5 Reasons Your Business Should Consider Implementing An SMS Marketing Strategy Today

Contributed by Carl Krumins, CEO SMSGlobal.

Are you finding your business is spending a considerable chunk of resources on traditional marketing, only to find the results…underwhelming? While traditional channels can serve a purpose in your strategy, it’s important to consider where your audience is most engaged. What’s the one thing everyone has within arms reach at all times? A mobile phone – and when we hear the ping of an incoming message, 90% of text messages are read within the first three minutes of delivery.

That’s why it’s no surprise that SMS marketing and business SMS solutions have seen an increase in popularity in recent years. With its ubiquitous nature and high open rate, SMS has the potential to dramatically improve communications in retail businesses.

While other marketing channels give you the opportunity to target an inbox, a demographic or a category, SMS’s real power lies in it’s ability to connect your retail business directly to your customer. You’ll be in the palm of their hands – literally.

With that being said, here’s a few reasons your retail business should consider implementing an SMS solution to your marketing strategy.

It’s The Most Direct And Effective Way Of Addressing Your Audience

A whopping 98% of text messages are opened, so it’s clear that SMS is the best way to ensure your message is heard. While communication forms such as emails, apps, and mobile adverts preclude customers without access to the internet, almost every operational mobile phone has SMS capabilities. Greater accessibility allows you to target your audience, wherever they may be.

Cost effective

In an increasingly saturated market, marketing campaigns can become a costly affair. The cost of pay-per-click advertisements are skyrocketing, social media can be a minefield of paid ads and marketing emails can become lost in over-filled inboxes.

SMS costs an average of under ten cents per message, and can garner a huge return on investment when used effectively as part of a marketing strategy. A popular British racing circuit, Silverstone, recently enjoyed an incredible 680% ROI after sending a single text message. The SMS was broadcast to 45,000 recipients who had expressed interest in, or attended a previous motor racing event. The engagement was significant, with a dramatic increase in attendees at the event from the year before.

High conversion rates

Cost effective messaging allows businesses to send higher volumes for a lower price, and combined with high open rates, it’s no wonder SMS messaging boasts higher conversion rates than other forms of communication. Coupons and loyalty programs have proven to be a popular way of attracting repeat customers for retail business, printed coupons and loyalty cards can become an expensive in large quantities. Using SMS to distribute coupons is not only remarkably cheaper than using a physical card, they’re also much simpler to manage when using an online SMS platform, such as SMSGlobal. For customers, an SMS coupon eliminates the need to carry around and keep track of a card, helping to improve the redemption rate of the discount. It also helps retailers track the engagement of their SMS and develop a large database of customers to market to in the future.

Integration With Other Marketing Channels

While SMS is fantastic as a stand alone tool, it can also be the perfect platform to compliment your other marketing campaigns. Many retailers need to send out longer form communication that is suited to an email, but want to garner the power of SMS to increase open and engagement rates. By combining the two channels with a simple ‘Have you read your email’ text message, companies can enjoy the benefits of both worlds.

No spam filters

It’s redundant to spend valuable time and resources creating content that never gets seen – but that’s exactly what can happen to email marketing material. With increasingly tight spam filters, well crafted messages can get lost in junk inboxes, gathering dust along with the thousands of other forgotten emails. SMS, on the other hand, easily stands out from the crowd. With no filters to contend with, SMS guarantees your message will be delivered to your target audience.

With high open rates, low cost and total ubiquity, SMS proves itself as an essential component for your next marketing campaign.

Contributed by Carl Krumins, CEO of SMSGlobal – a leading international provider of mobile messaging technology. They offer a free trial. Connect SMSGlobal to your business to take your retail marketing to the next level. Learn more at smsglobal.com.