SMS marketing is a way to advertise products, communicate with customers, and promote the brand using SMS (Short Message Service). Unlike a few years ago, anyone can now try it within just seconds, thanks to services/software tools. If you’re also interested in SMS marketing services and want to understand them, this article can help. Below, we’ll discuss how these tools function, so please read on.
How Do SMS Marketing Services Function?
1. Add individual subscribers or upload a list
An SMS marketing service is like a phonebook app—it’s empty at first, and you’ll have to populate it with contacts or other data. Typically, there are two ways to add entries: individual enrollment (manual input) and list upload. As the name suggests, the former requires the user to type contact information into a form. On the other hand, uploading a list (usually a CSV file) is a way to migrate saved contacts from another tool to a new one.
2. Start an SMS campaign (send text messages)
A campaign is a text message sent multiple times or to many phone numbers. When creating a campaign, the subscribers (contacts) or contact list that will receive the SMS should be selected. After that, the user must write a message or use a saved template. It’s also possible to preview how the message will appear on an actual phone with popular tools like Textedly. Lastly, once the compose form is filled out, the only thing left to do is send or schedule the SMS for a given time.
3. Create keywords and auto-replies
Unlike websites and other mediums, SMS apps don’t have buttons that let users interact with adverts or companies. Accordingly, it’s necessary to have keywords for opting-in and opting-out of the campaign list and availing of offers. Regardless, in an SMS marketing service, you can easily create keywords, along with their linked commands. You can also access saved keywords when composing messages and see how many people have used a particular phrase. Besides that, it’s essential to set up auto-replies for keywords so people won’t have to wait for responses, and you don’t have to check the inbox frequently.
4. View activity reports
Most SMS marketing services offer a dashboard to track campaigns, subscribers, and keywords. In a dashboard, you’ll learn how many messages are delivered on a particular day, week, month, or year. Additionally, you can track the number of old/new contacts, keywords, and subscribers (people who have opted-in to campaigns), as well as the most popular keywords.
Try An SMS Marketing Service Today
There are countless SMS marketing services; thus, it’s possible to find the best fit for your needs. However, if you like to skip the hassle and only want a reliable and feature-rich tool, your best choice is Textedly. It offers all the necessary features for SMS marketing, plus extra functionalities like message preview. Learn more or visit textedly.com to try it for free today!