Mobile messaging is the most effective direct marketing channel according to marketers in Africa. It has the best engagement rates and the open rate of mobile messages is as high as 98%, compared to the average open rate of 22% for email. Thanks to a lack of spam filters and the fact that people check their phone more obsessively than their email inbox, companies can yield great return from mobile messaging campaigns.
Some of the best practices for mobile messaging campaigns include:
Keeping it short and to the point
With SMS, it’s important that you get to the point fast. Most messaging services will break your text into chunks if you go beyond 160 characters. Why? People don’t want to receive long, spammy-looking messages that take forever to read.
Including a Call To Action
Like every other piece of marketing material, it’s important to include a strong Call To Action in your messages. Tell your customers about a great new offer and then ask the reader to ‘Click here’ or ‘Buy now’.
For example, a short message like: “Get 30% off your next order until Sunday. Buy now: Ladies Shoe Sale” would be effective.
Sending messages from your brand’s name
You don’t want your messages to come from an anonymous number if you can avoid it. You want people to see your brand’s name. Again, this is about improving brand visibility, as well as securing trust in your mobile message.
Gikko’s bulk messaging service allows you to choose your sender ID, without any additional charges.
Personalizing your messages
Personalized experiences can make customers feel valued. This comes with the increased possibility of a conversion!
There are a number of ways you can personalize your mobile messaging campaigns. The simplest way is to address your customers by their name in the message. Our system allows you to do this across your entire customer database by pulling the information from the “First Name” column.
It is also possible to personalize your links. For example, you could follow up a phone call, chat or any other interaction, by sending someone a personalized quote for your services via a link in a message.
