Simple tips that will help achieve clear results for your SMS marketing strategy
SMS marketing (Short Message Service) uses text messaging to spread a marketing message. When done correctly, it’s the ultimate form of direct marketing, because texts are relevant in the moment. Some marketers don’t put much thought into their SMS strategy. This is a mistake. As a health and nutrition marketer, it’s critical that you target your customer shrewdly in order to see concrete and measurable results.
Below are 4 tips to hone your SMS strategy:
1. Choose your target wisely
Unlike other forms of advertising, SMS marketing is extremely personal. You are contacting your customer where they live—on their phone. Be sure they want to hear from you. Some customers may see your texts as invasive, especially if they are charged for incoming texts. Always ask if it is OK to send special offers and information about new health and wellness products via text message. And don’t abuse the privilege. Over-texting is spam, and it shows a lack of overall strategy.
2. Make an offer they can’t refuse
Even if they don’t garner a response, nearly all SMS messages will be viewed. You have the advantage, but not for long. Send customers something of value or don’t bother. They won’t be customers for long if you waste their time.
Be creative with your health and nutrition offers. If you offer discounts or coupons, make them good for one day or one week to motivate immediate action. If you are announcing a new product, be sure that it is highly relevant to your customer and make him or her feel like it’s inside information.
3. Use keywords to segment your market
You ask customers to text a keyword to a certain number to measure the response rate. Health and wellness brands often have many different lines of products or different target audiences for the same product. By using multiple keywords for different segments of your customer base, you can discover which offers are most compelling to each audience. Never re-use keywords in multiple text-2-offer campaigns, as this will become confusing. The keywords you choose should be easy to remember and spell, and it should reflect your brand image.
4. Get your customer to pass it on
The best part about SMS messaging is the immediacy. If your customer is excited by an offer, he or she may pass it on to hundreds of friends in minutes. This is reason enough to strive for a viral campaign. Set up a kiosk somewhere in the middle of town and invite people to come down to try it. Offer the first 100 who show free samples, or offer everyone who shows free samples. The better your offer, the more likely it is to go viral.
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photo credit: <a href=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/alwaysbecool/2542177818/”>@ifatma.</a> via <a href=”http://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/”>cc</a>
Jessica is a competitive athlete and the President of Energize HNM, a health and nutrition marketing agency. Jessica is committed to supporting health brands of every size by helping them define their missions and connect with their customers on a deeper, more meaningful level.