E-Commerce businesses are executing SMS marketing strategies that help increase customer retention. SMS marketing, or text message marketing, is direct communication between the business and the prospective buyer. This form of communication is highly effective because on average text message marketing has a 98% open rate when compared to traditional email marketing, and approximately 60% of customers typically read texts within 1-5 minutes after delivery.
In this post, we will break down what SMS marketing can do for your e-commerce business, how you can benefit from incorporating this strategy, and what types of messages to consider sending.
What is SMS Marketing for Ecommerce?
SMS marketing has been a strong tool for marketers to deploy because it allows them to share new products, sales, and limited-time discounts instantaneously through a direct text message. It creates a personalized experience for prospects to quickly engage if your message piques their interest.
While this marketing technique can be used to send bulk text messages. You can make a personalized touch through simple automation that can add the recipient’s name or additional personal information as necessary.
E-commerce businesses benefit from the ability to create automated drip messaging. This makes it possible to send pre-written messages over a predetermined set of time. This allows your business to nurture leads and educate prospects on your services.
Is SMS Marketing Effective?
SMS marketing has come a long way in the past few years. The software has evolved making it easier for businesses to track key performance indicators of their SMS marketing campaigns. Recent research suggests that 41% of people would prefer their favorite brands to update them on services and promotions via text, while only 22% would prefer the information via email.
Additionally, 9 in 10 consumers reported they experienced a benefit from enrolling in an SMS loyalty program. People are saying goodbye to loyalty punch cards and welcoming the ease of an SMS loyalty program. These stats are promising and SMS marketing shows no signs of slowing down in the future.
Benefits of SMS Marketing
SMS marketing has several benefits and we break them all down below.
Increased Personalization
Through automation, you can send targeted messages to your audience quickly and efficiently. Further, if you segment your audience by where they currently stand in your sales funnel, you can send different offers and information to help nurture them into conversion.
Increased Open Rates
SMS marketing generates significantly higher open rates than traditional promotional sales emails. According to recent studies, SMS messages have a 98% open rate, and 90% of messages are read within 90 seconds.
Increased Automation of Drip Campaigns
SMS marketing tools offer automation tools that make it possible to build drip campaigns that send messages at a predetermined time. Using artificial intelligence, the SMS platform can send personalized messages without one of your team members having to log in and send messages daily.
Improved Communication
If your ecommerce store offers consultations or requires any confirmation from a customer, SMS marketing is a great tool to increase communication. Your business will be able to confirm appointments or reschedule without the need to call.
Types of SMS Messages Ecommerce Businesses Should Send
Customized Promotions
SMS marketing is most effective when customers feel the message was personally crafted for them. This can include discounts on their favorite products, coupons, or special discounts that are targeting their favorite products or shopping behaviors.
Product Restock Announcements
Loyal customers that repeat purchases are devastated to find their favorite product is sold out. Lucky for you, with SMS product restock announcements, they can receive instant notifications and purchase before stock is sold out again. SMS messaging allows you to instantaneously update your customers and drive meaningful sales.
Order Confirmation
E-commerce businesses can allow customers the opportunity to sign up for SMS notifications at checkout. This makes it possible for them to receive an order confirmation directly to their phone, and it can also immediately provide tracking information. This is a significant benefit because customers will always be informed about the status of their order.
Request Feedback
Gathering reviews and testimonials is easy through SMS marketing. You can quickly send out a text message encouraging your customers to provide meaningful feedback that you can use to improve your services. You can also encourage customers to leave a review on your website.
SMS marketing opens up new doors for e-commerce businesses to engage prospects, nurture conversions, and maximize sales. Through thoughtful construction, these text messages can create a personalized shopping experience that allows customers instant access to the information they seek and opens up a feedback response loop. SMS marketing will continue to grow and become a staple in e-commerce marketers tool belt. It is critical for e-commerce businesses to implement this tool to stay competitive.
Laurel is a member of the executive team at Stryde. She’s been doing digital marketing for businesses for 10 years. Two years ago, she started set up her own ecommerce business selling baby gowns and knows the struggles of a small business owner. She loves talking about digital marketing, content, SEO, and conversion rate optimization.
