We recommend your mobile strategy include mobile text marketing. While the mobile app is creating a lot of buzz, its usage trails mobile web and mobile messaging. There are far more text capable phones than phones with “app-ability”. Don’t restrict your target market with a smaller installed base.
SMS is often dismissed for two reasons: simplicity and cost. Let’s take a closer look at SMS. Because a text message is limited to 160 characters, it is imperative to make every character count. Write creatively to make communication count. You can include a phone number or link to a mobile website or info page optimized for mobile phones. Simplicity is strength.
- Delivered – each SMS using carrier-grade messaging is delivered
- Read – almost 95% or all text messages are read by end users
- Direct – often provides a preview w/o reading the entire message
- Concise – read and take action in seconds
- Easy-to-Read – most of the message fits on the screen
- Link-Enabled – ability to point to a Mobile Website
- Call-Enabled – include a phone number to call
Easily forwarded to a friend or a network. SMS provides interactive two-way messaging features. Mobile coupons, mobile ticketing, surveys, voting and polling all available with mobile text marketing. With a list of opt-in users, text messaging can be sent out to users via blast, notifications and alerts. Build out your mobile site. Offer Mobile Messaging. Then build specialty apps that provide usefulness for your customer. And don’t neglect voice as part of your mobile strategy.
Text to Phone Nearly Instant Delivery!
Text messages are delivered directly to subscriber’s phone. The phone beeps, blinks and vibrates. “Look at me! Look at me!” Until the user takes a look and reads the text, a little flag stays visible on the phone. Think of emails arriving so fast and furious, many of us have turned off our audible notification. Not so with text. The text stays until read.
We all know how American Idol voting is nearly instant. What other applications can benefit from this feature? Retailer coupons have shortened the time to process a coupon has from weeks to days. With mobile text coupons, the redemption can be within hours or minutes. For coupons in monthly magazines or newspapers, the ad space is sold 30 to 60 days in advance. Now mobile text marketing can deliver a discount as soon as a merchant’s spring fashions arrive. How about a text when the new “Twilight Saga” book arrives at the book store; or the next hot Xbox release?
Daycare centers can alert parents to emergencies in seconds no matter where the parents are. No more voice mail. One message distributed to every parent in less than a minute. We live in a fast-paced world and text advertising can now keep up. Mobile text marketing gives the advertiser the best way to reach their audience and get a quick response.
Mobile Marketing has the highest read rate of any advertising - 98%.
Over 5 billion text messages are sent and received every day. With a 98% read rate, that’s a whole lot of eyeballs viewing your message. The message is delivered right to their mobile device in their hands, in their pocket, or in their purse. Your message can be saved. It can be used now or later. Your message is received almost instantaneously. Your message delivers your compelling offer enticing them to act now.
Punch one: The customer opts in to accept your irresistible offer. Punch two: The read rate – 98%. High read rate increases response rate. Where will your customer most likely see you? Use a point of sale sign, register receipt, table card, and window poster to get your offer seen. Are you already using print, internet, radio or television? If so, add the opt in message into your present advertising campaign. Increase the response of your present advertising with an offer tied to a text campaign. Drive your customer to your business; to your website; into their pocket and back to your business again.
Increase the awareness of your business through Mobile Marketing. It gives your advertising the power to reach higher response rates than any other medium used alone.
Mobile Marketing – The Wave of Now!
Welcome all to our Mobile Text Marketing blog. We’ll be discussing a variety of topics for all audiences. This being the first post, I’ll use it as an opportunity to discuss the market and the opportunities it presents.
Text message Marketing is the wave of NOW, not the wave of the future. It is a very large pond to market to with 270+ million mobile phones in use in the United States. Of those 270+ million 94% have text message capability. You will be seeing text offers everywhere, from the ballpark to the tanning salon. Mobile Text Marketing is being successfully used for opinion polling, appointment reminders, special offers and coupons. The applications are endless and both the consumers and vendors are coming up winners.
The redemption rates for promotions using Mobile Text Marketing are far superior to any other marketing medium. A restaurant owner at the Glenbrook Square Mall in Fort Wayne, Indiana implemented Text Message Marketing system. In just his 1st week using it, he had over 100 mall employees join his text alerts and that number is growing each day.
Another restaurant owner sent a text message to his keyword that is specific to mall employees on a Wednesday afternoon with the following message: “Need a snack to get you through hump day? Bring this text down anytime between 2pm and 3pm TODAY and receive a FREE milkshake with a purchase of a LARGE FRY!” Of the 100 people that received that text message, over 25 responded and visited his restaurant to take advantage of the special! A 25% response rate! (Source: FreePressIndex.com)
“We have been “— texters” for almost a month and the results are awesome. We saw a 50% redemption rate with the 1st text and can’t wait to do it again. Our customers are excited about being part of our texting community and spread the word for us. This could not have been easier! Thanks so much for a great marketing tool.” (source: FreePressIndex.com)
Mobile Text Marketing is most successful with a well-planned promotion. The offer must be compelling. 25% redemption rates are common. I’ll be back with more about Mobile Text Marketing. In the meantime, watch for the word TEXT! It’s popping up all over.
In 2002 I started my own marketing firm to help businesses and non-profit organizations create compelling marketing programs for their companies. Bringing my experience in marketing and sales for Fortune 100 companies in a variety of distribution channels, I offer marketing solutions to company's key objectives.
