Key takeaways
- Use crystal‑clear, concise CTAs. Users are often pressed for time, so avoid long ‘salesy’ paragraphs.
- Convey urgency sparingly. Remind recipients of limited‑time benefits without threatening or spamming them.
- Integrate SMS with email and social. Lead with a text, then follow up via inbox outreach or social calls‑to‑action to extend engagement.
- Start frequency around once a week and adjust with audience feedback and surveys to avoid overmessaging.
- Think beyond sales texts. Use SMS for text‑blogging live events, order confirmations or appointment reminders to add unique value.
Introduction
The world of SMS marketing offers a plethora of powerful ways to connect with your customers, but sifting through the murky nature of this process and finding true value and potential isn’t always easy to come by, regardless of your experience within the marketplace. In fact, if you’re not careful, you could squander this once bright opportunity. To ensure you’re always on the good side of your audience when they’re on the go, let’s talk about the five optimization questions that demand answers as you seek to refine and improve your mobile marketing operations.
How Clear Is Your Call-to-Action?
First up on the list is engaging in an honest evaluation of your call-to-action (CTA.) As John Boitnott of Inc. magazine explains, being straightforward and clear on this front is a must if you’re serious about building a strong connection with your customers. While it might feel a little awkward to develop CTAs that get straight to the point, just keep in mind that these viewers are often pressed for time, so wading through paragraphs of “salesy” fluff to get to the juicy offer or deal isn’t going to instill a ton of goodwill with these consumers.
Is Your Content “Urgent?”
Much like cutting to the chase with a clear and concise CTA, there’s also the fact that consumers are bogged down with a million and one other things on their mental “to-do” lists, so ensuring that your content comes off as urgent is a great way to climb up the priority ladder. Now, this isn’t to say that you should spam your mobile readers with looming threats regarding deadlines. However, it doesn’t hurt to gently remind them of the limited duration of the deal, as well as the benefits of acting in an expedient manner when it comes to your brand’s offers.
Does Your SMS Campaign Connect to Social Media and the Inbox?
If there’s one thing you need to take away from this discussion of SMS operations, it’s that integration is perhaps the most powerful tool in your marketing arsenal. As Boitnott goes on to point out, leading with a text and following up with inbox outreach or a request for social likes, shares, and follows can truly revolutionize your relationship with the members of your contact list. Not only does this keep you in the conversation long after the text has been opened, it also ensures that you maximize the value of your related email and social marketing endeavors.
Where Should Frequency Fit Into the Picture?
Another major question regarding SMS optimization, according to Jason Clegg of Social Media Today, focuses on how often you should be reaching out to customers via this platform. Unfortunately, the answer to this question resides firmly between “often enough” and “not too often.” While this isn’t exactly a scientific range, you can let audience data – like feedback and surveys – help guide the way as you tweak the knobs on this variable. If you’re starting off completely from square one, Clegg offers up the suggestion that a friendly once a week offering is a good place to start. From this point, you’ll be able to increase or decrease frequency based on the reaction from your growing list of mobile shoppers.
Are You Thinking Outside the Box?
Finally, the last question offered up – how you approach SMS content moving forward – is intentionally left open ended. As Clegg explains in his closing statements on this topic, thinking outside of the box is vital if you’re planning on staying ahead of the completion in terms of reach and optimization. After all, the whole idea of optimizing any sort of marketing practice, SMS included, isn’t about running through the process once and calling it good.
To help get your creative juices flowing, consider how you can add value to the text experience for your readers. Whether you’re text-blogging a live event, offering up order confirmations for digital purchases, or even using this medium as a way to remind contact list members of upcoming appointments, it’s easy to see that going beyond the simple “buy this product” text is definitely a doable affair.
The big key here is finding a niche that separates your brand from the competition and offers up something unique to these vital members of your burgeoning mobile community. If you can do this, as well as put the rest of what you’ve learned here regarding SMS optimization to good use, there’s no reason your brand can’t continue to grow and evolve as the world of text marketing does the same.
FAQ
Be straightforward and concise. Avoid long, salesy copy, recipients are often on the go and need the offer or action presented quickly. A clear CTA builds a stronger connection with customers.
Gently remind recipients of a limited duration or the benefits of acting quickly, but avoid looming threats or frequent high‑pressure messages. The goal is to climb their priority list, not to alienate them.
Lead with a text and follow up with inbox outreach or requests for social likes, shares and follows. This keeps you in the conversation after the text is opened and helps maximize the value of related email and social efforts.
A suggested starting point is about once a week. From there, increase or decrease frequency based on audience reaction and data. Aim for ‘often enough’ but ‘not too often.’
Use audience data such as feedback and surveys to guide frequency adjustments. Monitor reactions from your contact list and tweak the cadence accordingly.
Consider text‑blogging a live event, sending order confirmations for digital purchases or reminding contacts of upcoming appointments. The key is adding value and finding a niche that separates your brand from competitors.
Avoid spamming recipients and sending lengthy, salesy messages that waste goodwill. Overmessaging or high‑pressure tactics can squander the opportunity to build a positive mobile relationship.
