There’s little practical difference between business on December 31 and business on January 1. Yet in a CEO’s mind, this short transition represents a fresh start, a psychological incentive to re-energise their firm with new ideas. The culture, strategy and goals of a company needn’t change, just the way they uphold and achieve them. Text marketing is one technique that could help you succeed across all three, and here are a number of ways to integrate it in the New Year.
What Everyone’s Aiming For
In order to show how your company can integrate text message marketing into your culture, strategies and goals, it’s important to first clarify what those three are. Now every business will have different specifications, but there are some common traits that cover the vast majority:
Culture: Treat all customers with care and decency; be useful to them; focus on leaving them content at all times with the service.
Strategy: Help customers when they need it; only contact them at appropriate times, don’t pester them; provide information that’s tailored to each person’s needs.
Goals: Customers stay loyal for a long time; they trust and admire the company; they value their service and request updates because they know the information will be useful.
Those are the standards virtually every company wants to uphold and achieve, and into which you can integrate an SMS marketing strategy.
Yet before charging into a text marketing campaign, you first have to bear in mind that, even if someone has subscribed to your SMS marketing list, most people still see it mainly as a private form of communication, a channel with friends and family not businesses. Approach it haphazardly and you can still annoy a significant chunk of your company’s client base. To fulfill the aims above, you have to ensure your clients are happy to see each text. So how do you do that?
There are a lot of potential reactions text marketing can get. Make sure you’re aiming for the first one on the left.
Focus on Loyal Customers
Firstly, regardless of who has given permission for text marketing, only send messages to established customers when you’re starting out. These people know your company well and are already pleased enough with your services to stick with you for a significant period of time. They will be more likely to see a text as “their” firm contacting them, not some faceless corporation shoving advertising in their face.
Tailor Your Messages
Secondly, create different messages for specific demographics. One round of bulk SMS messaging will not cover everyone’s interests, and in order to be useful to them all you have to provide information that is tailored to each group’s needs.
Take a financial services firm, for instance. A new deal on small business loans will be seen as irrelevant by most customers and interesting advice by small company owners. As a result, this company should only send it to the latter group and carve out a series of other messages for the rest.
As a sidenote, addressing each person by their name is highly recommended. John’s going to think you care about him as an individual if you call him ‘John’, and won’t feel as valued if a message opens with ‘Dear loyal customer’.
Time It Right
Suddenly interrupted while working, this is not when a customer wants to receive a text.
Whether or not someone appreciates text marketing is often governed by when they receive the messages. It’s good practice to avoid sending marketing texts early in the morning, late in the evening, or during typical commuting hours.
The best hours for you will depend on the particular demographics you’re targeting, but getting the timing right is vital to ensure that customers view you as a considerate firm.
Don’t Wait Around
The goals mentioned earlier are essentially benefits in themselves, yet they are not the only ones a well-integrated, well-coordinated SMS marketing campaign can achieve. From promoting products more effectively to increasing sales and boosting brand awareness, text marketing is able to strengthen your business in various different ways.
That psychological turning point on January 1 is nearly here, and the time to consider innovations is now. Regardless of what services you provide, text marketing should be at the top of your list.
If you’d like to kick-start your company’s texting campaign with the UK’s favourite SMS marketing tool, then try us free today.