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Top 9 SMS Marketing Tactics For Generating SMS Leads

Are you thinking of adopting SMS lead generation as your SMS marketing strategy, but you aren’t sure of what to expect?

Then this post is for you, which provides better insights about SMS lead generation and how it will benefit your business.

SMS means Short Message Service, which also means a text message. Text messaging as an SMS marketing strategy provides your business a competitive advantage that doesn’t require your customers to be connected to the internet. According to 99firms, 91% of consumers will opt-in for SMS via brands. 

What is SMS Marketing? 

SMS marketing uses text messaging for business (SMS) to disburse promotional campaigns or transactional messages for marketing pursuits. The main objective of SMS marketing is to alert clients who have chosen to receive text messages from your business about limited-time offers, updates, and alerts.

SMS is the most affordable form of communication as SMS delivery is fast and doesn’t go into spam or get lost in transit like emails do. According to techjury, 75% of customers prefer offers via SMS. 

If you are looking forward to benefitting from SMS leads, an SMS marketing strategy is effective. Studies show that mobile phone users check their phones at least 63 times a day (source). Thus, your business needs to tap into SMS leads using an SMS marketing strategy.

Benefits of SMS Marketing

The immediacy element and the ever-increasing screen time for mobile phones make SMS a lucrative channel for marketing. So, let’s dig deeper into the many benefits of SMS marketing:

1. Cost-effective Marketing

First and foremost, one of the biggest perks of SMS marketing is its high ROI-low cost appeal. You can start bulk SMS marketing campaigns targeting 1,000 people for under $10. So, unlike paid ads, you don’t have to shell out a huge amount to get the word out about your products.

2. High Open Rate

SMS has an open rate of 85% and a response rate of 45%. It usually takes 90 seconds for recipients to respond to an SMS. In comparison, emails have an open rate of 24%. SMS has the potential to quickly grab your customers’ attention and compel them to take action.

3. Increase Customer Engagement

SMS is underestimated as a channel for generating customer engagement. The immediacy factor and easy access through mobile devices make SMS a more effective medium for communication than other channels such as email, paid Ads, etc. This also contributes to building a loyal base of customers.

4. Instant Delivery

Most importantly, SMS gets delivered instantly. It does not require an internet connection either. SMS, in that sense, is a reliable and quick way to spread the word about your products and brand. This helps accelerate and improve conversion rates.

SMS Marketing : 9 SMS Lead Generation Tactics to Bank on

When it comes to SMS lead generation, text message marketing tends to hold various advantages over other platforms. You can’t be shooting in the dark and wasting both time and money.

Since there’s no time for trial and error, we’ve got you covered with these tried and tested SMS lead generation tactics for SMS marketing:

1. Get your Prospects to Opt-in

Short message service (SMS) marketing efforts will be unsuccesful if you’re not taking customers’ consent. SMS opt-ins ensure that the recipients only receive messages after they permit them. It is legally required for you to obtain consent before sending automated SMS.

Besides complying with the rules, getting subscriber approval is essential for SMS lead generation. When customers decide to opt in, they are likely to be more receptive. You can start running SMS campaigns on auto-pilot without fearing being classified as spam by customers.

The best way to introduce prospects to an SMS subscription is by offering an incentive for opting in. The customer will know what value the SMS subscription will bring and, in this way, help strengthen the relationship with them. Going by the rules, it is important to allow customers to opt-out. Make sure to provide customers with the necessary details for opting out.

2. Trigger Actions through Offers

Compelling customers to act using a simple text message is not an easy task. Rewarding them with offers can be a great way to overcome this hurdle and generate leads. Studies show that 85% of customers tend to use SMS coupons within a week of receiving them (Source). On the contrary, coupons and vouchers sent via email are redeemed by only 0.5% – 2% of the customers.

It is best to segment your customers when it comes to SMS coupon marketing. Pricing-based offers such as buy-one-get-one offers are the most preferred among customers. Time-sensitive SMS campaigns focused on flash sales, special holiday sales, and sales expiration reminders are also effective.

Besides these, location-based offers and product-based offers are other ways to trigger actions and generate leads. A survey conducted by Marketing Charts segments customers based on different SMS offers they respond to. The survey also suggests that general SMS offers are the least responsive, and it is best to infuse segmentation into your SMS marketing campaigns.

3. Run Referral Programs through SMS

Nothing beats the power of word-of-mouth, and the best way to harness it is indeed through SMS. First off, you can shoot two birds with one stone using SMS referral programs. Besides offering your customers, you can present them with rewards to share coupon codes/vouchers with others. In this way, you can reach a larger mass of people and generate leads.

Secondly, given the high open rate for SMS, running text message referral programs is more impactful than other channels. An SMS gets responded to within 90 seconds, and as long as you frame your message the right way, you can quickly generate more leads by tapping into referral programs. 

Ideally, the best time to propose a referral is right when you have established a good impression on customers. Satisfied customers can turn out to be brand advocates and help get more texting leads.

