So your company uses a wide variety of marketing strategies, from purchase campaigns to post engagement campaigns and everything in between. But SMS campaigns aren’t being utilised? 

This isn’t uncommon. In fact, 65% of brands out there don’t have an SMS marketing strategy in place. 

And that’s why we’re here to give you some top tips on setting up a successful SMS campaign that will benefit your whole marketing ecosystem.

Now we know what you’re thinking... 

“Well, why are SMS campaigns so important?”

Emails tend to be a go-to for many companies but can end up in spam folders or remain unread and ignored by the customer... 

Lost in the abyss of their inbox. 

Whereas, a text message is hard to miss, especially in this day and age! People are constantly on their phones, and so are more likely to see a text message come through. 

In fact, research suggests that the open rate of text messages is 5x that of emails! ( source ) This in turn means a higher click through rate and increased conversion rates. 

So what are the top things to consider when creating your SMS campaign?

1. Create A Goal For Your Campaign

This will affect every aspect of your campaign, from your copy & creatives to the audiences you choose, details you will need to collect and offers you will have. 

A common example would be a birthday offer, this feels exclusive to the customer and helps to build that relationship. This means the copy & creatives will need to reiterate this message, the lead form will need to be set up to take their birth date and your flow will need to be set up to text everyone on the correct dates.

2. Creatives

As discussed above, the copy & creatives will need to mention the benefits of the offer and why they should sign up. Customers need to be reminded that this offer is exclusive to them, this is information that they don’t want to miss in their inbox and that the process of signing up is easy!‍

3. SMS messaging

Probably the most important tip is the messaging for your SMS ad. Done well, it can lead to great success but done badly, it could be detrimental to your brand. A point to note is the character limitations, so keep it short, direct and to the point! A call to action as the headline with a link direct to the relevant page will ensure it’s eye catching and interesting. If it fits in with your brand, don't forget to include attention-grabbing emojis!

4. Facebook Lead Form VS External Page

When setting up your lead capture form, you have an important choice to make…

Do you use a Facebook lead form or an external landing page?

Both have their pros and cons.

External pages give you the freedom to go into greater detail about the offer and the benefits, however the cost per lead is higher than a lead form as there is more opportunity for viewers to drop off at this stage.

Whereas a Facebook lead form is easy to access which means the volume is usually higher and the cost per lead is less. However, this can also mean the quality of the lead is lower, as the form provides no resistance.

The details on these forms need to be simple and relevant to the offer. As discussed earlier, if you are running a birthday offer the form will need to ask for the customers date of birth.

5. Integrating The Lead Form With The Customer List

Now, integrating with a customer list can seem like a daunting task…

The main thing you need to consider is which CRM software will you choose? 

And there are plenty of options! We have seen software such as Klaviyo and Infusionsoft used to great success.

Once you’ve chosen your software, you’ll need to build out your flow, test it to ensure it’s functioning properly…

Then you’re good to go!

So, now you know the top priorities to focus on when pulling an SMS campaign together! 

It may seem like a daunting task at first, but following this simple guide will lead you in the right direction!