You can spend a lot of time creating the perfect Application-to-Person (A2P) messaging strategy and campaign, then miss out on conversions because you didn’t optimize your messages for success.
As you prepare your campaign, you go down the checklist. First up, you’ve made sure your customers are opted-in to receive messages. Next, you’ve lined up your omnichannel approach to send your messages on the platforms your customer prefers. Lastly, you set your campaign to go live – but unfortunately, your content falls flat, and the engagement rate is lower than you anticipated.
You’re certainly not the first marketer to experience this disappointment. Message optimization takes a bit of trial and error, but there are some simple steps you can take to help you put your best foot forward. Here are some valuable tips to help you craft the perfect marketing text message!
Five (and a half) Tips to Follow
1. Be clear about your brand
Make sure the person receiving the text knows who is writing them. Identifying yourself should be done in the first sentence. You could implement a shortcode to add branding value or use a rich content channel like Verified SMS, but no matter what, clearly identify yourself.
2. Personalize
Refer to the person you’re texting by name. Mention the state or area they’re located. Segment customers based on interest so the texts better target people’s needs. For example, if you have information – perhaps their birthday – on file, you can use that information to offer them special deals. Try to include this information in the second sentence of your text.
2 (and a half). Mention a relevant event going on
For example, you might say ‘It’s holiday season…’ and then mention something about buying gifts. Or note that you’re giving people a gift – a great discount on your software product or service! This action ties in with personalization because it shows you’re paying attention to what might be happening in the customer’s life.
3. Use a simple call to action
Ask the customer to do something. It could be scheduling a demo. It could be using a company in a physical store or online. Tell them clearly what you want them to do, and give them an easy way to do whatever it is quickly.
4. Create a sense of urgency
You can make your offer seem important by explaining it expires soon. Or you can say there are only a few items or special offers left. This urgency can help get people to act quickly.
5. Add to your brand
Close out your message by saying something on-brand that appeals to your customers. For example, if you were a pet store offering a deal, you might close out with a fun cat fact. Or if you know something more specific about the person, perhaps they own a dog or a parrot, maybe you close out with a fact tailored to the type of pet they have.
Incorporating all the tips above, your final message should look something like this:
Identify yourself: “Hi Sarah, it’s Acme Petstore.”
Personalize your message: “Happy birthday!”
Call to action: “To celebrate, here’s 20% off all pet supplies.”
Create a sense of urgency: “Coupon valid until midnight, so act now!”
Add to your brand: “Fun fact: cats can jump up to six times their length!”
Implement and Refine
The formula above is a great place to start, but you’ll need to do some fine-tuning on your messages. Then, you can optimize your content as you figure out more about what marketing strategies you want to use and which messages will elicit the best responses.
Be sure also to track the success of your messages and user response. If you’re planning to offer two-way texting, you can use a tool like Mitto Conversations to send messages using SMS, Viber, WhatsApp, and more. If you want to track whether your messages are successfully delivered and opened, a tool like Mitto’s SMS Campaign Manager could be an excellent fit for your brand.
Good luck and happy messaging!