There is a near-unanimous consensus among marketers that raising brand recognition is a top priority (89%). But to get the most out of your branding efforts, you need to employ smart strategies. Enterprise SMS messaging is one method that can be used.
In the age of mobile phone pervasiveness, where 75% of people say they prefer getting offers by SMS, it provides a pivotal resource for businesses seeking to expand their visibility. However, before diving into text message marketing, it’s important to have a plan in place. In this article, BSG will provide you with helpful tips on how to use SMS to increase brand awareness.
We’ll discuss the various reasons why companies choose to communicate with their customers via text message, provide specific examples of businesses that have achieved significant success with their branding, and then show you the steps to getting even better outcomes.
SMS Is the Preferred Tool for Building Brand Awareness; Here’s Why
Below are the fundamental reasons why brands should use text message marketing.
1. Building Brand Trust
Including your company’s name in your messages can increase your chances of receiving positive responses from nearly half of your potential customers.
Corporate or business texts should have around 11 characters; sending them out bulk is a great way to build trust with potential customers. Unlike unknown numbers, using your organization’s name in text messages makes it easier for customers to identify them as genuine and reliable. This will create an atmosphere of comfort and trust, encouraging them to open your texts and respond.
2. Increasing Brand Engagement
The use of SMS marketing enables brands to achieve higher levels of engagement within their messages. You can, for instance, stimulate more participation by organizing a customer loyalty program as a text messaging campaign and inviting people to sign up for it.
3. There’s a Growing Preference for Texting
A recent study conducted with American consumers in 2022 revealed that nearly half of the millennial respondents (47%) expressed a preference for being contacted by brands via text message, and an almost equal amount of Gen Z respondents (44%) shared the same sentiment. And in order to be a brand of the future that is able to suit the needs of younger demographics, you will need to take advantage of their communication preferences.
Developing Brand Awareness with SMS Marketing – Our Top Recommendations
Text message marketing can be used to promote brand recognition in the following ways:
Meet Customers at Different Touchpoints
Multichannel interoperability is an absolute must-have for any savvy marketer’s toolkit. Your customers don’t just use their phones – they’re also on social media, email, and messaging apps. What is the best way to stay in touch with them at every point in their journey?
Integrate those channels into one! So if you’re running a bulk SMS campaign, for example, you can replicate it on Viber or similar messaging apps. You can even take it one step further and integrate Voice Bots to give customers the human touch.
Guarantee Secured Opt-ins and Data Privacy
Getting customers to sign up for promotional offers can be daunting. But let’s be honest – it’s likely because they’re concerned about their data being misused.
Therefore, brands must take the necessary steps to reassure customers that their information is safe. For example :. Conducting thorough data cleansing and verifying contacts’ numbers with the most reliable validators.
Leverage Creative Means To Drive Web Traffic with Text Messages
The endgame is to send people to your website and have them hit the checkout button. SMS has shown records of high open and response rates, so it’s an effective way to increase sales. You can include a short brand name URL and CTA for SMS receivers to arrive at the shopping page. Consider Standard SMS Marketing Practices as a Bonus
In addition to being creative, certain standard marketing strategies must be addressed. Here are 15 proven tactics to consider:
- Promotional campaigns: Offer special deals and discounts to customers through SMS to increase customer loyalty and retention.
- Appointment reminders: Send reminders to customers about upcoming appointments or reservations to reduce no-shows.
- Transactional notifications: Keep customers informed about order updates, shipping information, and payment confirmations.
- Customer feedback and surveys: Collect customer feedback and survey responses through SMS for fast and efficient results.
- Welcome messages: Send a warm welcome message to new subscribers to make them feel valued.
- Event reminders and invitations: Send event reminders and invitations to subscribers to increase attendance and engagement.
- Product launches and updates: Notify subscribers about new product launches and updates to keep them informed.
- Personalized recommendations: Offer personalized product recommendations based on customer preferences.
- Abandoned cart reminders: Send reminders to customers about items they left in their shopping cart to encourage them to complete the purchase.
- Delivery updates: Provide customers real-time updates to keep them informed about their order status.
- Birthday and holiday greetings: Send personalized birthday and holiday greetings to subscribers to build a strong emotional connection.
- Contests and giveaways: Use SMS to promote contests and giveaways to increase engagement and build excitement.
- Reservation confirmations: Send SMS confirmations to customers to confirm their reservations and avoid confusion.
- Up-sell and cross-sell opportunities: Use SMS to promote related products and services to increase sales.
- Time-sensitive promotions: Use SMS to promote time-sensitive deals and promotions to increase urgency and drive sales.
Companies that Use SMS to Increase Brand Visibility
Here are examples of ways businesses run successful text message marketing campaigns and increase their brand reputation.
Teleperformance Reaches out to Candidates to Schedule Interviews
Teleperformance is the top global provider of customer and citizen experience management solutions and advanced related services to key players, including Meta and Spotify.
To expand the Talent Pool and streamline the recruitment process, Teleperformcae reaches out to interested applicants via text, inviting them for an initial HR interview.
Glovo Improves Food Store, Courier, and Customer Supply Chains
Glovo, one of the largest food delivery apps, utilizes SMS to streamline its delivery chain. Whenever their providers get an order, a text with all the details is sent to them via SMS.
This helps providers prepare the order quickly for couriers to deliver faster and more efficiently. Additionally, Glovo uses SMS to notify customers when their orders have been dispatched, allowing them to be on time for pickup rather than depending solely on the app’s tracking system, which might not work in case of downtimes.
Domino’s Franchise Boosts ROI, Opt-ins, and Subscribers
A Domino’s franchise near the University of North Carolina at Charlotte faced the challenge of boosting its ROI from TV and video ads.
To increase revenue streams and engagement on social media platforms, Ryan Swanson, the Area Director, tested his theory that SMS solutions would result in better engagement. By advertising a keyword and shortcode during TV spots and offering free pizza for opting in, he saw 20% of attendees opting in by the next morning.
This led to a series of exclusive discounts, which boosted sales and opt-ins. For a semester, the franchise spent $125 on SMS marketing and added 850 subscribers, resulting in a cost per acquisition of only 15 cents.
Conclusively, SMS is a highly effective method for enhancing brand awareness.
On BSG, you will have access to a comprehensive suite of text marketing services, allowing you to develop highly targeted SMS marketing campaigns that increase both brand recognition and customer participation. Get started with your bulk SMS campaigns, and you’ll be well on your way to building a thriving brand!
