How do you know if your business can benefit from SMS Marketing?

If you are not using SMS marketing for your business, you may be missing out on a fantastic marketing opportunity to attract and retain clients, build long term customer relationships, and generate business or interest.

No one goes anywhere without a cell phone these days, making your customer always within reach when you use SMS. Ninety percent of text messages are read within 15 minutes of sending. On the majority of smartphones, it is hard to ignore a text message when it pops up on the screen, it doesn't even need to be opened to be read.  Compare that to e-mail which has an open rate of 20 percent or less, as the customer has to physically make a choice to click into the email, which is normally surrounded by a lot of other marketing messages or ‘spam’ - and you'll realise you're onto a winner.

SMS is still  the most widely used form of mobile technology,  and is a lot easier for your audience to use than having to remember a long web address , or to keep track of their emails. All that is required is that the recipient responds to a text. For clients, SMS feels more active than other forms of marketing. Rather than a marketer taking your information, with SMS there is a sense of choice and personalisation. Responders are given a choice to reply and give their input, and you won’t find many that won’t reply to a text message; it’s quick and easy.

SMS is an effective way of gathering mobile phone numbers and also email addresses, which can be very useful in building a relationship with a client through relationship marketing. For businesses and non-profits that have on-site traffic such as restaurants or retail locations, those establishments can engage anyone who walks through their door via the mobile phone with SMS. This can be done in a fun way, for example in order to enter an in store competition, or to become connected to the restaurant wi-fi. How do you know if you need SMS marketing? If you are still using a clipboard to gather e-mail addresses, then you need SMS marketing. If your e-mails are not generating a response or are being ignored, then you need SMS marketing. If your customers find it hard to remember your business web address, you need SMS marketing. If your current marketing strategy is lacking something, SMS marketing is what you need to fill the gap.