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In the video above, Tatango CEO Derek Johnson answers the question: “How do you increase open rates for SMS marketing?” Prefer to read instead? No problem, please see the post below. You can also find answers to all of your SMS marketing questions in our Q&A video library; click here to browse.
SMS marketing open rates are famously high; so high, in fact, that they average a 99% open rate, which is unparalleled in the marketing world. Whereas email marketing is cluttered with spam, a federal law called the TCPA ensures that people only receive SMS marketing messages if they choose to opt in, making text message marketing open rates and engagement rates much higher. However, there are a few specific strategies that you can use to ensure your text messages aren’t left unopened—or worse—instantly deleted.
How Do You Increase Open Rates for SMS Marketing?
What can be done to ensure that people open your SMS messages? Here are two top tips:
- Text people at strategic times.
- Put your CTA up front.
Text people at strategic times
When text messaging your consumers, it’s a good idea to time your messages. While an email can be sent at any time, across any time zone, nobody wants to get an unprompted text message in the middle of the night, even if it’s for a great deal.
It’s also worth noting that it isn’t a good idea to send the messages on the hour, or on the half hour, exactly. We highly recommend sending your messages at odd times; for example, 1:17 p.m. instead of 1:15 or 1:20 p.m. This makes the messaging feel more natural, and lowers the chances that it competes with other SMS messages.
It’s also important to time your text messages for when people are most likely to take action. Depending on the size of your list, and your SMS software provider’s capabilities, SMS messages can take a while to send. You don’t want to send a mobile coupon for a lunch special after lunch, or a call for donations after a fundraiser has passed. With text message marketing especially, it’s important to send at strategic times, right when people are likely to take action. (That’s why we prioritize fast SMS messaging speeds at Tatango.)
Put your CTA up front
As for formatting, this is a part of SMS marketing that is often neglected. Different phone types have different displays, and that impacts how a recipient might initially see a new SMS marketing message. Normally, the first line or two of a message are displayed when a text message comes in, as well as in the text messaging app. The more interesting those first two lines are, the more a consumer will be interested in opening it and learning more. This generally means putting the promotion itself up front; start the message with your “Save 30% off select items!” to garner the desired attention, and then fill in the details.
Below is an example of a JosABank text message, with the CTA front and center.
These are two things that you can do to try and get your open rates up to 100%. SMS marketing is already very efficient, but there are always ways to improve click-through rates and open rates.
We hope this video article was helpful for you. If you’re interested in learning more about SMS marketing and our fast SMS marketing speeds, get in contact with us directly.
