As local businesses discover the power of text messaging to their customers, they need to treat this new technology responsibly. So far they have been responsible about it (for the most part). If SMS messages keep delivering value to customers, businesses will continue to see excellent returns. But if a business abuses the inbox of their SMS subscribers they can lose that value quickly.
Personally, the local businesses that I’ve seen put an SMS campaign into practice have gone just the opposite. Instead of sending out too many messages, they seem to forget they have the system and don’t get anything out of it. Even some larger chains are not doing it correctly.
Doing SMS Marketing Correctly
If you happy customers, they do want to hear when you have something cool going on. That could be a lunch special, a special event, or a photo of your latest culinary creation.
The first rule to make your SMS system work for you is to get employees in on it. Offer a gift certificate or other incentive each month to the employee who gets the most people to opt in for SMS messages. This helps build your list of SMS subscribers so you actually have customers to send messages out to.
Help your employees out on this point by offering customers a discount coupon when they opt in. This coupon can be sent automatically right when they sign up or it can be delayed for a day so they can use it next time they come in.
The critical point once you have a few hundred subscribers is to use the system, but don’t abuse your inbox privileges. Send out a message once or twice a week. If your slow day is on a Monday or Tuesday, send a message just before lunch letting your customers know if they come in before 1pm they get a free drink with their lunch.
If you have a special event coming up on the weekend, remind them it’s coming and help get them excited about it!
One of the cautionary tales about SMS messaging for business involves signing up mobile numbers without permission. That’s a big no-no. Subscribers should always sign up from their own phone and know they will be getting a certain number of a messages each month.
Is SMS Marketing in Bellingham worth it?
Sure, you see just about everyone walking around with cell phones and texting, but is it good for business? It turns out that if mobile marketing is done correctly it can help you bring in 25% to 100% more in sales just from your existing customers.
To put a number on how many people actually use text messaging, 81% of mobile users have sent or received a text in the last 30 days. And people 55 years and older are the fastest growing group of texters, so it’s not just the kids doing it!
When I first looked in to providing SMS services for local business I knew it was a great idea. Not only because I love mobile technology, but because I see so many other people looking for information through their mobile phone. People want to hear from the business they love through text messaging, mobile websites, and Facebook.
Still, I know that it’s still an unknown for many business owners. So I’m ready to remove the risk. For a limited time I’m helping set up a small number of businesses with the text messaging technology free for 30 days. Give me (Roger) a call at 360-733-9727 and mention that you read this blog post and I will help get you set up! You can also contact me here if email is more your style.
What are your thoughts on SMS messaging for business. Is it right for your kind of business? Are you not sure? Leave a comment with the line of business you’re in and I’ll be sure to give you an answer!