Never underestimate the power of a text message marketing campaign. SMS has become one of the most powerful marketing tools a business owner has. SMS as a channel is personal, familiar, instant, and unobtrusive compared to other marketing channels. Not only does SMS boast of a 99% open rate, but over 90% of texts sent will be read by recipients within a few minutes.

It’s hands down the best way to get a time sensitive message to your customers. But a text message marketing campaign can only be as good as the individual texts themselves and many business owners are still trying to figure out how to craft an effective text message. Here are a few tips for crafting the perfect text messages for your SMS campaign:

Know your target

You can’t craft the perfect text message unless you first understand your target audience. Know them better than they know themselves. Know their interests and what’s important to them so you can craft a message tailored to their needs and interests.

Be Considerate of Timing

No one likes getting a text early in the morning or late at night, especially from someone they’re not close friends with. Along with the content of the message you have to be conscious of the timing of the message. You’ll find that some messages are especially effective at certain times of the day.

Avoid Text Slang

Many business owners new to text message marketing are under the impression that in order to seem cool, they need to use text slang like u instead of you or 2 instead of to. In actuality these abbreviations come across as unprofessional and you’re likely to lose some customers by using them.

Keep it Simple

One reason consumers are responding so well to commercial texts is that they’re short and to the point. Mobile users are often on the go and don’t have the patience or attention span to read a big block of text. Text messages are limited by a certain number of characters already but don’t feel like you have to use every character.

Use Details

Don’t assume that your audience will know what you expect of them. Your texts should spell out what you want them to do. Use details that are easy to understand and follow.

Be Familiar

Chances are your customers won’t have your business’s name attached to your texts so it’s always a good idea to address yourself towards the beginning of any text message. You want your audience to know who’s texting them.

Use Attention Grabbers

As more business get into the text message marketing game, it’s going to be more and more common for consumers to delete commercial texts unread. Make sure each text uses attention grabbers to keep your audience interested.

Analyze, Adapt, Repeat

Your work as a text message market is never over. Even when you think you have the perfect formula for your text messages you can still improve it. Pay attention to what works, make necessary changes and continue to fine tune your text message marketing strategy.