5 Reasons Why SMS Is The Perfect Fit For Your Marketing Strategy

SMS is a must-have channel for everyone looking to stay ahead of marketing trends. Shoppers today are searching for engaging mobile-first experiences, and brands that succeed in delivering those experiences will outshine their competitors and win the long-term loyalty of their customers.

Texting is how modern consumers prefer to interact with their favorite brands. According to a recent Yotpo survey, 72% of British shoppers say they are already signed up for at least one brand’s text marketing program, while 30% say they prefer SMS to other marketing channels.

So if you haven’t tried text marketing yet, but are curious about its benefits, check out these five reasons why SMS is your go-to marketing channel in 2022.

1. SMS sparks engaging, two-way conversations

One-way communication channels between consumers and brands are slowly becoming a thing of the past. Nowadays, shoppers crave personalized two-way experiences that cater to their wants and needs.

SMS enables businesses to engage with potential customers in real-time and provide tailored product recommendations. Take new subscribers, for example: once they sign up for your SMS program, you can greet them with a welcome message to initiate a conversation. Use this opportunity to ask about their interests or product preferences to learn more about them. What is their favorite scent? What type of shampoo do they need: for straight or curly hair? Based on their answers, you can divide shoppers into dedicated lists and retarget them later on with personalized offers. Adding a small incentive such as a 5% discount on their first purchase will quickly turn these new SMS subscribers into dedicated customers. All this, on autopilot.

You can also use text messages to send timely shipping updates or receive valuable feedback from shoppers. Integrate your SMS program with your preferred help desk solutions to offer stellar customer support experiences and easily manage all requests in one place.

Being engaged in a direct, 1:1 conversation with a brand helps to build trust, nurture loyalty, and create a seamless buying experience for every shopper.

2. SMS creates ultra-personalized experiences

As shifting consumer privacy policies hinder effective targeting on channels such as email and Facebook, there is still one medium that allows for deep personalization: SMS. As SMS is based on zero- and first-party data, it has quickly become a must-have for many brands that want to maintain close and meaningful relationships with their customers.

Personalization will help you drive sales and boost loyalty. And the stats confirm it – over 50% of British shoppers say they find texts from brands more engaging if they are relevant to their interests or past purchases.

With text marketing, you can easily collect valuable data about shoppers’ demographics, behavior, and purchase history. Furthermore, having a direct line of communication with your customers helps you get important information that they share willingly and proactively, such as product preferences. Use this data later on to offer ultra-personalized customer experiences. This goes beyond “typical” personalization because SMS makes it possible to approach customers with their first names regarding a product they just bought from you and extend a time-sensitive cross-sell offer, i.e., “Hey Jane, how did you like your new dress? Match it with a dazzling pair of shoes, now at 15% off”.

Engage with your SMS subscribers at least a few times a month, as the more they interact with your brand, the more actionable customer data and insights you’ll gain. With an advanced SMS marketing platform like Yotpo SMSBump, you can create unique segments of shoppers and approach them with tailored offers so that every message you send feels exclusive and relevant to them, which will ultimately lead to higher conversion rates.

3. SMS elevates your entire marketing strategy

SMS is a powerful channel with amazing strengths all on its own. It enjoys an astounding open rate of 98%, and over 90% of text messages are read within 3 minutes. But SMS is not meant to replace your other marketing programs and efforts. Rather, it should be paired with the rest of your marketing stack to create a coherent customer experience.

For example, SMS is the perfect complement to your loyalty program, allowing you to reward your VIP customers with exclusive and personalized experiences. Send them a text message to celebrate their loyalty milestones, offer a sneak peek at your new collection, or give early access to your upcoming flash sale. You can also use SMS to notify them about the points they’ve earned so far, or how many more they need to reach the next VIP tier – 34% of British shoppers say they would be more likely to complete a purchase if they receive a text about the points or rewards they will earn from it.

Another excellent example of how text marketing can fit into your overall strategy is the powerful synergy between SMS and email. Pair those two channels to extend your reach and boost customer engagement. Use newsletters to present beautifully curated on-brand content, showcase your new product collection, or make an important company announcement. SMS, on the other hand, is perfect for more brief, actionable, and timely messages, such as time-sensitive offers, personalized discounts, and more. You can even use one channel to direct attention to the other – send a text to tell subscribers to check their inbox for a new deal or important announcement, or send an email offering a coupon to anyone who signs up for SMS.

Via SMS, brands can also collect valuable user-generated content from their audiences. After your customer completes and receives their purchase, send an automated text message to request a review of the product. Statistics show that review requests sent via SMS have a 66% higher conversion rate than those sent via email. Along with reviews, you can collect customer photos to showcase online in shoppable galleries.

4. SMS reaches shoppers everywhere

Consumers today spend over four hours per day on their mobile devices, and SMS is the most efficient and reliable way to engage them there. They don’t need an internet connection to access their messages and can read the text before even unlocking their screens.

Plus, SMS delivery is practically instant, taking seconds, or even milliseconds, to reach its recipient wherever they are in the world. Yotpo SMSBump offers expansive international coverage (think US, France, Germany, Canada, Australia, and beyond) and unmatched deliverability, so you can truly text without limits. That, coupled with the best-in-class SMS deliverability engine, ensures your messages reach every customer in the right place, at the right time.

5. SMS is a marketer-friendly channel

SMS can be your greatest asset in 2022 not only because it is a mobile-first, customer-first, and privacy-first channel, but also because it is extremely marketer-friendly, especially if you choose the right partner.

On one hand, you have all the resources you need to make agile and informed decisions about your overall marketing strategy. With Yotpo SMSBump’s advanced solutions, you can set up powerful and cost-effective SMS campaigns in just a few clicks, using a wide variety of built-in templates and examples.

On the other hand, you have access to experts who can guide you every step of the way, from initial setup to maximizing the ROI of your SMS campaigns. Yotpo SMSBump’s dedicated strategists will work with you to build a tailored SMS program based on your brand’s unique needs and goals. With their expert knowledge of SMS marketing best practices, they can help you develop your SMS strategy, grow a healthy subscriber list, craft the most engaging messaging for your audience, and more.

Ready to take your marketing to the next level? Get started with SMS today and start texting!