When was the last time a friend sent you an SMS text message? When was the last time you received a text on a social media platform or WhatsApp? There is a definite shift towards using these platforms for personal communication, and now businesses are following suit. These developments in mobile messaging might make it seem as though SMS has a bleak future. However, the most recent statistics completely refute this assertion. SMS is more and more in demand. Let’s look at why.
What exactly is SMS marketing, and are there various types of SMS marketing?
In SMS marketing, companies send text messages to customers to inform them of promotional offers, recently released goods, campaigns, and other important updates. It is additionally regarded as a type of mobile marketing that supports brands in texting both current and potential customers.
SMS marketing campaigns can be classified as either transactional or promotional, depending on the messages they contain.
The fact that almost all texts are read quickly is the main advantage of text message marketing. 98% of messages are opened within a few minutes, according to industry studies.
Additionally, text message recipients have very high engagement rates. With a 29% click-through rate, nearly half of text marketing users proceed to make a purchase.
And lastly, the reach is unparalleled.
Nearly all people carry their cell phones around with them at all times. They can view messages and advertisements without logging into a social media account. Instead, they receive your message right away.
Why Should Social Media Campaigns and SMS Marketing Be Integrated?
Since SMS gateway campaigns can be run without the use of any specialised equipment, it is one of the more affordable marketing channels. If you are hesitant to combine SMS marketing with social media campaigns, keep in mind that 97% of SMS messages are read within 15 minutes of being received, and the open rate for SMS is close to 98%. That percentage for emails is 21.5%.
So why would you want to combine your social media campaigns with SMS marketing?
- You can connect with a variety of customers using social media and communicate with them in a variety of ways.
- Both SMS marketing and social media campaigns are reasonably priced and effectively segment customers.
- The two channels are complementary because social media establishes a central hub for information about your brand while SMS takes a more personalised approach.
What Advantage Has SMS Over More Modern Alternatives?
Compared to its more recent alternatives, SMS has some significant advantages. These benefits have contributed to securing its position in some applications.
Among the principal benefits are:
- Read Rates: According to read rates, only 12% of Facebook posts and 20% of emails are opened, but 98% of SMS messages are. Be sure to take into account that the average time it takes to open an SMS is 3 minutes and an email is 384 minutes.
- No reliance on the internet: All SMS substitutes require a Wi-Fi or mobile data connection. Because not all public spaces have Wi-Fi and mobile data plans are frequently expensive, this creates a barrier to instant communication. With SMS, all that is needed is a phone and a registered mobile number.
- Return on Investment: Businesses that use SMS as their communication method see a very high return on investment due to the high read rate and affordability of the service.
- You can use any phone: All of the SMS substitutes are app-based and would only function on a smartphone. The GCC nations may have the highest smartphone penetration rates in the world, but this statistic varies greatly between nations. Since SMS can be used on any phone, it is a universally applicable solution in this regard.
The most effective methods for fusing social media campaigns with SMS marketing
Fortunately, combining all of your marketing campaigns into one platform is now simple thanks to the use of CRM software. CRM makes it simple to automate the process of sending texts each time an action is prompted on your social media accounts and vice versa.
The best social media platforms will seamlessly integrate with your CRM, allowing you to connect and monitor customer messaging across all channels.
Here are a few strategies for incorporating SMS marketing with social media campaigns and expanding your audience.
1. Make Text-to-Win competitions
One of the most common SMS marketing strategies used by businesses is text-to-win campaigns. To increase traffic and leads, they can be incorporated into almost every social media campaign on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
You must first decide who your target audience is before deciding what objectives you hope to accomplish with a text-to-win campaign. These objectives may include generating more leads, increasing conversions, raising brand awareness, increasing participation, etc.
You can ask people to send a keyword to a specific number and tell them about the benefits by using your social media handles to do so. The text messaging body can be created, and automated sequences can be set up, with the aid of your CRM tool to direct participants as to what to do next after they send the necessary keyword.
Text-to-win competitions frequently offer free goods, freebies, tickets to events, discounts, early access to upcoming goods, and vacation packages. Additionally, these campaigns aid in building brand excitement, which is beneficial whenever a new good or service is launched.
Additionally, anyone can participate in text-to-win contests from any location, assisting brands in reaching a wider audience.
2. Make an automated text response campaign.
Every time a brand runs a text-to-win promotion, they instruct participants to send a specific keyword to enter the contest. After texting the keyword, competitors are added to the
competition and may move on to the following stages.
However, things need not stop there. Once they message the keyword, brands can take advantage of this opportunity to include an automated response.
In addition to thanking the customer for participating, you can include a link in the SMS message that points them to your social media pages where they can learn more or learn more about your company.
3. Influencer marketing should be used.
Influencer marketing is another way to combine text marketing with your social media campaign. Influencer marketing is a compensated collaboration between an influencer and a label in which the former uses their social media accounts to advertise the latter.
You can use influencer marketing in SMS and social media marketing campaigns by asking influencers to include certain keywords in their posts that encourage readers to sign up for SMS marketing. Influencers typically have a sizable fan base, so using them would only help brands increase their reach and drive more traffic to their website or physical location.
Use SMS and Social Media Together
As you can see, SMS and social media marketing are excellent ways to reach your target market. Both have drawbacks, but in many ways, their advantages outweigh the disadvantages of the other approach.
For instance, social media enables you to engage with your followers in a more media-rich and community-focused way, whereas text messaging gives you an immediate and direct reach with high conversion rates.
When you combine social media and SMS, a fantastic synergy results, giving you reach, targeting, and a fantastic return on investment. There is no excuse not to implement this effective strategy right away.
