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It may be a fault on the business end for sending it at the wrong time, or not sending something of value. It could also be a fault on the gateway, where the SMS could have got lost in cyberspace. And lastly, it could also fall on the customer who forgot to respond or didn’t bother to check it. While one can’t force a customer to read a message, issues can be fixed and campaigns can be tailored to persuade them to open it. Quick resolution can help a business run more successful campaigns.

Here are some of the top reasons your customers don’t get messages, fail to understand them, or don’t respond to them either.

Spam Surge

With more than 65% of the world’s population owning a mobile phone, almost anyone can relate to the problems of getting too many sales calls, messages, emails, and in-app notifications. Sometimes it can get a bit much if a person has signed up on multiple websites or has provided their contact information to many businesses. Sendingspam messages will result in customers ignoring you. The key is to send only what’s necessary. Informative messages about good deals, sales, or anything that might provide value to the customer would work better than sending unnecessary promotional messages to any and every person out there.

Using an unreliable SMS gateway

The SMS gateway plays a crucial role in delivering messages to the end user. If a business uses an SMS gateway that does not handle campaigns well, then the point of the campaign could get lost. If the gateway is unreliable, SMSs could get lost in cyberspace or could end up not being delivered. There are many good SMS gateways out there that businesses can rely on. The key is to do a bit of research and find the best gateway for your business. Opting for the cheapest one without checking how good they are might prove to be more costly in the end.

They faced challenges with your business

If a customer faced challenges with purchasing or using products and services from you, then that could result in a bitter heart towards your company. Many customers who have a bad experience write about it warning others and never return even if you make improvements. Most industries see tough competition and it’s easy to leave you for a competitor. It’s important to connect with such customers and ask them to give you a try once more in a creative and approachable way after making the necessary changes.

Value was not delivered

Adding value to your SMS is crucial for any SMS marketing campaign. Messages should carry a ‘call to action’ such as “Click here to buy now”, “SMS Y or N to XXXX to provide feedback”, “Grab this offer in the link below”, or “Text SAVE to XXXX to receive your coupon”. Providing something of value to the customer will have better chances of provoking a response from them.

Message reached them at the wrong time

With messages being sent globally, texts and emails are now delivered to all parts of the world at the same time. However, sometimes this might reach the customer in the middle of the night in one country, while it may reach another customer in the middle of the day in another county. Customers don’t always have time to read messages and if sent at the wrong time, it could go ignored. The key is to bear in mind your target audience. If the target audience is middle age to older people, sending messages sometime in the day would be ideal. If the target audience is the working population, then it’s best to avoid peak hours when people are rushing off to their office.

Not Following SMS Opt-in Opt-out protocol

While using SMS campaigns, respecting the privacy of customers is imperative. Customers must be informed when they are registered for SMS campaigns and must be given an option to unsubscribe. Sending unsolicited messages could irk customers and strike a bad chord which could possibly have a long-lasting effect on the business.

Not longing at a long-term relationship

Almost three out of four customers look for long-term relationships with brands that appreciate their commitment and brand loyalty. Portraying a short-term fling with customers by sending spammy messages results in customers giving the brand axes. Keeping messages relevant and true to the brand goes a long way in retaining customers and getting them to respond to your SMS.

When choosing to market via SMS, you must understand when it can succeed and when it can fail. Disruptive and generic messages – a “one fits all” approach – usually doesn’t sit well with customers. This is where gathering data comes in. Analyzing data, categorizing preferences and learning the different likes of customers can help a business tailor campaigns to be more personalized.

Rewards for loyal customers, helpful information rather than just constant promotions, and the personalization makes things more heartfelt for the customer as you’ve shown them that you care. Once you have the right tools, a highly dependable SMS gateway, and a good strategy in place, SMS campaigns can prove to be indispensable.