At a time when most people would rather get a text than a phone call, SMS marketing is a smart choice.
Every kind of business can utilize text messaging. The team from TextMagic has put together an infographic showcasing the most common ways to do that.
- Retailers like Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle and Best Buy use messages to generate subscribers and communicate special offers.
- Restaurants like Cracker Barrel Country Store, Papa John’s and Qdoba utilize SMS as an ordering and coupon tool.
- National grocery store chains like Meijer are using text messaging as a way to share coupons and special offers with their customers.
- Even major news outlets like MSNBC and CNN are hopping on the text message bandwagon.
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Why? In addition to being easy and effective, SMS marketing is a way to stay on the minds of your customers.
Studies show that 63% of smartphone users keep their devices nearby almost all the time they’re awake.
What that means for your business can be summed up in one very promising word: opportunity. Best of all, text message marketing is flexible and works well for almost any business.
Example 1 – How to Use Text Message Marketing for Restaurants
Restaurants and retail stores that offer SMS coupons will see customers use them 10 times more frequently than paper coupons. Ultimately, this helps get people in the door and keep them there.
Campaigns that offer something free (think free dessert or “buy one entree, get one free” offers) are incredibly appealing and quite often used by prominent restaurant chains like McDonald’s and Applebee’s.
A case study conducted by Dunkin’ Donuts demonstrates how something as seemingly small as a text message can create a big stir. The SMS marketing campaign targeted a younger demographic, distributing messages that were not only shared, but also talked about.
What they found was that:
- SMS messaging plus radio ads got them a 21% increase in store traffic
- 17% of people forwarded the SMS message to a friend
- 35% said they were more likely to buy coffee from Dunkin’ Donuts
Example 2 – How Text Message Marketing Works for Retail
Who doesn’t love a good deal? Coupons continue to change the way shoppers scope out the best deals on the products they love.
Companies like Bath and Body Works have it down to a science. They haven’t given up the paper coupons, which subscribers can still get in the mail and in stores with a purchase. But they’ve also got a thriving text message and email coupon business that, more than anything, does an amazing job of keeping this retailer at the forefront of their subscriber’s minds.
Other retailers like JCPenney, Old Navy, Kohl’s and Target use text message services to offer exclusive promotions, sweepstakes, giveaways and other updates.
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Example 3 – How Text Message Marketing Works in the Service Industry
Speaking of updates, one of the most common hurdles encountered by business owners like realtors, doctors and hair stylists is no-shows. Whether it’s a medical emergency, extended work responsibilities or an appointment that slipped a person’s mind, this has happened to everyone at least a few times in their lives.
That’s why having SMS messages set up to remind clients of an appointment 24 hours beforehand is so helpful. That way, the message doesn’t get buried amid the millions of distractions that can happen in a day.
A case study published in Applied Clinical Trials found a positive correlation between SMS messages sent and visit attendance rates. About 175 text messages sent per day was associated with a 10% average increase in attendance.
Texting can also help physician practices, hairdressers and other service industry businesses in trying to fill last-minute cancellations.
At a time when most people would rather get a text message than a phone call, SMS marketing is a smart decision.
