If you own your own small business, you know how important it is to keep connected to your customers. Whether you sell a product, run a restaurant, or provide some type of service, your success depends on your ability to keep your old customers and continue to get new ones. Of course in today’s world, there’s never been more competition between businesses, if you want to maintain a competitive edge, you need a cost effective way to reach your target audience. That way is bulk SMS. For just pennies per text you can send a message that over 90% will receive and read, most within minutes of getting it.

When text message marketing is used correctly, it can be an extremely effective tool for boosting customer loyalty. Here are three ways you can implement text message marketing to reach and engage with your customers.

Right place right time

The reason so many marketing efforts fail isn’t always the message itself, sometimes it’s the timing. A TV commercial advertising savory meals at a popular restaurant for instance isn’t going to be as effective at 10:00 in the morning as it will be at 5:00 at night when people are getting hungry for dinner. That’s where SMS comes in. Unlike with other channels, a text message gets the information to the customer when they need it. SMS boasts of a 99% open rate and 90% of those will be read within three minutes of receiving it. There’s no better option when it comes to delivering time sensitive information.

If your business suffers from slow periods in the day like many do, you can use SMS during those times to deliver special offers that can be redeemed only during that window of time. Because your message is sure to be seen by nearly everyone you contact, you’re bound to see an increase of business.

Involve your customers

A good SMS campaign will encourage customers to purchase, but a great SMS campaign will encourage customers to engage with your brand. Most people tend to think of SMS marketing as a one way communication, but it doesn’t have to be. Consider the effect of a marketing campaign in which you ask your loyal customers for their feedback about a new product or menu change. Getting your customer’s feedback shows them you care enough to ask for their thoughts. There’s no better way to build customer loyalty.

Spoil your customers

These days, people are growing accustomed to receiving special offers via text. To really stand out to your customers, it’s no longer enough to just send the typical mobile offers. You need to really spoil your customers. You can send invites to exclusive events, offer seasonal promotions, or send a customized message to them on their birthdays. While these are little things, they go a long way in showing customers how much your company cares about them individually.

Source:  Hospitality Magazine