SMS Has a Difference!

Using SMS marketing for your e-commerce business offers numerous benefits, from higher conversion rates to better interaction with your customers and audience. You're aware of that, but do you know exactly what kind of advantages these benefits will bring to your business? Let's clarify with some examples:

 

1. Mobile users are at an all-time high.

 

As of 2021, 67.1% of the world's population owns mobile phones. That means 5.27 billion people have access to their mobile phones, and many of them actively use SMS or read at least one text message sent during the day. As more people embrace digital technology, this number will continue to increase.

 

It's essential to recognize that mobile phones are no longer just communication tools; they meet many of our daily needs. Mobile shopping is also included in these needs. In the past six months alone, approximately 45% of smartphone users shopped online on their mobile devices. This indicates that many mobile users are already using their phones as shopping hubs, making SMS marketing an excellent strategy.

 

With well-planned SMS marketing and effective SMS tactics, you can make millions of people visit your virtual market.

 

2. Customers engage more with SMS messages.

 

Email marketing is still one of the most effective marketing forms. However, it's not the best. While the average email open rate is 20%, SMS messages have a much higher open rate of about 98%. This means almost every SMS message sent gets opened, making SMS marketing more effective than other marketing methods.

 

SMS messages aren't just opened, but they are read in a very short time. Research shows that around 90% of SMS messages get read within the first three minutes of receiving them. This gives SMS messages a unique advantage in speed. They provide an unmatched ability to reach your customers quickly, whether it's a campaign, discount, or order confirmation code.

 

When asked which method of communication with customers has the highest response rate, you might think it's phone calls, right? It comes to mind because it's direct and immediate.

 

However, research shows that SMS messages have a 95% higher response rate than phone calls. Users prefer responding to a text message rather than answering a phone call.

 

SMS messages not only reach more customers but also engage them more. Try sending more interactive messages and retain them in your brand, rather than plain texts with no call-to-action.

 

3. You can build a more comprehensive audience with SMS marketing.

 

There are many marketing channels for businesses. While SMS marketing is the fastest and most accessible to your target audience, solely relying on one marketing tool will eventually make it monotonous. That's why you can create a complete marketing plan by integrating SMS marketing with other marketing methods for your brand.

 

With a simple marketing tactic like mass SMS, you can advertise your social media accounts or encourage users to subscribe to your email newsletter via SMS. You can also promote your campaigns through SMS to gain more real and targeted followers from the audience.

 

4. You can customize your SMS messages according to your target audience.

 

Do you know who your customers are? Although we often use a blanket term like "customers" or "target audience" to refer to them collectively, they are, in fact, diverse individuals with different characteristics. That's why the messages you send should be tailored to suit specific segments, not treating everyone as one piece and sending the same message.

 

For a brief explanation:

 

Demographics: Target your messages based on your audience's age, gender, education, and behavioral patterns. Let's assume you're a cleaning brand and launched a product for women. If you advertise this product regardless of demographic characteristics, it will be sent to your existing customers, but not to the target audience for the product. This will result in wasting money on sending unnecessary SMS messages repeatedly, and customers will lose interest in your brand after a while.

 

Location: Differentiate your messages based on the geographical location. You can send a special message to those present in that area, even based on weather conditions. Utilize the location part more to send personalized messages to those in different regions. Thus, you can make your customers in different parts of the country or the world feel special.

 

Purchase History: If you have purchase or search record data, which is more valuable than some of your customer data such as customer numbers, their age, or where they live, your job will be much easier thanks to SMS. You can send reminder messages through SMS to customers who have searched for certain products or have not completed their orders despite adding them to the cart or reviewing them.

 

In short:

 

SMS marketing is a unique way to engage your customers and increase sales for your online business. Not only does it allow you to reach a large audience, but it also achieves the speed of reaching this audience that is unparalleled in any other marketing method. The open and response rates are higher than any email you can send or even a call. Moreover, with SMS marketing, you can positively contribute to other marketing methods and fully integrate your marketing strategy.

 

After reading all the articles, you might think that if you do SMS marketing, you'll be successful for sure. However, just like other marketing strategies, SMS marketing works only if all its positive aspects are considered, and it's well-planned. If the SMS you send to your customers is boring, sent repeatedly, or not in their interest, no matter how many SMS messages you send, they won't be useful. Worse yet, they may start thinking negatively about your business.

 

Think positively, analyze well, and develop a well-planned marketing strategy from every aspect, and the rest will be taken care of by SMS messages.