Have you ever received an impersonal birthday gift from a friend or relative that didn’t align with your unique interests or style? While you were thankful, you might have also felt hurt by the lack of thoughtfulness behind their gift. SMS works the same way. Your brand’s SMS subscribers feel frustrated if they receive generic, irrelevant messages not tailored to their wants and needs. In fact, almost two-thirds of consumers feel frustrated if their shopping experience is impersonal. Smart SMS segmentation strategies ensure you’re sending the right message to the right recipient. Personalized, relevant content can boost engagement, inspire action, and increase sales.  Here are some tips for developing a sophisticated SMS segmentation strategy that powers personalization.

What is SMS segmentation?

At its core, SMS segmentation is bucketing your recipients into different subsets based on demographics, pain points, priorities, behavior, and common interests. By segmenting your audience, you can keep them continuously engaged with personalized messages that matter to them. For example, if your apparel brand is dropping a new line of handbags, you should be sending a text message to anyone who has previously bought or browsed your purses. Better yet, you can give them VIP access to shop first before notifying the rest of your subscribers a few days later.  A strong SMS segmentation strategy can benefit your brand in a number of ways, including: 

  • Increased customer engagement, loyalty, and satisfaction
  • Uncovering underserved or niche markets
  • Driving higher profits

So, how can you develop an effective segmentation strategy that delivers remarkable ROI? The secret to success is grouping them based on the right data.

Demographic segmentation

Demographic segmentation filters customers based on location, age, gender, and income bracket. This is a great way to attract and retain consumers who are close by or more likely to buy your products because of their age, income, or gender. When texting these groups, be sure to tailor your content accordingly. If you have a brick-and-mortar store, send local discounts to shoppers in your neighborhood that tempt them through the door. If you’re targeting customers based on age, craft messages that appeal to their mentalities and backgrounds. For instance, Gen Z grew up online and is super tech-savvy. Baby Boomers, on the other hand, dislike slang and prefer useful information backed by data and statistics. 

Behavioral segmentation

Another effective way to group your customers is by their buying behaviors or lack thereof. If you notice potential customers browsing particular items on your website, send them a relevant offer via SMS. Rekindle the interest of past customers who haven’t bought anything in a long time with discounts based on their past purchases. Reward loyal customers for sticking around with exclusive offers and inside information about upcoming product releases. This will make them feel like VIPs.

Engaged vs unengaged

It’s essential to engage your customers consistently. Create a segment of subscribers based on their engagement rates. Identify the messages that resonated most with engaged subscribers and send them more content they crave. For unengaged subscribers, garner their attention with flash sales, contests, or surveys.

Using your CRM for SMS segmentation

So, how can you find the data needed to segment your customers? It’s probably already in your customer relationship management (CRM) system. Use the information stored in your CRM to gain deeper insight into your SMS subscribers’ demographics, behaviors, and engagement rates.

Additional tips

Still having trouble segmenting your subscribers? Here are a few additional tips for developing successful strategies.

  • Strike the perfect balance: You shouldn’t bombard your subscribers with texts. Nor should you go MIA. A regular cadence of one message per week is most effective.
  • Keep it personal: Always customize your text messages according to the segment you’re trying to engage.
  • Learn more: Get to know each segment deeper through reviews, questionnaires, and surveys.
  • Stay flexible: Just because a customer is in one segment now doesn’t mean they should stay there forever. Move customers from segment to segment as needed.

 

Effortlessly segment your SMS subscribers with Mitto

Mitto Integrations can enhance your SMS strategies. You can integrate our solutions with your current CRM, including HubSpot and Salesforce. Leverage your existing customer data to craft compelling, customized SMS campaigns. To learn more about our integration capabilities, contact us today.