Question. Where are your car keys right now? Did you have to think for a moment, or maybe hunt around to be sure? Second question. Where is your cell phone? Likely your answer was “ in my hand” or “ right here next to me”.
Never before has humanity been as attached to a product like we are our cell phones. As a business owner or marketer, you can capitalize on this phenomenon by leveraging these devices as a tool to directly communicate with your customers.
You likely receive text messages from businesses that you’ve purchased from or engaged with online. This is called SMS marketing, and it’s no longer a tool reserved for major brands or retail chains. It’s accessible for small business owners too!
If you’re new to this territory, fear not – I’m here to be your trusty guide. This blog will give you a great working knowledge of SMS marketing, uncovering its potential to revolutionize your business and captivate customers like never before. So settle in with your favorite cup of joe, or craft beer for those reading this later in the day, and let’s get into it.
First things first….. Software Requirements:
Let’s first understand the essential tools needed to utilize SMS marketing. At the helm of any successful SMS marketing campaign lies a robust Marketing CRM (Customer Relationship Management) platform. These software platforms are designed to streamline your marketing efforts and provide the necessary tools to manage your customer contact information, create and send messages, track results, and more. Major brands invest significantly in CRM’s like Hubspot and Salesforcece, but these are often cost prohibitive for the small business owner. A platform that’s making waves for small and medium sized businesses is ThriveFuel 360, which is built on the Go High Level platform.
ThriveFuel 360: Your All-in-One SMS Marketing Solution
Thrivefuel 360 is a comprehensive Marketing CRM platform designed to streamline your marketing efforts and drive results across various channels, including SMS. It offers a wealth of features and capabilities tailored to the needs of small and medium-sized businesses. Here’s how ThriveFuel 360 can help you unlock the full potential of SMS marketing:
- Contact Management: Easily import, organize, and segment your contacts within ThriveFuel 360’s centralized database. Capture new prospective customer information with integrated lading pages, surveys, forms, calendars and more.
- Campaign Creation: Craft compelling SMS campaigns using ThriveFuel 360’s intuitive campaign builder. Further nurture your customer relationships by allowing the system to automatically message a new lead or existing customer when they reach out to you via voicemail, SMS, emails, FB messenger and more.
- Automation and Personalization: Leverage ThriveFuel 360’s automation features to schedule SMS messages in advance and trigger messages based on customer actions.In addition, you can personalize the messages utilizing dynamic tags.
- Performance Tracking: Monitor the performance of your SMS campaigns in real-time with ThriveFuel 360’s advanced analytics dashboard.
Compliance and Security: Rest assured that your SMS marketing efforts are compliant with industry regulations and best practices. ThriveFuel 360 provides built-in compliance features and robust security measures to protect your data and ensure a seamless user experience.
How Can SMS Marketing be Incorporated into Your Overall Strategy?
Now that you understand the basics and have the right tools at your disposal, let’s explore how SMS marketing can seamlessly integrate into your broader marketing strategy:
Building the Subscriber List: Offer incentives for customers to opt-in to your SMS program, such as discounts or freebies. Collect contact information at checkout or through online sign-up forms.
Sending Promotional Messages: Keep customers in the loop about sales, promotions, and new arrivals with timely SMS blasts. Craft compelling messages that drive actions like in store visits or online purchases.
Personalized Recommendations: Leverage customer data to send personalized product recommendations based on past purchases or preferences. Show your customers that you understand their needs and interests.
Event and Store Updates: Keep customers informed about upcoming events, store hours, or special promotions through SMS alerts. Create a sense of urgency and excitement to drive foot traffic.
Feedback and Engagement: Engage with customers through SMS surveys or polls to gather feedback and insights. Show that you value their opinions and use their input to improve your offerings.
Integration with Other Channels: Combine SMS marketing with email, social media, and offline advertising for a cohesive and multi-channel approach.
By the Numbers:
Conversion rates vary by industry, target audience, messaging content, timing, and other factors. But here are some general trends we see in SMS marketing versus email marketing:
- SMS messages tend to have higher open rates compared to email. Some studies suggest that SMS open rates can be as high as 98% compared to email open rates which typically range between 15-25%.
- Conversion rates for SMS messages can also be higher than email due to the immediacy of text messages. Customers are more likely to act quickly upon receiving an SMS.
- According to some reports, SMS conversion rates can be 7-8 times higher than email conversion rates.
Conclusion:
Once your armed with the right tools and strategies, the possibilities are endless. By incorporating SMS marketing into your overall strategy and leveraging the power of Marketing CRMs like ThriveFuel 360, you’ll unlock new opportunities to engage customers, drive sales, and chart a course for success.
If this has piqued your curiosity and you want to talk with me about how SMS marketing might be beneficial for your business, let’s chat. Click my meeting link and we can meet up either in person, or virtually, depending on where you live.
Shannon Ellisor
Vertical Accounts Director
ThriveFuel Marketing
