SMS Marketing for Ecommerce Guide: Strategies, Best Practices, Examples of SMS for Ecommerce [2024]
SMS marketing has become a crucial strategy for ecommerce enterprises. It provide a direct and efficient means of engaging with customers. As the global mobile phone user base is exceeding to 6.71 billion individuals, SMS marketing offers a substantial opportunity to promote your business. In the year 2022, the number rise to 68% surge in promotional SMS transmissions compared to the preceding year, resulting in a significant 57% uptick in orders compared to 2021. This underscores the efficacy of SMS marketing, particularly during the holiday season.
According to a study conducted by Zipwhip, 58% of consumers identified SMS messages as the most efficacious method for businesses to promptly connect with them. When implemented judiciously, SMS marketing has the capacity to boost sales, sustain customer engagement, and enhance overall customer service, consequently fostering augmented revenue.
What Is SMS Marketing for Ecommerce?
Text messaging is one of the most demanding and effective tools at present. Brands and top organisations also use it to engage with their target audience through SMS marketing. It entails immediately delivering offers, updates, and promotional messages to prospective or current clients' mobile phones.
These concise messages, typically limited to 160 characters, serve as a direct communication channel to engage customers and convey information. In addition, these are focused messages meant to draw in readers and encourage to take action. The action can be anything a brands want, which includes buying something, visiting a website, or taking part in a promotion. The use of SMS marketing is expected to grow rapidly as mobile becomes more commonplace. According to estimates, 77% of people on the planet will have a smartphone by 2025.
In recent times, the use of smartphones has significantly increased. This makes SMS marketing as the preferred option for companies looking to engage customers via personal technology.
Businesses also use SMS marketing because of its unmatched capacity to send timely and relevant communications. With ordering notifications sent straight to clients' smartphones, unique offers, and product updates, it gives a personalised touch.
As evidenced by the 48.7 million customers who have chosen to receive texts from brands, consumers are obviously willing to communicate with brands via SMS. Furthermore, the astounding response rates of 295 percent greater than those of phone calls demonstrate the unmatched engagement potential of SMS marketing.
10 Types of SMS For Ecommerce SMS Marketing
It is true that the popularity of SMS marketing is constantly soaring, At the same time the Ecommerce businesses need to know the various types of SMS they can send to their customers. We have listed the top 10 types of SMS that Ecommerce businesses must include in their SMS marketing campaigns.
1. Opt-in SMS
Opt-in SMS marks the initiation of communication. When subscribers opt into an SMS program, they confirm their interest by replying to a text message. This crucial step sets the stage for further interactions.
Opt-in SMS lays the foundation for a direct and permission-based connection between the brand and the customer. Ensuring subscribers actively express interest fosters a more receptive audience for future campaigns, establishing a solid framework for successful Ecommerce SMS marketing endeavours.
For example, The image below is an example of an opt-in SMS message from Forever 21. In this message, the recipient is invited to confirm their opt-in by replying 'Y.' By doing so, they agree to receive future messages and, in return, receive a 20% discount on their next purchase.
The message also includes important details such as the maximum number of messages per month (10), a disclaimer about potential message and data rates, and instructions for help or opting out by replying 'HELP' or 'STOP,' respectively.
2. Promotional SMS
These texts are purposefully written to lure subscribers in with alluring deals, discounts, and promo codes, encouraging them to browse and buy. Customers will always be among the first to know about interesting debuts thanks to promotional SMS, which serve as virtual stores. They serve as catalysts for driving sales and fostering customer loyalty.
Benefit Cosmetics, for instance, is now giving all full-size mascaras 50% OFF for a short period of time. A 50% discount is available on all full-size mascaras. The message emphasizes the benefit to the customer's lashes and includes a promotional code "LASHFLASH" for use during checkout.
3. Conversational SMS
Conversational SMS stands out as a dynamic, two-way interaction simulating human conversations. This innovative approach involves automated responses using conversational AI, fostering a personalized connection between the brand and the customer. This method revolutionizes engagement, enhancing customer satisfaction through responsive and interactive communication.