4. Create SMS Drip Campaigns

SMS drip campaigns can set you up for better results from SMS lead generation. Simply sending out an SMS will not cut it if you want to get real results. Here’s some bitter truth- not all prospects will opt-in at the first SMS, and you will need to set up follow-up texts. 1/3 to 1/2 of the sales go to the first person who follows up. This is where drip campaigns will come in handy. 

SMS drip campaigns are a series of pre-written text messages you can send out as a part of bulk SMS campaigns. The best part is that you don’t have to send each message manually. With SMS automation, you can send out multiple texts or drips to your customers during a given time.

For instance, you can send follow-up texts to customers who have not responded to your opt-in SMS leads. 

5. A/B Test your SMS Campaigns

One of the top SMS lead generation strategies for SMS marketing is A/B testing. It helps you determine which variation of your SMS campaigns is working and which isn’t. The main goal of A/B testing is to experiment and generate SMS campaigns and identify the most effective version.

Typically, to A/B test SMS campaigns, you will have to split your customers into 2 groups. Then, you can experiment by sending them different versions of the text message campaigns. You can test different variants, such as the copy, the time you broadcast the bulk SMS leads or the offers you make.

With SMS analytics, you can watch your bulk SMS leads campaigns and find out which version generates more texting leads. Along with SMS analytics, get insight into how to add link text in android for generating SMS leads that will ultimately boost your bulk SMS campaigns.

A/b Test your SMS campaigns

6. Use Mobile-optimized Links

In SMS marketing, a big limitation is the character limit of the text message. It is not possible to squeeze all the content within 160 characters. Adding website or landing page links to the text will help acquaint prospects with your business and contribute to lead generation. However, it is crucial for SMS to add a URL in the text message for better lead generation.

Use mobile-optimized links to make the experience smooth for recipients and generate more leads. Can you hyperlink in an SMS? the answer is yes!
But avoid using more than one hyperlink in your text message. To make your text easy to read, place the link at the end of the text. Use a link-shortening tool to don’t have to compromise on your SMS copy. And finally, track the click-through rate on the links. Now that you know how to add a link in a text, set your target to achieve your goal.

7. Leverage MMS

Power up your SMS marketing efforts by including MMS as a part of your strategy. MMS refers to a multimedia messaging service using which you can send video clips, pictures, graphics, and audio clips.

The content of your text message plays an essential role in SMS lead generation. With MMS, you can build up compelling messages for bulk SMS campaigns.

8. Use Shortcode Numbers for SMS Marketing

Opt for shortcode numbers over long code numbers for message blasts. An SMS shortcode or a standard shortcode refers to a 5 or 6-digit number used in SMS marketing. Shortcode numbers are the best bet for business-to-consumer text messaging and consumer-to-business text messaging services for business. Unlike long code numbers used for one-on-one texting, shortcode numbers are meant for business communications.

Since shortcodes are easy to memorize, they tend to boost brand recognition. Text messages with shortcode numbers also get higher open and opt-in rates. Lastly, short code messages have better throughput than long-code messages- it helps speed up the SMS lead generation process.

9. Add an SMS link to your website

Good communication is essential to every relationship. The interaction continues when customers receive an SMS web form link. Twilio adds an SMS link to foster a sense of brand loyalty. Giving clients the option to SMS your company offers them a feeling of empowerment. SMS marketing is one of the most practical ways to communicate with your consumers and one of the platforms that customers themselves choose.

It’s just as easy to add an SMS link to your website as any other type of link. To add an SMS link to your website, follow these instructions.

  • Put the text for the button or link.
  • Create the default message.
  • Select the SMS link type.
  • Include the HTML code.
  • Check the SMS link.

Now that you know how to add sms link by Wix, it will be easier to reach a high level of productivity.

How to Start a Bulk SMS Campaign?

Kick-off your SMS marketing efforts with bulk SMS campaigns. Unlike manually texting each contact, you can send message blasts to a large number of customers at once. With JustCall which is one of the text messaging systems, you can launch bulk SMS campaigns in a streamlined manner.

Here’s a quick snapshot of how a bulk SMS campaign works:

Steps to Start a Bulk SMS Campaign

1. Head over to JustCall Dashboard

  • Head over to the Bulk SMS/MMS section from the JustCall dashboard
  • To start creating your campaign, click on the “Create Campaign” button

2. Upload the contact list

You can either

  • Upload a CSV file or opt to use an existing contact list,
  • Manually type-out the details of each contact, or
  • Send out bulk text messages straight from the CRM

Upload the contact list

3. Create SMS Copy

The next step is to type your SMS copy. Set merge field values such as name, email, and other custom fields for each recipient to personalize your message.

4. Launch Bulk Campaign Now or Schedule for Later

Once you have typed in your SMS copy and added the merge tags, choose the date and number you want to send it from. You can either start running your bulk SMS campaign immediately schedule it to be sent out for a future time slot.

Launch Bulk Campaign Now or Schedule for Later

5. Manage Replies from the JustCall Inbox

Finally, manage all the incoming and outgoing text messages from the JustCall inbox.

