8 Effective Ways to Improve SMS Campaigns

1. Use OTPs For Extra Security

When launching an SMS campaign, most brands will require users to create a new account or profile before using their online services. 

To prevent fake, spam, and junk registrations, it’s best that you provide an extra layer of security by sending new account registrations a one-time password (OTP) via SMS. 

By verifying the OTP sent to the user through your online service, you’re able to flag numbers that aren't legitimate or actively used by the account user.

2. SMS Notifications

SMS communication is the perfect channel for brands to keep their users informed quickly and reliably. 

An SMS provides real-time notifications and updates that allow you to optimise the user experience better. 

But more than this, users can also enable or subscribe to receive push notifications for discounts and alerts. This is a pivotal force for driving customer loyalty and retention. 

Here are some of the ways CM.com's clients use SMS notifications:

Parkmobile

This company specialises in electronic and digital parking solutions and uses CM.com's SMS API (Application Programming Interface) Gateway to send SMS reminders to its customers. 

"Our service is about trust and guarantee...Our customers want to know when their parking time is running out, so they can go to their car and leave or top-up." - Tomas Novak, Commercial Manager at Parkmobile.

Takeaway.com

his meal-delivery platform uses SMS notifications to keep customers informed about delivery times. 

Through SMS notifications, confirmation messages notify customers about the status of their order, from when it has been placed through to 'in preparation', 'being picked up', 'out to delivery' and 'arriving soon'.

SafariNow 

Southern Africa's largest accommodation booking website deals with thousands of bookings daily, requiring a reliable platform to communicate with customers. 

SafariNow uses CM.com's API to deliver its booking-related notifications.

"CM.com provides an analytics tool that shows real-time information regarding messaging delivery time and rates. Due to the customer-centric approach that CM.com offers, we chose them to deliver our bookers and sellers quick mobile communications." - Matthew Evans, CTO at SafariNow.com

3. Run Customer Loyalty Programmes

Once you've established your customer database, you can use SMS to manage customer loyalty programmes or marketing campaigns. 

This boosts a brands reach, enhances the customer experience and encourages customer retention.

Another loyal CM.com client, Etam, a high-end, luxury French lingerie brand, has leveraged the SMS platform to inform customers about exclusive offers, promotions, new merchandise, and loyalty point balances. 

After implementing SMS, Etam noticed an increase in the repeat purchases rate and the number of visits after an SMS alert was delivered. 

Additionally, SMS has been instrumental in helping decrease customer churn.

“SMS allows us to track the SMS delivery rate, which is close to 100%, and the rate of repeat purchases made online and in our stores." Unlike in the past, SMS messaging can be monetized, turning a channel for communication into "a profitable channel." - Jonathan Attali, Chief Digital Officer at Etam 

4. Clean Up Your Database

For an effective bulk SMS campaign, you need to start with a clean database, which means getting detailed customer profiles to customise the messaging. 

Information such as area of residence, gender and time since last purchase allows you to create more targeted campaigns. However, this means not only detailed but also correct data is required. 

CM.com offers the useful Number Verifier, which cleans up your database with one simple action. Using this feature, you can run cost-efficient campaigns with greater reach and a lower no-response rate.

5. Interact with Your SMS Campaign

A successfully sent and received message is the basis of your SMS campaign, and, in many situations, you can enhance campaign value by giving customers the chance to respond. 

With two-way messaging, your customers can reply via SMS with a question or an answer, or you can facilitate this form of interaction through specialised numbers. 

You can also add web apps to your communication channels, allowing customers to interact with you via Facebook Messenger. This form of interaction engages customers and provides you with valuable feedback about your brand, product or service. 

6. Use Push Notifications with SMS Fallback

Even though SMS is the communication channel with the highest open rate (98% - with most messages read within a few minutes), it's a good idea to look into the possibilities of push notifications. 

By sending push notifications to your app users, you can easily share your message with your target audience for a lower cost.  

Customers or employees who are offline or are not using your app will not receive your push notification but do not fear, that’s where hybrid messaging comes in! 

These people will receive an SMS instead. This push solution with SMS fallback will give you the highest reach for the lowest cost. This can lead to significant savings, which has to be a good thing.

7. Integrate Messaging Apps

Your SMS campaign can extend beyond the SMS platform to reach your customers effectively. 

Messaging apps like Facebook Messenger and Telegram let you further interact with customers and improve customer care. 

Customer support software, Mobile Service Cloud, integrates these communication channels onto one user-friendly dashboard. You can switch between communication channels for more seamless customer interaction.

8. Data Insight Into Your SMS Campaign

You've gone through the steps of improving the effectiveness of your SMS campaign, but the final step is to monitor this success through relevant data. 

CM.com has a specialised Campaigns app that lets you access this all-important data in one overview. 

This includes information related to delivery and conversion rates, and with the built-in analytics, you can follow the results live to optimise your SMS campaign further. 

To create a truly effective SMS campaign, it’s best to work with industry experts, CM.com. 

Contact us to learn more about the possibilities or send your first SMS campaign right away. 

Please register here to try it for free.