SMS – isn’t it a thing of the past?
Is what might be your first question when it comes to using SMS promotions for your online store. But the reality is different – SMS marketing is actually one of the most effective ways to promote your e-commerce business to new as well as loyal customers.
With 98% open rates and 45% response rates according to various data sources, SMS is one of the most targeted and efficient forms of advertising and works very well in combination with other types, such as social media or email.
This post explores ways to use texting as a powerful marketing tool for e-commerce businesses and how it can help to increase traffic, conversions, and maximize revenues.
What is SMS marketing?
SMS stands for a “short message service” and is usually max 160 characters long, however, usually networks combine several messages which is why often you can also see longer ones. Whereas SMS only contains text or hyperlinks, MMS, or “multimedia messaging service”, can include images, GIFs, or even short video clips.
SMS marketing is the use of these messages by brands and retailers to either promote or communicate to their customers by sending out texts in bulk. SMS marketing is often used to distribute promotional messages through discount offers or coupons, exclusive product launches, product updates, and even customer service.
Once you have the permission from the contact numbers you want to message to, you have complete control over who receives your communication. However, to get started, you have to first collect the phone numbers to reach out to and target. Best way to gather phone numbers is by offering incentives through social media or email marketing campaigns. Due to its targeted nature, SMS marketing is an excellent tool for retaining existing customers.
SMS marketing growing in popularity again
Bulk SMS marketing should be utilized by all e-commerce marketers, whether it is in combination with other marketing strategies or in isolation. But one thing is for sure, SMS marketing is growing again compared to its heyday ten years ago.
Between 2012 and 2017, SMS usage in the US was experiencing a continuous decline, from its highest at 2.3 trillion texts sent in 2011. Looking at the latest statistics, this number is increasing. Because 10 years later in 2021, there were 2.2 trillion messages sent, showing signs of surging SMS usage, according to Statista.
Because SMS messaging doesn’t require people to connect to the internet, nor own a smartphone, it remains one of the most accessible means of communication in the world.
Changed consumer behavior
The global Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way businesses communicate with their customers, as the behavior dramatically changed. Consumers now expect a more personalized approach and a conversational experience – SMS marketing is the right solution for that.
In 2020, customers used text messaging services to communicate to brands nearly to the same level as Facebook Messenger, with 47% and 52% according to Zendesk research. What is more, whereas texting has decreased among Millennials, Gen-Z uses SMS to the same level as Baby Boomers, 22% of whom using messaging services.
As an example, a direct-to-consumer e-commerce brand NotPot who sells flavored CBD gummies said to be stopping all email communication replacing it with just SMS messaging. What is more flavored water online brand DirtyLemon uses only SMS to sell their products, both for marketing as well as customer service and communication.
8 SMS marketing tips to increase traffic and conversions
In e-commerce, SMS marketing is mostly used to launch campaigns that have a short-term sales uplift, for example, promotions, discount offers, two-in-one offers, abandoned cart notifications, having a direct impact on customer loyalty rates, as these sort of offers help to increase sales as well as retain customers and keep them coming back to your online store.
Below we bring out best tips to leverage to increase traffic and conversions of your e-commerce shop through SMS marketing.
1. Discount offers and promotions
Discounts and promotions are one of the most common and effective ways to promote your business through SMS marketing. Discount vouchers encourage customers to purchase, for example, by sending an interactive message using codes such as “50OFF” + sharing the link to the product page directly, it creates both urgent as well as convenience for your audience to purchase the items.
2. Offer free shipping
Offering free shipping to your customers is also a proven effective way to get people to buy your products. People don’t want to pay extra for shipping, after all, it is an extra cost they didn’t maybe account for.
For example, to sweeten the deal of your discount offer, combine it with a FREE SHIPPING code and encourage even more sales.
3. Personalize
Personalization impacts purchases in a positive way, 80% of consumers said they are more likely to buy if the brand or retailer is customizing their shopping experience, including marketing campaigns, found research by Epsilon.
So personalize your messages as much as possible, for example, add their name at the beginning of the text, or offer discounts based on their shopping cart history for what they usually like to purchase.
4. Send abandoned cart notifications
For brands, abandoned carts are a headache, but unfortunately it isn’t uncommon for customers to leave their items without ever completing the purchase. In fact, a whopping 85% of online shoppers abandon their carts according to data by Statista.
Reasons vary from surprisingly high shipping costs, payment processing issues, to long delivery times, and more often than not, simply because people forget.
And this is where a short SMS reminder can come in handy – encouraging customers to complete the purchase by sending them a discount code or a free shipping code can really make a difference!
5. BOGO offers
Deals like BOGO offers: buy-one-get-one-free deals, or buy-one-get-second-half-price, for example, are super effective and perfect to be distributed through hSMS messages. A good 66% consumers actually use these offers when they get sent an SMS message.
The main benefits of BOGO deals for you as an e-commerce retailer are increased sales and getting rid of slow-moving stock.
Use SMS marketing to increase sales
As more and more digital marketing channels are being developed, and more people browse social media channel feeds every day, things are becoming competitive and busy, it is hard to separate your brand from all the noise.
Which is why targeted SMS messages are a great way to catch your customers’ attention, and stand out from the crowd and increase sales!
