1SMS Marketing is Still Very Effective (2023 Update)

Using SMS Marketing in Your Strategy

Every business treats Short Message Service (SMS) differently. Some brands make it a prominent part of their marketing strategy while others don’t see its use. With so many people owning smartphones and texting being a staple of daily life, businesses will benefit if they can integrate SMS marketing into their marketing campaigns. Continue reading to gain a few SMS marketing tips and learn why you should be using it in 2023.

What is SMS Marketing?

SMS marketing is a tactic where businesses send text messages to their target audience following a subscription. Common forms of SMS marketing include surveys, discounts, and personalized promotions. Like many other aspects of a comprehensive digital marketing strategy, SMS marketing can be a great way to increase both engagement and revenue. According to SimpleTexting’s 2022 report, 55% of businesses reported using SMS messages. This is an increase from the 42% reported in 2021. Given this trend, there’s reason to believe businesses could benefit from using SMS messaging in 2023.

4 SMS Marketing Tips

Not all SMS marketing campaigns are equally effective. Using SMS messaging successfully will require some research and planning on your part. However, making SMS messaging work for you doesn’t have to be too hard. Here are some tips to help get you started:

1. Know Your Audience

SMS marketing must be more specific than other marketing tactics. You don’t want to make the mistake of sending a broad message that vaguely relates to your consumer. If you do, you risk wasting your time and annoying them. Instead, the approach should be to collect data like location-based demographics and purchase history. This way, when your message reaches your customer’s phone, it’s relevant and engaging.

2. Be Clear

SMS messages must be short because a full text message is only 160 characters. Additionally, people today don’t have long attention spans and will quickly click away from a message if it doesn’t interest them. This is why it’s important for businesses to get straight to the point. To be effective, state your point and give them a specific date to act by.

3. Target The Best Clients

While you can only send out mass messages with the hope of attracting customers, your time would be better used by also targeting your most loyal customers. These are the customers who’ve bought from you several times, provide feedback, and maybe even promote your business. Use the data you have on these consumers to continue marketing to them, and do so more often than you would your other consumers. It could also be beneficial to send them special offers to reward them for their loyalty.

4. Timing

Timing is essential to effective SMS marketing because customers are more likely to be receptive to a message if they’re driven by impulse. Fortunately, there are ways to engineer a sense of immediacy that will yield better results for your brand. For example, if you’re offering a promotion that ends that night, send a message in the afternoon. This will force the customer to consider your message instead of just ignoring or forgetting it.

Why Use SMS Marketing in 2023?

We’ve already discussed how more businesses adopted SMS marketing in 2022 and how that trend is likely to continue in 2023. But if that’s not enough to convince you to adopt SMS messaging into your digital marketing strategy, consider these other emerging trends:

1. SMS is Becoming an Extension of Customer Service

Younger demographics have shown that they prefer the comfort and convenience of texting to calling whenever they need to interact with customer service. SMS messages can be used as another facet of your business’s customer service team. Consider using it to answer common questions and concerns, provide delivery updates, and send appointment reminders.

2. Demand for Personalized SMS is Increasing

As with most marketing efforts today, consumers are more responsive to tactics that are tailor-made for them. Taking the time to create personalized messages goes a long way in making your customers feel seen and appreciated. Doing this can be as simple as putting the customer’s name in the message or wishing them a happy birthday.

3. Low Cost

Global inflation and the threat of a recession have caused many businesses’ marketing budgets to tighten. As 2023 continues, it’ll be important to adjust your marketing strategy accordingly. SMS messages can be a great way to communicate with your audience at a low cost.

Choose Marz Agency

SMS marketing is a time-tested approach to engaging with your target audience. This tactic is versatile and can be used for a variety of circumstances. If done well, businesses can use SMS messages to enrich their digital marketing approach. For help launching your SMS marketing campaign, or for any other digital marketing needs, contact Marz Agency today!