Gartner Group Inc. founded nearly 40 years ago, has established itself as a reliable information source by reporting data-based findings, trends, and predictions. A strong finding of Gartner was that the SMS is an underutilized strategy that could have a great impact on customer engagement. This post talks about the downward SMS trend and how Gartner perceives it to be a blessing in disguise for businesses world over. 

Research Director of Gartner for Marketers, Charles Golvin said: “SMS remains an effective, yet underutilized, mobile tactic among marketing leaders and is particularly valuable when used in conjunction with mobile techniques such as wallet, web and native applications to orchestrate a deep level of customer engagement.”

SMS picked up in 2011 and saw a rapid increase in the number of texts sent around the world. Businesses flocked towards the SMS to reach out to customers. As technology continues to advance, more and more methods of mobile marketing have emerged, such as in-app notifications, push notifications, and social media. SMS, though proven to be effective, has seen a decline in usage over the past few years. This can be attributed to the rise of WhatsApp and social media messengers. However, from a business angle, this is a blessing in disguise. Let’s see why.

Mobile subscribers are increasing at a fast pace, however, SMS numbers have seen a decline.

Email inboxes see tons of spam, and most emails go unread. Most websites require customers to sign up or give them an option to receive newsletters. On account of this, customers are flooded with content every day from sites they signed up on. Unless the customer is genuinely interested in the product or business, or unless the content is exceptional, they don’t take too much time to read these emails. Only around 29% of emails are read around the world.

On the other hand, SMSes have a read rate of 98%. The SMS is a powerful tool that reaches just about anyone with a phone. SMS can reach out to people who don’t own smartphones, and this is integral for developing countries.

Why revisit the SMS?

As many explore other options, there have been countless businesses that have revisited the tried-and-tested SMS tactic. There are a number of reasons why the SMS still holds good:

Wide reach

While some economies are developing rapidly, there are many countries that are developing at a much slower pace. This leaves a large segment of the world’s population without access to smartphones and other technologies. Owing to a large wealth inequality gap in the United States, many people within the country also do not have the luxury of smartphones. The SMS still has an incomparable reach as it can be sent to customers even if they do not possess a smartphone or a data plan.

Quick response

While it takes over 90 minutes for an email to be read, on average, it takes about 3 minutes for an SMS to be opened. Customers need only a few seconds to read the message and decide whether they want to pursue the call to action.

Increased engagement

According to a study by Cellit, after reviewing 1,180 campaigns carried out by national retailers, the analysis showed that the SMS produced 6-8 times more engagement than email marketing when the campaigns were used for redemption, data collection and brand awareness.

Easy enrollment

For customers to opt in or opt out of SMS campaigns or subscriptions, it is a very simplified process. It only entails sending a keyword or a “Y” or “N” to a prescribed number. Respecting the privacy norms of SMS marketing is crucial.

How to use the SMS wisely

There are some businesses who jump into marketing tactics without fully understanding its potential and how best to use it. A lack of understanding could lead to an unsuccessful campaign. But failure should not be a deterrent when something has proven its worth, instead, it should be used as a learning curve to improve. Here are some of the must-knows of the SMS and ways that you can use the humble yet powerful SMS to improve your marketing strategy. 

Be personal and purposeful

The SMS reaches individuals on their personal mobile devices. It is important to keep it personal. It should speak to the customer and offer something of value to them. It takes a few seconds to read an SMS, but the SMS should not be pointless but rather serve a purpose.

Use appropriate text

Avoid using slang, especially to conform to the character limit. It’s important that the SMS follows grammar norms and at the same time is catchy. The text should ideally be under 160 characters. Slang and abbreviations should be reserved only for the utmost unavoidable circumstances but should be avoided at all costs.

Call to action

Prompting a reaction from the customer is imperative in SMS marketing. Close to 50% of consumers in the U.S. make direct purchases after receiving an SMS-branded text. So, it is important to include a call to action such as “shop now”, “join for free”, “subscribe now” and so on.

As businesses seek new ways to attract customers, there is one method that has maintained its popularity over the years – mobile marketing. Businesses have seen great results from mobile marketing campaigns which have led to a significant increase in responses, sales and customer interactions. The SMS, if used smartly, and in conjunction with other tactics, could prove very powerful in increasing positive marketing results for any business.