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Email has been the preferred method for sending and receiving mass messages and reaching audiences for decades. But, at the same time, text (or SMS) marketing is a fast, cost-effective and reliable way to share promotions and updates with customers. So when it comes to text message marketing vs. email marketing, which is better?
Text message marketing and email campaigns can work together to create seamless communication with customers. And, while some messages are delivered best via email, many marketing messages are more effective when sent via text.
Today we’ll discuss how to maximize ROI from your digital marketing campaigns and share the best scenarios for using text and email.
What Is the Difference Between Email and SMS?
Consumers see thousands of ads every day between advertising, social media, email, and other forms of marketing and advertising. As a result, marketers and business owners are constantly looking for the best way to win consumers’ attention.
As the world becomes increasingly mobile-centric, more companies adopt SMS marketing strategies. 70% of consumers think SMS texting is an excellent way for businesses to get their attention.
Let’s look at the difference in results between email and text messages across a few important categories.
|
SMS |
|
|
|
98% |
20% |
|
|
Click-Through Rate (CTR) |
9.18% higher than any other digital communication channel. |
2.5% |
|
Deliverability |
Requires explicit opt-in, guaranteeing engaged customers. Less than 3% of SMS messages are considered spam. |
|
|
Frequency |
Fewer companies run SMS marketing campaigns, increasing your chance of standing out in your audience’s messaging inboxes. |
Email is an overly saturated marketing channel. The average office worker receives 121 emails per day. |
|
Response Rate |
An average person takes 90 seconds to respond to a text message |
An average person takes 90 minutes to respond to an email. |
|
Cost |
One of the most cost-effective ways to share your message with many people at once. While cost varies by provider, Textedly starts at $24 per month for 1,000 messages and increases to accommodate your business needs. |
Email marketing costs vary dramatically depending on your provider, list size, send frequency and additional features. Prices range from a few dollars per month for a bare-bones email platform to several thousand per month for an advanced platform. |
If you want to achieve high average open rates and response rates, and consistent engagement, SMS is a solid bet. But you can’t write off email completely. Next, we’ll look at use cases for SMS and email to use both communication channels effectively.
Advantages of SMS Marketing
SMS marketing is:
- Immediate: SMS allows you to deliver important messages straight to the hands of your customers.
- Visible: With a 98% open rate for SMS, you can virtually guarantee your audience sees your message.
- Conversational and casual: Consumers want you to treat them like human beings. SMS allows you to send essential information personally – without causing the relationship to cross inappropriate boundaries.
- WiFi-free: SMS messages are sent via a mobile network connection, which means your customers can receive them even without an internet connection.
- Concise and straightforward: Most SMS platforms put a 160-character cap on every message, forcing you to get to the point quickly.
Pro Tip: Textedly is one of the only companies to offer you the ability to send text messages over 300 characters.
Advantages of Email Marketing
Smart uses for email marketing include:
- Newsletters
- Long-form educational content
- Visual product announcements
- B2B campaigns that cover technical information
- Press releases or publicity updates
How to Strike a Balance Between SMS and Email
SMS and email both have their strengths and work best as complementary channels.
SMS is best for time-sensitive information, urgent requests, or two-way communication.
Email is best for long, rich media content that users can access later.
Here are a few ways to use email and SMS together:
- Send text messages to encourage customers to subscribe to your email list for weekly newsletters.
- Send order confirmation receipts via email and follow up with SMS tracking updates.
- Send emails to inform customers about new product launches. Then, send mass SMS texts to announce flash sales on the latest products.
Pro Tip: Be careful not to overwhelm customers with marketing messages. Email marketing frequency depends on your industry and how often customers hear from your business. In general, one to two bulk emails per week are ideal for most companies.
Use Textedly to Start Messaging Customers Immediately
When it comes to email vs. text marketing, the decision is clear: choose both! When used in conjunction with email, SMS marketing is a great way to build brand awareness and grow relationships with customers who want to hear from you.
Even if your ideal vehicle is email, adding SMS to draw customers’ attention to their email inboxes is a wise investment and uses marketing resources strategically.
Whether you’re brand-new to text message marketing or want to try out a new platform, Textedly can help. Textedly provides straightforward, flexible SMS solutions that are easy to set up, so you can start messaging customers immediately.
Get started with a free Textedly trial to jumpstart your SMS marketing strategy.
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