4. Transactional SMS
Specific actions like order confirmations or shipping notifications trigger these automated messages. Transactional SMS campaigns play a pivotal role in keeping customers informed at crucial touchpoints of their journey. Their automated nature ensures timely and accurate communication, contributing to a seamless conversational customer experience.
5. Product Launch SMS
SMS becomes the ideal platform for unveiling a long-awaited product due to its prompt visibility. Customers, often checking texts before emails, have a higher chance of securing the product before it sells out. This enhances the chances of securing purchases swiftly, particularly for products with high anticipation.
6. Welcome SMS
Welcome SMS refers to the initial message sent after their first purchase or account creation. It acts as a virtual handshake, setting the tone for future interactions. It goes beyond transactional confirmations, aiming to foster a positive customer experience and brand loyalty. This personalized touch allows businesses to express gratitude, provide essential information, and potentially upsell or cross-sell additional products or services.
For example, The image below shows what appears to be a sample welcome SMS from MobileMonkey. In this example, the message is personalized with the recipient's name, Virginia. The content introduces a proposition related to scheduled daily tips and encourages engagement by offering a week of fortune cookies leading up to National Fortune Cookie Day on July 20.
7. Birthday SMS
Celebrating customers' birthdays through SMS adds a personal touch to the marketing strategy. By acknowledging this special occasion, businesses demonstrate their appreciation and create a memorable and positive association with the brand.
However brands can encouraged Customers to interact further with the brand on their special days. Brands can initiate the interaction by sending them a personalised birthday SMS that offers exclusive discounts or gifts. Such a campaign not only builds brand loyalty but also presents the company as considerate and customer-focused, which is good for business.
For example: The image displays a birthday SMS example from Shopify, personalized for "Ben." The message, sent by YourShopify, wishes Ben a happy birthday and offers a 15% discount on any purchase, encouraging him to claim the discount by visiting a provided link (https:/...).
8. Recover Abandoned Shopping Carts
This strategy involves sending follow-up messages to potential buyers who left items in their carts. These messages can be personalized, offering incentives or highlighting the products' unique features. This reminds customers of their pending purchases and encourages them to finalize the transaction, thereby reducing cart abandonment rates.
For example, The text promotes an extended Black Friday sale with a link for checkout. In the accompanying image, Shopify illustrates a Recover Abandoned Shopping Carts SMS example: "Hurry! Complete your order at [link] to enjoy up to 70% off." This targeted message aims to re-engage customers who left items in their carts.
9. Rewards Program SMS
Businesses with loyalty programs leverage SMS to encourage sign-ups, update members on their status, and unveil exclusive promotions or events. Leveraging SMS, it entices potential members to sign up, keeps existing members informed about their status, and divulges exclusive members-only promotions and events. The personalized touch of SMS enhances member engagement, fostering a sense of exclusivity and loyalty within the customer base.
For instance, the offering in the image below offers loyalty programme members an additional 20% off during Black Friday. By providing members of the loyalty programme with exclusive privileges, the incentive promotes customer loyalty and engagement. Customers are redirected to the designated website address in order to redeem the discount.
10. Customer Service SMS
Customer Service SMS facilitates seamless communication, allowing customers to make inquiries, track orders, or resolve issues efficiently. This personalized approach enhances customer satisfaction, building trust and loyalty. Brands can use text message automation to connect customers directly with support agents, ensuring a smooth and responsive customer service experience.
For example: This text is an example of an SMS from customer service of Shell Communications.It notifies the customer that a complaint has been received, gives a case number (123456789), and promises to contact them shortly. The message aims to convey responsiveness and keep the customer informed about the ongoing process.
Importance of SMS Marketing for Ecommerce Brands
SMS marketing for Ecommerce serves as a potent tool aiming to establish a strong, direct connection with their audience. Its ability to deliver instant communication, achieve high open rates, facilitate personalized interactions, engage an opt-in audience, address cart abandonment, and provide real-time updates makes it an invaluable asset in the digital marketing toolkit.
Below are three key reasons stating the importance of SMS marketing for Ecommerce brands.
