How easy is it to cut through the noise and connect with your customers?
With the convenience of mobile, customers now expect more from businesses and want to interact with them in a different way – through text messages.
Find out how important text messaging is to local businesses and how to use it effectively.
On December 8th, I moderated a webinar moderated by Matt Boyce, Director of Marketing, and Austin Miller, Partner Marketing Director of Podium.
They surveyed more than 1,000 customers to find out how consumers feel about texting with local businesses and how local businesses can benefit from it.
In this quick webinar recap, you’ll get some tips and advice on making the most of these ideas. for more details, Access the entire webinar.
The evolution of business messaging
The way businesses communicate is constantly changing and evolving.
It began with the telegram, morphed into the postal service, and continued to evolve into the advent of email.
the problem: Now, our inboxes are overloaded with emails.
the answer: SMS messages.
Consumers say text messaging is an easy and convenient way to respond to a business.
with extremely 98% high unlock rate, Text message marketing equals the open rates of email marketing at its peak.
Text message CTRs of 18% – 6.9 times higher than email – however Only 12% of local businesses use text messaging as a marketing tool.
This means that most local businesses are not yet taking advantage of text messaging, and are ignoring many opportunities to better interact with their customers.
Your brand can be on top.
Your brand can show that it cares, show that it respects your customers’ time, and make a good impression by providing the convenience of texting.
[Gain A Marketing Advantage Over Your Competition] Immediately access this webinar →
The power of conversational text messaging
Your customers crave conversations that go beyond blasting messages.
- 74% of consumers said they would text a local business as if they were a real person.
- Nearly half of consumers say they are more likely to respond to work text messages if the employee introduces himself/herself.
The marketing advantage of text messages
When asked if consumers would like the ability to communicate with a local business via text, this is what they had to say:
- 24% – yes, and I really do.
- 43% – yes, and I haven’t yet.
With a great desire to interact with companies via text messaging, there is also a great opportunity for companies to differentiate themselves through this channel.
Make your brand stand out Being the first to market SMS messages in your field of specialization.
When you do well, you can gain an edge and stand out from your competitors.
Consumer texting trends
Texting her a 209% increase in response rate Compared to phone calls, emails, or even Facebook Messenger.
Although consumers do not usually respond to voicemails and calls, they usually respond to text messages.
Why? It’s fast and easy.
consumers are looking for Convenience when communicating with a company.
For example, you may discover that your clients really enjoy answering text messages outside of business hours.
Perhaps you can provide instant answers or create a low-barrier entry point to nurturing a new lead.
When you use text messaging in your marketing and sales funnel, your customers will feel as if they have a special connection to your brand.
[Get All The 2022 SMS Trends] Immediately access this webinar →
SMS Marketing Tips for Local Businesses
Podium conducted a survey with 1,000 respondents; Their answers will give you insight into how to create the perfect SMS strategy.
Offer incentives
Podium has found that customers want local businesses to submit:
- Incentives (coupons, discounts, promotional codes).
- Loyalty offers and benefits.
- “Back in Stock” notifications.
Add personalization
You can also create a stronger connection by adding personalization to your text messages.
Personalization, such as the use of a customer’s name, greatly affects sales and customer service.
transmission frequency
On average, Podium recommends sending text messages once a week or once a month.
However, the frequency of sending promotional messages depends on the type of business.
Create a frictionless buying experience
Text messaging gives your business the ability to be proactive, feed a customer within minutes, and get a sale.
Just being there to answer questions, provide instant and valuable links, and show the potential customer you care increases your conversion potential.
For example, within a short period of time you can:
- Create a frictionless second payment method for services within the text messaging experience.
- Create a sales funnel that starts with a Google search and takes the lead to express sign-up to start the nurturing stage.
- Transfer your lead in an easy way to pay through SMS.
- Ask customers to leave a review, which helps improve your page and rank higher on Google.
[Learn How To Implement SMS Payments] Get instant access to the full webinar →
Text messaging is great because it’s already on everyone’s phone, and your customers don’t have to download another app to do it all.
How to avoid unsubscribing
Consumers unsubscribe when companies message them without permission or when they don’t remember to opt in.
Make sure you have permission to text your customers by getting them to sign up.
Other scenarios that lead to opt-out are:
- Received too many messages.
- Receive messages that are not related to them.
- more.
[Learn Each Reason Customers Unsubscribe] Get instant access to the full webinar →
[Slides] SMS Marketing for Local Business: The Trends You’ll Need in 2022
Here is the presentation:
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Image credits
Featured Image: Katrinaku/Shutterstock & Paulo Bobita/Search Engine Magazine
