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Is SMS Marketing Still Relevant Today?

SMS Marketing in 2018

Ask any consumer on the street, and the answer would likely be no. In reality, the statistics tell a much different story.

The benefit to using SMS

The benefit to using SMS is that you are able to reach your customer or target market immediately, it’s a direct link between you and your target market, and SMS’s have an 82% open rate. One could argue that the reason for this is because, today, most consumers have their mobile / smart phones with them throughout the day and have no need to log on to their emails before receiving communications. On average, consumers check their smartphones 47 times a day! (Deloitte, Mobile Consumer Survey 2017), so the chances of your messages being checked quickly is almost guaranteed.

In 2017, statcounter.com released their first quarter findings, indicating that a staggering 7.6 billion text messages were sent globally in just 3 months. Further research also suggests that 65% of global devices are not smartphones. SMS would, therefore, be a perfect tool to target these consumers, as they do not need data to receive SMS’s.

SMS marketing does not only apply to promotions

Of course, SMS marketing does not only apply to promotions for sales. It includes appointment reminders, follow-ups, confirmations, security checks, and more. In fact, 78% of users wish they could have simple text message interactions with businesses above any other form of communication (ringcentral.com).

SMS should be seen as a condensed version of email marketing. With limited characters, you have to be direct in your approach to marketing. A staggering 82% of users say they open every text message they receive, which far outweighs the stats for other forms of communication. Texts, however, need to be relevant. Spamming your target audience with unnecessary information on a regular basis could lead to them un-subscribing or even blocking your numbers. Brand awareness should never be the goal of SMS marketing.

A few interesting facts:

  • 56 countries now have more registered mobile devices than residents (Wikipedia.org)
  • 84% of small businesses who have invested in mobile marketing say that they can see immediate and long-term benefits (web.com)
  • 90% of users who enrol in a SMS loyalty programme feel that they benefit from it (hipcricket.com)
  • 75% of consumers like offers sent over text messages (digital marketing magazine)

Conclusion

These are only a few highlights, but they do show that SMS is far from irrelevant. Under-utilised and severely overlooked, SMS marketing could benefit your business greatly. High volume of users, coupled with high click-through rates and interactions, mean that SMS could be the affordable, easy way for your business to grow.