In an era when instant communication reigns supreme, SMS marketing stands out as one of the most effective ways for businesses to connect with their audience. The key to a successful SMS campaign lies in strategic execution. That’s why we’ve crafted this practical 10-point checklist designed to guide you through every step of your SMS marketing journey. Let’s dive in and transform your SMS strategy into a powerful business tool!
“SMART” goal setting is widely used for successful campaigns, and for good reason. While it seems everyone knows how to set and achieve SMART goals, it’s helpful to be reminded of these metrics’ value.
“SMART” stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely.
To effectively measure the success of your SMS marketing campaigns, it's crucial to track specific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Here are some practical examples that can help you assess your campaign's performance:
Once your goal is set and you have the resources to achieve it, creating an attractive marketing offer is the next step in enticing customers to convert.
You shouldn’t make the same offer across all your communication channels. For example, suppose you post the same promotional message on social media, email and SMS. In that case, you’re not taking advantage of each channel's unique attributes and you risk alienating potential customers.
What do you want your customers to do? Creating a concise, easy-to-understand call-to-action helps customers know how to proceed. Examples of clear CTAs include:
No matter your niche, it’s unlikely that all your customers match the same profile. For example, your customers probably belong to different age/gender groups, are unique in their preferences or live in different locations.
Segmenting your audience allows you to create personalized offers that customers can relate to in their journey. For example, if you send the same mass text to 2000 people, you might have less engagement than if you sent a targeted message to only 500.
Sending irrelevant or generic SMS messages to your audience can hurt your ROI and push customers away.
Once your campaign has launched, you can start tracking analytics to see how your message performs. You should analyze the metrics of open rates, click-through rates (if your message includes a link), and unsubscribes. Subscriber engagement will show whether your offer “landed” with your target audience.
If you plan on linking to your website via text message, it’s crucial that your site is mobile-friendly. What works on desktops doesn’t always translate well to mobile devices like smartphones or tablets. Here are some key aspects to focus on to ensure a seamless user experience:
Your campaign may include asking for short replies or feedback from your subscribers. It’s a great way to engage them and ask for a small action that could lead to a more significant final step.
For example, “On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our product (or tell your friend about it)?”
Don’t start any campaign without having unbiased and dependable statistics. Just like using SMART goals, use data to interpret results rather than guesses or hunches. Analyzing campaign results and running A/B tests help improve future campaigns and user engagement.
While you shouldn’t promote the same offer across all your marketing channels, your tone of voice, value proposition and brand image should be the same.
Every campaign you launch should create continuity while supporting your marketing vision.
An SMS marketing platform might sound like just a tool that delivers your message to your subscribers. But that’s only the technical aspect.
For example, Textedly allows you to add pictures and links to your SMS campaigns, employ two-way conversations and track analytics with a user dashboard. It also allows you to segment your subscribers and schedule your marketing messages whenever you want.
Here are some helpful DO’s and DON’Ts to remember before you start your SMS campaigns.
The content of your messages is crucial. However, more is needed to engage your audience. For example, addressing people by name and offering them something they need or will want makes your audience feel that you genuinely care about them.
Are you engaging your audience or engaging your audience? A common mistake made by many businesses new to SMS campaigns is spamming their customers, thinking that the more messages they send, the larger their open rate will be.
If you want to get the most out of your SMS marketing campaign, refrain from overwhelming your audience. Put yourself in their shoes and imagine how you would feel if you constantly received messages from the same sender. Pretty annoyed, right?
The fact is that people will ignore your messages if there are too many of them. That is why the first step in achieving great SMS open rates is to carefully decide the proper amount of texts you will send and make sure they are truly relevant.
If your message is boring or irrelevant, most people won’t even bother to read it – or worse yet, unsubscribe from your texts.
Ensure your content is brief and to the point, and include information that’s engaging and relevant to their current situation.
Many businesses use text messaging to provide customer service and delivery status notifications. But what about weekly news and tips written in a way that highlights the unique selling point of your products and services? Or contests and loyalty programs?
In SMS marketing, timing is everything. Among all communication channels that deliver messages in real-time, SMS is the most immediate. The number of mobile phone users exceeds the number of internet users, enabling business text messaging to beat both social media and email marketing.
However, the fact that you can engage a prospect at any given moment doesn’t mean you should. Some texting times are more effective than others.
Read more on the Best Time to Send Business Text Messages to learn which days and times customers are most receptive!
Consistency is key. If a customer has entrusted you with their phone number, they expect something valuable in return. Therefore, establish a predictable text cadence with your customers, so they know what to expect and don’t feel annoyed or underwhelmed with your communications.
Read 7 Business Texting Etiquette Rules.
Text message marketing is one of the easiest strategies to employ, especially with the help of automation tools.
A reliable texting service for business includes more than a phonebook and a mass group texting feature. We’ve seen how time-sensitive SMS marketing is, which also requires scheduling and automation. Features like automatic replies, two-way messaging, free incoming texts, multimedia messaging services (MMS), and analytics make digital marketing campaigns almost foolproof.
Utilizing our 10-point checklist for successful SMS marketing campaigns is essential for maximizing your return on investment (ROI). By focusing on clear CTAs, mobile optimization, and robust data analytics, you can create impactful campaigns that resonate with your audience and drive meaningful engagement.
With Textedly, you have a powerful platform at your fingertips that simplifies the SMS marketing process. Its intuitive dashboard allows for real-time tracking of your campaign’s effectiveness, enabling you to make data-driven decisions and continuously refine your strategy. Plus, features like A/B testing and mobile-friendly templates ensure that your messages not only reach your audience but also encourage interaction.
SMS marketing has never been easier with Textedly. Sign up for a free Textedly trial today!