SMS Marketing 201

Before starting, it’s important to call out some statistics that were stated in SMS Marketing 101:

You may find this hard to believe but:

75% of consumers are comfortable receiving SMS messages from brands as long as they opt-in to messaging. (Marketing Profs)

SMS messages have a 98% open rate compared to the 20% open rate of emails. (SMS Comparison) 

SMS messages have an average click-through rate of 36%, while email click-through-rates are a dismal 3.4%(DSIM)

75% of consumers are comfortable with SMS marketing. And, if they do opt-in, consumers will open 98% of what you send and 36% will click through to your site. Need I say more?

SMS Marketing is a powerful tool in your marketing toolbox, so let’s double down on SMS marketing and cover additional strategies that will help you grow your Shopify. 

Segmenting:

A great way to increase conversion rates in SMS marketing is to segment your customers. Many SMS platforms will allow you to segment your audiences based on multiple factors such as:

 

• SKUs they have purchased
• when they last purchased
• how much they have purchased (quantity or total value)
• their location
• And much more

Segmenting can allow you to target hyper-specific customer groups to further increase open, click and conversion rates. Keep in mind that this form of marketing is a lot more personal, you are communicating with your customers in a way that they communicate with friends and family. By segmenting your audience, you can communicate with them in a way that is less generalized and corporate, and more friendly and personal. 

Clear CTA - Offers with Links:

When you create your message, there is something you should ALWAYS include. A clear call to action. This can be a link to click, a promotion you are pushing, or asking for a response. 

But, most importantly, if you are providing a discount, you should ALWAYS include a link with the discount code already applied. Shopify provides you with the ability to create unique URLs that will automatically attach coupon codes. This eliminates the need for customers to remember or copy and paste the coupon code. For example, say you were offering 20% off via your SMS campaign. You could send the following:

20% Discount on all products! Today only! Just use coupon code SAVE20 during checkout. https://YourShopifySite.com

Or 

20% Discount on all products! Today only! Just use coupon code SAVE20 during checkout or click the link below:
https://www.YourShopifySite.com/discount/SAVE20?redirect=/

The latter will direct a user to your Shopify store with the coupon code SAVE20 already applied. No remembering or copy and pasting required. 

Some SMS platforms allow you to build these links automatically (see more below).

Images - Gifs and Emojis:

A great way to build interest and excitement around your product or offer is through the use of images and gifs. Although images will increase the cost per message sent, I recommend that a majority messages sent out include an image or gif. 

As the old adage goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. Images can communicate so much more about a sale or product launch to a customer, reducing the length of messages and increasing the likelihood of conversion. 

You can reuse detailed imagery from email campaigns or simply use a funny gif from giphy.com. Just be sure to reduce the file size enough that it can be sent, but not too much where the quality reduces legibility. 

SMS marketing is here to stay and continues to be extremely effective. So take advantage of the strategies proposed above and grow your Shopify. 

Now go and grow. 

J