Generating Engagement and Prompting Action
The best part about SMS marketing for Ecommerce is that it gets delivered instantly thus connecting the brand with the customers as a direct line of communication. Furthermore, it has an open rate of 90% and is mobile friendly which makes it more engaging.
This two way communication is interactive and delivers the message from the brand in a short and concise manner without taking much time from the customers. When implemented properly with the right CTAs, businesses can leverage SMS marketing for boosting engagement from their customers. Furthermore, it can also be used to captivate the audience and drive prompt and swift actions from them.
Driving Sales and Achieving Remarkable Return on Investment (ROI)
SMS marketing has proven to have an average ROI of 18 times their investment. Why? It's because it is delivered almost instantly, high open and conversion rates and is mobile friendly. Moreover, it's budget friendly and cost-effective in comparison to other marketing channels.
SMS marketing allows targeted messages and promotions to be delivered to the customers more effectively. Being short and concise with a clear CTA, it can easily grab the customer’s mind thus influencing them to make a purchase. Thus, SMS marketing for Ecommerce undoubtedly has high ROI and is a powerhouse for driving sales.
Seamless Integration Across Other Marketing Channels
The marketing strategy of any business must be omnichannel, diverse and must cater to different sets of audience. It's because customers are everywhere. With that being said, SMS marketing easily blends with other marketing channels thus forming a cohesive approach to improve the overall customer experience.
Many Ecommerce businesses have successfully integrated SMS with email marketing and other such marketing channels. For example: let's say you're launching a new product. You can send a short concise about the new launch with the most necessary details via SMS whereas send the detailed information regarding the new launch via Email. This cross channel communication synchronising the information across multiple channels not just repurposes your marketing efforts but also ensures consistency in marketing.
10 Benefits of SMS Marketing for Ecommerce
SMS boasts a remarkable engagement rate, with 98% of text messages being opened and a substantial 90% opening within a brief 3-minute timeframe. The advantages of integrating SMS marketing for ecommerce brands are manifold, and they include:
1. Increase the Generation of Potential Buyers
Implementation of SMS marketing for Ecommerce has demonstrated a noteworthy enhancement in potential traffic, wherein potential buyers exhibit a 2-3 times higher likelihood of engagement. This increased visibility contributes significantly to the expansion of the customer base.
2. Elevated Customer Satisfaction Levels
Nearly 78% of customers prefer sending, checking and responding to SMS or text messages as their primary leisure activity which they even find engaging. SMS marketing for Ecommerce delivers the target message to the customer in a timely manner. Moreover, it's personalised which makes it more engaging for the audience. This timely and personalised nature enhances the overall shopping experience of users thus fostering customer loyalty and satisfaction.
3. Exceptional Return on Investment (ROI)
Among several other marketing options, SMS marketing for Ecommerce is particularly cost-effective and yields a higher return on investment. An improved return on investment is a result of SMS campaigns' capacity to reach a large audience and their prompt message delivery. Because of this, SMS marketing is a wise decision for e-commerce companies looking to get the most out of their marketing spend and produce positive, measurable results.
4. Amplified Feedback and Reviews
SMS marketing facilitates a more direct and immediate customer communication channel, fostering increased feedback and reviews. This real-time interaction not only strengthens the customer-business relationship but also provides valuable insights for enhancing product and service offerings.
5. Optimal Resource Utilization
By leveraging SMS as a communication tool, ecommerce businesses can streamline customer support processes, resulting in reduced time and monetary investments. The efficiency gained in addressing customer inquiries and concerns contributes to overall cost-effectiveness.
6. Effortless Impact Tracking
Because SMS marketing campaigns are so easy to set up and start with just a few clicks, they provide firms with an economical and time-efficient alternative. This simplified procedure makes it simple to monitor the campaign's effects and provide insightful information about how successful it was. Businesses are able to optimize their strategies and make data-driven decisions by tracking and evaluating the effectiveness of SMS marketing campaigns.
7. Enhanced Conversion Rates
SMS marketing proves to be instrumental in driving conversions by facilitating prompt communication. This platform provides real-time assistance and delivers personalized responses, expediting the sales process efficiently.
