotions, and surveys (Source)
Luke Wilson, the chief revenue officer of EZ Texting, explains why consumers prefer text message marketing over others:
Because text messages appear on people's mobile phones, they feel more personal than other kinds of marketing...Texting allows businesses to do many of the things that traditional media does…without having to invest in extra hardware, labor, printing or media buys.
There are currently two forms of text message marketing
SMS: Limited to 160 characters of plain text, links
MMS: No character limit, plain text, photos, video, gif, links
Before starting any text message marketing campaign, it is CRUCIAL that you review the TCPA or Telephone Consumer Protection Act and CTIA Shortcode Laws in order to be compliant. By not adhering to these laws, you can expect fines ranging from $500-$1500 per text message.
Steps to Launching a Successful Campaign
- Choose a Text Messaging Platform
- Create a catchy, relevant shortcode for users to text for signing up
- The Opt-In/The Opt-Out
- Incentive + Exclusivity
- Best times of day and holidays to post
My Highly Recommended Platforms:
- ProTexting Starting at $49 for 1000 messages
- SlickText Starting at $29 for 500 messages
Trust me, this is something you want to invest in. The response rate of SMS text message marketing is 45% vs email response rates at 6% (Source). This form of direct communication can be used to keep consumers in-the-loop with special deals, news and/promotions that are only available via text.
