Text messaging is a personal, powerful medium. It’s one that allows instant communication and exchange, but still gives the recipient the freedom to read or not read, respond or not respond as they see fit. It’s many people’s preferred means of communication. And it’s a meaningful way to connect with your customer base. Customers want to be able to communicate with their favorite brands via text. A mass text messaging campaign has the potential to strengthen your relationships with your best customers, boost sales, and save you time. Just make sure you do it right. 

Follow the Rules with Your Mass Text Messaging Campaign

Before you put together your mass texting campaign, you need to familiarize yourself with the laws around bulk texting. The most important one is that you must get your customers’ permission to market to them via text before you do it. The easiest way to get permission is to have them opt into your mobile marketing program via text. Promote a keyword campaign to build your subscriber list. Customers can sign up for texts by texting a keyword. Respond by letting customers know who you are, why you want to send them marketing texts, how many texts customers can expect to receive, and how to opt out. You also need a “standard messaging rates apply” disclaimer.

You’re also limited in regards to when you can send marketing texts. You can only send mass marketing texts between 8:00 in the morning and 9:00 at night. Customers must have the ability to opt out of receiving your texts at any time by replying to a message.  

Don’t Spam Your Customers

Customers will opt out of your messages if they feel intrusive, so don’t spam. Send between two and six messages a month. You’ll be letting customers know how many messages to expect when they sign up, anyway, so stick to that. It’s okay to send fewer messages than you forecasted, but don’t send more. Only send messages when you have something to say, whether it’s an offer to promote, a delivery notification, or an announcement about the company.  

Keep Your Marketing Texts Short and Sweet

Your marketing texts are not the place to generate hype about your brand. The people who sign up for these texts are presumably already interested in your brand, so you don’t have to generate interest – you just want to alert them to opportunities they might enjoy. Use concise language and avoid abbreviations or slang. Just offer something your customers will want or need, whether that’s information, an appointment confirmation, or a special discount. 

Offer Two-Way Text Communication

Automated text messaging can miss the mark if customers are expecting answers and they’re not getting them. You need to use a mass texting software that allows for two-way SMS communication. That way, customers will get a response when they expect a response. Today’s SMS autoresponders can create an interaction that feels human and natural, and they can seamlessly connect your customer with customer support if the software determines that’s needed, PBX telephone systems turn the process into an even more convenient practice. 

Two-way automated SMS communication will improve retention, because customers will get responses and won’t feel ignored. It can also be useful for performing surveys, collecting feedback, confirming or scheduling appointments, updating delivery preferences, and more. Customers don’t just want to get texts from your business – they want to use texts to perform most routine interactions so they don’t have to place so many voice calls. The bonus is that your people won’t have to spend so much time on voice calls, either. 

Create Value for Your Users with Your Mass Text Messaging Campaign

Text messages from your brand will start to feel spammy if they’re not offering customers what they want. You need to create real value for your customers by using your mobile program to give them more of what they want. That can mean giving them the option to communicate with the brand about appointments, deliveries, and orders via text. It also means offering them special promotions and deals that they can’t get anywhere else. Exclusivity can do a lot to make your marketing text program feel worth it to customers, but make sure the deals you’re promoting appeal to your audience, too.

A mass text messaging campaign can do so much to boost sales and grow your business. You can use text messaging to communicate with your customers, whether that means enticing them with great deals or supporting them through a customer service issue. Open up to your customers via text, and give them the opportunity to engage with your brand even more deeply.