“Marketers ruin everything. It’s our job. We see something shiny, we squeeze the f*ing sh*t out of it.”
Dharmesh Shah
A brilliantly honest summary.
Curiously this is not what happened with SMS marketing. Despite producing response rates over 10 times that of direct mail (Source – Mobile Marketing Association), bulk SMS has remained somewhat in the shadows. Bulk SMS as a marketing tool has been around for well over 10 years but only around 30% of UK businesses use it in any meaningful way. It’s never really moved centre stage and taken its place in the marketing spotlight. It’s an intriguing conundrum that we mobile marketing types can’t really get our collective heads around.
Perhaps in some strange way, people believe that SMS is somehow a temporary communication channel that will be superseded by something newer and more exciting than 160 characters. Maybe the notion remains that SMS is only used by younger target markets. Whatever the reasons, SMS remains perhaps the most untapped of all marketing communication channels. Marketers seem to be focusing on a whole host of shiny new social media platforms and smart phone apps. All too often poor SMS isn’t getting a look in.
Grasp the SMS Marketing Nettle
For those prepared to look beyond the gloss of new media stuff, the retro SMS represents a great opportunity to generate some great response and real customer engagement using something that we all use every day. So if your company is one of the 70% that don’t really do much with bulk SMS, now’s a good time to dive in.
Test accounts with Text Marketer are free to all.. You’ll find the web based system an absolute doddle to use. Using Quick Send you can even send texts using just one screen. Just copy and paste a list of numbers, type in your message, select the date and time and press send. There are no set up costs or monthly fees, it’s a simple pay as you go service.
As with any marketing activity, there needs to be a plan, an objective and a way measuring whether it’s worked or not. So we’re not only on hand to help with the button pressing but we can also support you in putting your mobile marketing strategy in place. We’re keen to help so please make contact with us in any way you wish. Our details can be found on our contact page.