Text messaging is one of the best ways to capture your customers’ attention. The two most common types of texts you can send are Short Messaging Service (SMS) and Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS). With SMS, you’re restricted to 160 characters and no images, but MMS allows you to send photos, audio, even video via text. Though they may seem different, both are very effective and have higher click-through rates than email.
Every text you send should follow a similar process:
- Set Your Goals
- Develop a Message
- Choose the Right Image
- Schedule and Analyze
When you’re just starting, you need to focus on these steps to improve each text’s success that you send.
Set Your Goals
There are a variety of goals you can set that will guide you from start to finish. Each goal should be concrete and measurable, beginning with easier ones, then moving into more complex objectives. With each message you send, you will better understand its effectiveness and how your customers respond.
Your goals should define your audience and what their responses may be. This will give you a better sense of what you want to say and how you want to say it when developing your message.
Develop a Message
With more overall content than SMS, you might feel the need to be a bit more wordy. However, a short message will allow you to lean more on the images. A good target for your message should be around 75 words.
The audience plays a significant role when developing your message. Your target could be everyone on your list or particular segments separated by categories that range from demographics to purchase history. The message should also resonate with your customers to cause them to act, such as following a link or subscribing to a list.
Choose the Right Image
Once you’ve considered your content’s direction, you can select an image or create one that connects with your audience. Because of mobile devices, there may be some restrictions on image size. Another thing to consider is that today’s smartphones are great for editing images. They have lots of filters, layouts, and formats to customize the image to go along with your message.
The best images are authentic ones. These pack the most emotional value in them. It would help if you also focused on the photo’s composition to ensure the lighting is good and your camera angles fit everything into the picture.
Schedule and Analyze
To get the most attention from your audience, you will need to schedule your texts to reach them when they are available. Some of the best times to send a text are: morning around 9:00 a.m., lunchtime, and shortly after 5:00 p.m. when people get out of work.
Results are important. To understand how your text was received, you can analyze the following reports:
- Click-Through Rates
- Response Time
- Conversion
- Delivery
- Opt-in / Opt-out
The most important is conversion because it indicates how many people took advantage of your offer. Click-Through Rates are also important because it will tell you how many people were interested in what you had to offer. Together, these will give you a good idea of your customer engagement and if your messaging is working.
Keep in mind that each MMS text that you send may have different results because of the message. Try not to always focus on topics that get the most traction. When you rotate your topics, you will retain more customers on your list and keep them engaged. And, remember to bring your employees in on your plan. This is an opportunity to get them involved and update them on what to expect.