For effective digital marketing campaigns, SMS services and channels are key. That's not a sales pitch, but a documented trend happening in the industry right now. As we shared with you earlier this week, a recent Salesforce survey finds more and more marketers are not only seeing the value in mobile marketing services, but are increasingly making mobile a cornerstone of their digital marketing needs. But as mobile apps and SMS campaigns become more prevalent in the marketing landscape, it all raises the question: How exactly does it work? What exactly makes for a compelling and successful mobile marketing text message?
That was the focus of a recent piece by the Epoch Times, which highlighted some of the specific attributes that make for successful and user-friendly text message marketing:
- A hook: Not unlike how a movie might start off in the middle of an action scene to grab attention, text messages need to be able to hook readers with something interesting or worth their attention right off the bat — for example, discounts, sales or new product offerings — to entice your audience and compel them to take further action.
- An exclusive to keep them hooked: Once you have a reader's attention with the first text, you want to keep it with follow-up messages. A surefire way of guaranteeing this is with exclusives that offer customers a product, service or deal that they won't be able to find anywhere else. The allure of exclusives helps ensure long-standing customer subscriptions to mobile messages.
- Conciseness: Messages that stay succinct and as to-the-point as possible helps ensure that the reader's attention is kept from beginning to end. A concise message that includes a call to action for the reader, along with contact information for who to reach next, is all you need to successfully retain a reader's interest.
- Recognition: There are few things more likely to turn off a potential customer from an SMS campaign than anonymous messages — and who can blame them? An anonymous text very easily looks like spam at first glance, ensuring your first impression for a reader is a demonstrably bad one. Instead, being upfront about who you are, what your brand is and what you can offer is the best way of staying on their radar and away from the trash button.
- The call to action: "If you want someone to click, call or get in touch, say so," the source writes. "These calls to action are so important, not only in texts but also on your website and social media too. Once you've intrigued a reader, you want to give them the chance to contact you for further information."
The SMS mobile marketing bandwagon is only going to continue picking up momentum, and the sooner companies jump on, the sooner they can begin to reap the advantages and sale opportunities that SMS campaigns have to offer.