8. Fosters Customer Loyalty
Utilizing SMS for communication allows businesses to cultivate customer loyalty by extending exclusive benefits to VIP clientele. 50% of the consumers surveyed express willingness to participate in an SMS loyalty program, provided they receive enticing offers such as flash sales, exclusive deals, or coupons in return. This strategy instils a sense of exclusivity and belonging, compelling customers to repeatedly choose the brand.
9. Cost-Efficiency
SMS marketing emerges as a cost-effective solution, particularly advantageous for brands operating within budget constraints. The overall cost of SMS messages is contingent upon the chosen text message marketing platform, offering flexibility to businesses with varying financial capacities.
10. Tailored Personalization
Customising messages according to each customer's preferences, past purchases, and behavioural trends is made possible by utilising SMS. This personalized approach significantly heightens customer engagement, fostering a stronger connection between the brand and its audience.
Step by Step Guide to Getting Started with E-Commerce SMS Marketing in 2024
Any brand can launch an SMS marketing campaign for their online store in just a few simple steps. The multichannel marketing strategy will be at its best, with SMS marketing supporting each marketing channel. Let's examine some strategies for Starting from Scratch with Ecommerce SMS Marketing:
1. Know the Rules
Before initiating an SMS marketing campaign, one must aware abut the pertinent rules and regulations governing SMS marketing. There are some regulatory bodies that look into the rules associated with SMS marketing. Special bodies like Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States comes under this task. Additionally, there are other appropriate regulatory body in the target nation monitor adherence to SMS compliance.
Text messaging and telemarketing comes under federal law, entitled as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Businesses must have customers' express consent before sending them marketing text messages.
The business have to compliance with the regulation set by these governing bodies. Violating SMS marketing laws and regulations can lead to adverse consequences, including audience annoyance, detriment to brand reputation, blacklisting by telecom providers, and incurring fines.
2. Build an SMS Marketing Strategy
Initiate the process by delineating your target audience. Comprehend their preferences, behaviors, and resonating factors. Establish specific objectives for your SMS campaigns—whether it be driving sales, enhancing engagement, or promoting new products.
Customize your approach based on your unique use case, factoring in elements such as frequency, timing, and the value delivered to customers through SMS. This foundational step will serve as a guiding principle throughout your entire SMS marketing journey.
3. Define the Campaign
Precisely define the objectives of your SMS marketing initiative, whether it entails product promotion, sales generation, or exclusive offer dissemination. Identify the specific customer segment targeted by the campaign. Clearly articulate the call-to-action for recipients, ensuring that your messages deliver meaningful value to the audience.
4. Choose an SMS Marketing Platform
In choosing the appropriate SMS platform for ecommerce, carefully evaluate the features, pricing structure, and integration capabilities of the available options. Seek a platform that facilitates phone number capture, supports various SMS campaign types, and enables performance monitoring. Additionally, verify that the chosen platform adheres to regulations governing SMS marketing consent.
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5. Build Your SMS Subscriber List
Implement opt-in strategies across your website and various touchpoints to encourage users to subscribe to your SMS updates. Provide incentives, such as exclusive discounts or early access, to attract more subscribers. Ensure compliance with relevant regulations by obtaining explicit consent.
Customers opting for SMS notifications are increasingly likely to make a purchase, with a substantial 63% of individuals subscribing to at least one brand's SMS marketing program having completed a purchase.
6. Craft Compelling Messages
Craft concise and engaging SMS content, focusing on delivering value to your subscribers through promotions, product launches, or useful information. Incorporate a clear call-to-action and personalize messages whenever possible.
Try out many strategies to find the one that connects with your audience the most. Maintain clarity and brevity in your messages, avoiding jargon and utilizing short sentences. Creativity can enhance clickability and audience retention.
7. Segment Your SMS List to Reach the Right People at the Right Time
Divide your SMS subscribers based on demographics, behaviour, or preferences. Leverage past purchase data or interaction history to tailor messages accordingly. Time zone considerations are paramount; schedule messages for optimal engagement. For example, segment your list to send distinct messages to new subscribers, loyal customers, or those who have abandoned their shopping carts.