Bulk SMS campaigns enable you to leverage the high open rates and response rates of SMS. Starting a bulk SMS campaign is super quick and easy with JustCall. Learn how to add a hyperlink to a text, upload contacts, create SMS copy, and launch SMS campaigns right away- it takes a couple of minutes to start a bulk SMS campaign with JustCall.

Manage Replies from the JustCall Inbox

Which Industries Can Benefit from Sms Marketing?

SMS marketing is perfect for those who want to reach a large group of people simultaneously. But different industries hold different approaches –  

1. Retailers and eCommerce Stores – 

Retailers who want to engage with customers and drive more sales rely on text leads. And they mostly do this through customer loyalty programs and by offering exclusive discounts via SMS. 

2. Dental Offices – 

Dental offices use SMS marketing to send appointment reminders, special offers or medicines, and easy-to-ask first-aid questions. 

3. Debt Collection – 

SMS marketing used in debt collection comes with many benefits, like saving time by avoiding long calls. As text messaging for businesses are cost-effective, they create a higher sense of urgency and, thus, a higher response rate, making things less stressful. 

4. Veterinary Practices – 

Being a Veterinary practitioner, you can use SMS marketing to provide excellent customer service and veterinary services for pets. You can send automated one-on-one reminders to pet owners, provide emergency text, and medical information, and send follow-ups and review requests. 

SMS Marketing Best Practices

It becomes easier when you know what things to avoid in SMS marketing. When you know what not to do when doing SMS marketing, 

Here’s what you need to know:  

1. Express Consent in Writing – 

Express consent in writing from your customers. as It works as permits to send them text messages. Leverage SMS opt-in campaigns to enhance brand awareness and boost sales.

You cannot start sending them bulk SMS because you got your target audience numbers. If you are using SMS marketing, you need to follow the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) rules. 

2. Reflect Creativity in your Text Messages – 

Be creative in your SMS marketing while providing a variety of offers to your customers. You can be creative in different ways by providing valuable content or discount offers. 

3. Avoid Sending SMS too Often – 

Use your text wisely when using SMS marketing, and use one text per week.

When someone signs up for your SMS text messages, they should know how many times per month they will receive SMS from your end. 

4. Never Forget to Provide Value – 

Provide valuable information to your customers so they can give their phone numbers. Talk about discounts, seasonal offers, and festive promotions such that customers are excited to engage with your brand. Studies suggest that 75% of consumers want to receive SMS with special offers.

5. Never Spam through Text Messages – 

Send personalized text messages to your customers, reflecting a real human on the other side. This will trigger your customers to click on the text message or likely reply when it is more of emotional and less robotic. 

Conclusion

We live in a society that is quickly becoming more digitally focused; thus, implementing an SMS marketing campaign is an essential business development approach.

Marketing’s primary focus is the return on investment (ROI). A campaign won’t be precious to a firm, especially a small business if it is tough to track and assess. Fortunately, SMS marketing is simple to track, giving marketers and other departments vital information they can use efficiently.

FAQs

How do I generate leads through bulk SMS? 

You can generate leads by using bulk SMS for your business, and you need to focus on 4 pointers –

  1. Strong marketing strategy
  2. Select your target audience
  3. Categorize your target audience
  4. Timing of your campaigns
  5. Personalize your texting leads.
What is SMS lead generation? 

SMS lead generation allows businesses to capture a person’s name and mobile phone numbers using SMS leads.

Is SMS marketing effective? 

SMS marketing is effective because the open rates of an SMS are as high as 98%, which is higher than any other marketing channel. Most customers prefer to receive text compared to any other form of communication.

What is a lead generation experience? 

Lead generation is identifying and nurturing potential leads for your business. It further involves acquiring the lead’s name and contact information if they are interested in your product or services.

Is SMS marketing outdated? 

Many marketers believe that SMS marketing is outdated, but the truth is that SMS marketing is one of the most effective forms of communication.

How is a text message for business good as a communication channel?

A text message for business can serve as a communication channel by providing a quick, efficient, and convenient way for businesses to communicate with customers, employees, and partners.

What are some text services for business?

Text message services for business are specialized services that enable businesses to send and receive text messages, often providing additional features such as group messaging, automated responses, and analytics.

How can text messaging be used for business?

The benefits of texting for businesses include increased customer engagement, improved communication with employees, and the ability to reach a wider audience more quickly and efficiently.

What are the benefits of texting for businesses?

Text messaging can help businesses by providing a fast and convenient way to communicate with customers, employees, and partners, as well as offering additional features such as group messaging, automated responses, and analytics.

As SVP Sales & Revenue, Deren spearheads the global Sales team at JustCall. A passionate and results-oriented sales leader with over 10 years of experience, he has a proven track record of driving growth through innovative technology solutions for SMB, MM, and Enterprise clients. He builds high-performing sales teams, fosters strong client relationships, and navigates complex sales environments.

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