12 Tips to Optimize Your Text Messaging Use in Business

Intro

If you’re looking to expand and optimize your text messaging use in business this year, you’re not the only one.

In fact, the mobile marketing market size is expected to double by 2024.

And it's not hard to see why.

According to a survey published in January 2023, it was found that 42% of received text messages were actually read — a rate that was 10% higher than that of email commercial messages.

But commercial text messaging isn’t just a one-way street.

In a 2022 US consumer survey, 30% of responding millennials and 25% of responding Gen Zers stated that they used text messages to contact brands.

The takeaway?

With its high open rates and impressive response rates, no brand can afford to ignore the power of text-based marketing.

If you’re ready to embrace text messaging in your marketing strategy this year, stick around for 12 ways to make the most of it.

1. Send event notifications and reminders

Hosting an upcoming webinar or workshop? Promoting a hybrid event to get your rebrand off the ground?

Confirm event attendance and send reminders to encourage attendees to attend live.

Here’s an example of a text messaging series you could automate:

• Text 1: Confirm that the attendee has successfully registered for the event.
• Text 2: Send over a link to download a workbook or any corresponding event material.
• Text 3: Send an event reminder five days before the event.
• Text 4: Send an event reminder three days before the event.
• Text 5: Send an event reminder the day before the event.
• Text 6: Send an event reminder the morning of the event.
• Text 7: Send a link to join the live event five to 10 minutes before it starts.
• Text 8: Say thank you for attending the event (with an option to download the replay) or send the replay if they didn’t attend live.

2. Announce FOMO promos and discounts

Stir up the feeling of missing out (FOMO) with timed deals that are too good to pass up.

Send out promo announcements, flash sale alerts, and “last chance” to shop warnings.

(Image provided by Ioana)

3. Share your latest product drop/service addition

Keep your audience in the loop about your latest offers by sharing new product drops and service options when they go live.

For instance, send over a free trial link to your newly released board management software tool or let your audience know that you’ve added social media marketing to your content service options.

You can also shoot over a text when a product’s back in stock or when you’ve revived an old service — bonus points for personalizing these by audience segment.

4. Send holiday wishes and honor celebratory events

Need an easy excuse to text your audience? Send over a holiday wish or honor a celebratory event, just because.

To avoid alienating anyone, stick with a general “happy holidays” text. Or, better yet, celebrate a wide variety of holidays, like Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Christmas, and Holi to appeal to diverse audience segments.

And speaking of diverse segments, don’t forget about other inclusive holidays and events, like Pride Week and Black History Month, for example.

You can also highlight funny and interesting holidays if they align with your brand personality and marketing strategy — think National Donut Day and World Compliment Day.

Finally, don’t forget about seasons (Hello Summer!) and other important events, too, like Back to School Day and the Super Bowl.

It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. You can always repurpose content to save time and money.

5. Educate your audience about complex products and services

Help your audience digest your complex products and services by sending links to bite-sized content and blog articles.

For instance, if you’re in the data industry, send over articles about what ELT means or why your audience should use a data warehouse in place of a customer data platform.

You can also offer additional support, such as sending over a link to your knowledge base or giving prospects the option to attend a live demo with one of your reps.

6. Share surveys and ask for specific feedback

Are you new to the e-commerce industry and want to learn more about what prospects think of your store? Or maybe you are feeling nervous about the latest AI writer tool you just dropped? What if you are looking to expand into new markets but want to gauge if there's interest first?

Get feedback on your launches and ideas by sending over brand surveys with tailored questions.

(Image provided by Ioana)

For instance, if you want to know what your audience thinks about your new writing tool, ask! Just make sure you’re using short-and-sweet text-friendly language.

Here’s an example:

“Hey Tracy! How are you liking Simplified AI Writer, on a scale between 0-5 where 0 = Not At All and 5 = Very Much?”

7. Send birthday gifts and coupon codes

Give your audience a reason to smile by sending them a link to a gift or a personalized coupon code to use on their birthdays or customer anniversaries.

Bonus points for sending them a gift you know they’ll love, like a refill on their favorite moisturizer or the option to jump on a free coaching call with their top-requested coach.

8. Announce your latest blog posts

Nurture an ongoing relationship with your audience by keeping them in-the-know anytime you publish a new blog post or content asset.

For instance, send a text like: “We’ve compiled a list of the top 10 best payroll software providers in 2023! Check it out here.

Or, “Get the inside scoop on the best dental insurance in California! Our 2023 list is here.”

You can also announce other content assets, like new YouTube videos, Instagram Reels, or gated downloads.

9. Give personalized tips, tools, and tricks

Help your audience succeed with your product or service by sharing personalized tips and best practices they can use to elevate their personal and professional lives.

For instance, if you’re a marketing coach, you might share some of your favorite Quicktools by Picsart or how to craft the perfect call to action for Spring marketing campaigns.

Or, if you run a SaaS business, you might teach your audience how to build timelines using your project management tool or how to create professional presentations using your meeting software.

10. Send customers shipping and tracking info (or service reminders)

There’s nothing customers hate more than waiting in anticipation for a product to arrive. Give them the peace of mind they crave by texting them a shipping tracking link and status updates.

(Image provided by Ioana)

When it comes to services, give customers a heads up about upcoming appointments and don’t forget to send over any special instructions they might need.

For instance, if they’re attending a strategy call soon, be sure to send over any documents they need to fill out and a list of items they need to bring to the meeting (if any).

11. Share links to gated content downloads

Using lead generation content to grow your contact list and email newsletter? Text your opt-ins links to the gated content they signed up for.

To make the most of this tip, add prospects to an automated, segmented campaign so you can continue to follow up and nurture a relationship with them. To go the extra mile, share additional tips and resources to help them make the most of the gated content they downloaded.

For instance, if they downloaded a link building guide, offer them the chance to join your upcoming link building workshop or private Facebook group so they can learn more.

12. Update members on points and rewards

Get VIP members excited about their points and rewards by sending them an update anytime they increase.

You can also share best practices to help them make the most of their rewards and send over links to their favorite offers so they can use their points to redeem them.

Pro-Tip: If rewards or points are ever at risk of expiration, give your members plenty of notice so they can redeem them before it's too late. To avoid hot water and prevent customer complaints, consider letting members roll their points over instead of allowing them to expire.

Wrap up

Optimizing your text messaging marketing this year is as simple as planning your strategy and taking action.

When in doubt, review the 12 tips we shared today and look for ways to integrate them into your marketing calendar.

For instance …

Got a promo coming up? Send a text.

Need to generate buzz for an upcoming webinar? Notify your audience with a text.

Want to give shoppers peace of mind? Text them a tracking link.

Look for natural ways to integrate text messaging into your marketing plan — and then watch as you and your audience benefit from the power of a simple, two-way communication channel.

That’s it for now, friends.

To your success!