8. Measure the Success of Your SMS Marketing Campaigns
Analysing and tracking how your SMS marketing campaigns are performing is essential. It's because it not just provides you the report, loopholes and best points of your current campaigns but also provides you with valuable insights which will help you improve your further campaign efforts.
Monitor the performance of your campaigns regularly using analytics tools. The key metrics you should take care of are click-through rates, conversion rates, and return on investment (ROI).
9. Test and Optimize to Provide Value
Testing your SMS marketing campaigns via regular A/B testing helps you understand the overall performance of your campaigns and how it affects customers. These testings also help you understand how various elements in your campaigns such as content, timing affect your customers and their retention. By analysing these tests, you can understand your customers needs and preferences better thus improving customer value via your campaigns.
10. Implement Automation in SMS Marketing
The benefits of SMS marketing for Ecommerce have already been discussed above. To level up your SMS marketing strategy, you can automate your SMS marketing campaigns. This automation relieves the manual work required while ensuring that your customers get timely and personalised SMS texts as usual.
The best part about automation is that you can set up automated workflows, reminders, follow-ups and much more. Automation is undoubtedly going to boost click through rates which saving you time and resources.
7 Best Practices for Ecommerce SMS Marketing
In 2022, text message marketing was embraced by 55% of businesses, reflecting a substantial 27% year-over-year surge in SMS adoption. This underscores a deliberate commitment to adhering to best practices for a robust Ecommerce SMS Marketing strategy. Let's explore some promising practices every ecommerce SMS marketing campaign should incorporate.
1. Maintain Brand Consistency and Avoid Message Overload
Consistency in your brand's voice and tone is crucial for effective SMS marketing. Strive to uphold a unified brand image across all campaigns. Additionally, exercise caution in the frequency of your messages to prevent customer annoyance and reduce the likelihood of unsubscribes.
2. Provide Value to Customers
Ensure that your SMS marketing initiatives contribute meaningful value to your customers. Whether through informative content, exclusive offers, or pertinent updates, aim to enhance their overall experience and engagement.
3. Obtain Explicit Customer Consent and Respect Opt-Out Preferences
Prioritize obtaining explicit written consent from customers before initiating any SMS communication. Clearly communicate opt-out instructions and adhere to designated time restrictions for sending messages. Respecting customers' preferences is integral to building trust and maintaining compliance.
4. Incorporate Necessary Disclaimers and Regulatory Compliance
When formulating SMS marketing campaigns, include requisite disclaimers and information to safeguard your business interests and adhere to regulatory standards. Compliance with relevant regulations is essential for fostering a trustworthy and lawful marketing environment.
5. Precision in Communication
Develop concise and compelling messages that resonate effectively with your customer base. Uphold your brand's voice and tone uniformity throughout all SMS marketing initiatives.
6. Tailored SMS Campaigns
Implement segmentation methodologies to target specific customer segments based on their preferences, location, or past transactions. GOOD COUNSEL elevates the experience by offering customers the opportunity to engage with a personal stylist through an SMS subscription. Infuse pertinent personalization data to enhance the allure and engagement of your messages.
7. Performance Evaluation
Monitor essential SMS metrics, including delivery rate, open rate, unsubscribe rate, click-through rate, conversion rate, and list growth rate, to refine and enhance your SMS marketing endeavours. Thoroughly analyze the outcomes, identifying areas for refinement to ensure the triumph of your ecommerce SMS marketing campaigns.
Conclusion
Leveraging SMS marketing for Ecommerce is indispensable for driving engagement and boosting sales. Careful planning is necessary to create an effective SMS campaign. To engage their audience, retailers need to strike a careful balance between informational and non-intrusive messages. Improving customer experience and building brand loyalty need the use of customized offers, special promotions, and order updates.
Additionally, optimizing timing and frequency aligns with customer preferences, striking a balance between informative and non-intrusive messaging. As the Ecommerce industry evolves, staying abreast of SMS marketing trends becomes imperative. This guide equips businesses with the insights needed to navigate the evolving landscape, foster stronger customer relationships, and maximize the impact of SMS marketing campaigns.
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