About 65% of the world’s population use text messaging, so it’s no wonder SMS marketing is growing at a staggering rate. To get the best out of this, your email and SMS programs must work in perfect harmony to drive engagement and revenue. Here’s how to do that.
Why do both?
Have you ever seen a champion heavyweight win a fight with one hand? Of course not. Knocking your opponent out requires a perfect harmony of bee-stinging, butterfly-floating ambidexterity. Likewise, your marketing efforts will have a greater chance of success with a one-two combination of SMS and email.
That doesn’t mean either one can’t pack a punch by itself. Email marketing weighs in at around 3,600% ROI, while SMS comes out swinging with a whopping 7,100% ROI. Put them together, and not even Tyson himself would last more than two rounds.
Having subscribers’ email and SMS details gives you more opportunities to collect data based on engagement and purchase history. This helps further segment your audience and understand how each customer uses both platforms.
Dig deeper: What is mobile marketing: A guide for marketers
Do the groundwork first
You’re probably already using email pop-ups on your brand’s website to collect the addresses of new visitors. But if you don’t ask for phone numbers while you’re at it, you’re missing out on plenty of potential revenue.
As with email marketing, the more legitimate SMS subscribers you have, the better. Adding a phone number field to your overlay is an efficient way of organically growing your SMS list. I recommend marking the phone number field as optional and including it on the front page of your pop-up.
What happens if recipients don’t submit their phone numbers? It doesn’t mean they aren’t going to in the future. Usually, new subscribers use email to gauge your brand’s sending frequency and the value your content offers them. Subscribers will be more willing to sign up if you share engaging info and discounts at a reasonable cadence.
To nudge email-only subscribers, consider a friendly SMS opt-in email that rewards them with an exclusive discount. You could also offer a gift or a value-added service (depending on your specific business).
One essential caveat: You must be sure to follow all applicable privacy laws — more on this below.
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Technical considerations
When asking customers to sign up, have a disclaimer stating the kind of messaging they will receive and if there is a charge for SMS responses. This protects you from legal issues and ensures customer data is not misused.
Your disclaimer needs to specify that, by signing up, subscribers agree to receive marketing messages from your brand. You should include a clear “reply stop to opt-out” in the first few texts you send. Depending on local laws, you may need to add it to every text. It’s always worth reminding yourself that being invited to a customer’s phone or inbox is a privilege. It’s their sanctum sanctorum, and the moment you disrespect that, you’re out.
Look at your SMS character restrictions. Generally, you’ll have around 160 characters to work with — even fewer if your SSP (SMS Service Provider) requires it. That includes your brand name at the start and the link at the end of your message. If you exceed 160 characters, your SSP will charge this as two texts, which can add up quickly when you send frequent SMS campaigns.
For an MMS, you have around 360 characters available, which is more than enough, considering that this also includes images. Having just 160 characters at your disposal requires creative thinking, especially if your campaign has a lot of info to convey. While this could be a significant setback if you were working with SMS alone, you also have your email campaigns to help carry the load.
Orchestrating your platforms
The nature of SMS lends itself to slightly more urgent and more direct messaging. Email, on the other hand, allows for more information, which can be digested at a relaxed pace. Going back to the boxing analogy, it’s the marketing version of jabbing versus landing a knock-out blow — both work together and complement each other perfectly.
SMS is more suitable for short, impactful messages with a stronger sales focus, so it’s an ideal platform for announcing a new product or special offer and notifying customers when a sale is about to end. On the other hand, email campaigns can provide more thorough details about your products and services. For example, if you were running a sale, you would use SMS to focus on the discount amount and email to focus on the products, disclaimer, bells, and whistles.
Perhaps something like this:
- Pre-launch SMS.
- Launch email.
- Reminder email.
- Urgent reminder SMS.
- Last chance SMS/email.
You can shuffle this around to better suit your brand and target audience, just as long as you maintain a knock-out one-two combo.
You could also consider adding SMS touches to your email automation. These can include abandoned cart reminders or warnings that a welcome discount will expire soon.
Dig deeper: SMS deliverability: What you need to know
SMS marketing: Best practices
When it comes to SMS marketing, there are a few simple things to consider to help ensure maximum impact.
Set the right cadence
While some would say that eight texts per month is a good rule of thumb, it’s best to start low and gradually increase your cadence. By closely monitoring your metrics, you’ll be able to gauge what works best for your subscribers.
Deliver exclusive offers
Reward subscribers by offering SMS-only discounts or giving them early access to sitewide sales. Exclusivity is a powerful motivator for customers to stay subscribed, so add these to your marketing calendar regularly.
Master perfect timing
Yes, SMS subscribers usually have a preferred time to read their text messages. With some basic A/B testing, you’ll be able to confirm the best time to send marketing texts for the best engagement. The same goes for sending days. Texts sent on weekends could be more likely to garner high click rates, but it all depends on your audience.
Speak clearly
Leave the flowery language and intricate descriptions for your email campaigns. SMS should always use simple, direct wording.
Final thoughts
In a time when customers scroll through many platforms, you need to use all tools to boost engagement. Two is always better than one — and knowing how to perfect your communication across email and SMS can turn your brand into a prizefighter.
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