Email vs. SMS: How to convey information to subscribers?

Research company Radicati Group claims that 4.1 billion email addresses are registered in the world, which allows email marketing to stay alive.

Look at the question of mailings on the other hand. How often do network users check email? The center of the digital future claims that more experienced users are not the most active fans of electronic mailboxes and check email no more than twice a day. And the reason is that with the experience of using the Internet comes the skill of distribution of information flows. In addition, any time management expert advises checking mail as rarely as possible.
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As a result, by the time the Inbox is checked, we have a whole bunch of unread messages, both personal and promotional mailings. And not all of them will be open. That is why the average opening rates for mailing services (including ours) vary at the level of 20-30%.

The standard tips for improving mailing discovery are catchy message threads, A / B testing of submission time and content and personalization. But there is another way out - SMS marketing.

At the end of 2014, the number of registered mobile numbers exceeded the number of the world's population . The reports of the International Telecommunication Union at the UN means that one third of the world's population has constant access to mobile networks. And most of all numbers falls on residents of the former USSR - 1.7 per capita.

75% of the population of Europe is actively using mobile communications. In Asia, this figure is 32%, and in North and South America - 61%.
And now attention: the opening of SMS messages is on average equal to 95%! Regardless of age or business, SMS will still be read more often than mailings. Research among companies using SMS marketing shows the effectiveness of such a communication channel at up to 20%. Agree, not everyone can boast of such a percentage of conversions in mailings. And in the SMS-kah - easy.

Why SMS marketing?

SMS as a marketing channel, there are two types: transactional and promotional. Transactional includes all notifications of subscribers' actions: purchase, transfer of funds, account replenishment, order delivery, etc. Check your Inbox, you’ve probably received a lot of these messages.

Transactional messages are typical for banks, online stores, or online services. They make up 70% of all SMS mailings.

The remaining 30% is a promo: messages about promotions, sales, discounts, new arrivals, changes in the service ... While such SMS mailings have not yet gained great popularity.
In any case, if the text of the SMS is not against the law, messages will be sent instantly. And read almost immediately. In terms of information, this is the fastest communication channel at the moment. Faster - just call directly, which is not always an option.

The only drawback - no more canvases of text that marketers love so much. The message should be as short as possible. Ideally, to fit into 1 message (160 Latin characters, 70 characters - Cyrillic), if not - then no more than 6 SMS.

Spam or not spam? That is the question

Since the fall of 2013, mobile operators have been more closely monitoring the content of messages being sent. It is allowed to send newsletters only to those subscribers who have agreed to receive notifications. In this case, the subscriber may ask the service provider to block the receipt of messages from any company or another subscriber. Do not forget that the name of the sender of SMS messages is subject to registration.

Where to get the base from?

SMS spam will not work. At best, no one will simply respond to such a newsletter. At worst, you will have to pay a fine of several hundred thousand rubles. That is why we need contacts who have agreed to receive notifications from you. You can collect a legal base in several ways:

First, if you have an offline point of sale, you can enter a simple loyalty program for card buyers . With the help of completed customer questionnaires, you will receive all the necessary information for mailings.
Secondly, you can still collect a database of contacts using the subscription form on the site . Use lead magnets: offer a discount in exchange for a phone number or any other bonuses. It all depends on your imagination and the specifics of the product.
Thirdly, the client will automatically get into your base after purchase . More sales - more base for mailings - more opportunities for repeat purchases.

Collecting a contact database for SMS distribution is no more difficult than for email marketing. The main thing is a systematic approach and clearly set goals.

What's next?

After the base is collected, it remains only to start the mailing list. And here are some tips to increase their effectiveness:

• Do not try to fit a lot of information in 1 message. 1 idea / action / event = 1 SMS.
• Personalize the newsletter, add information about the name of the recipient, the product he bought or the amount to be paid.
• Do not part. 1-2 promotional SMS per month is quite enough so that the client does not forget about you, but you also did not have time to get bored of him.
• Leave your contacts (site, address, name, phone number) in the message so that the recipient knows where to contact him if he is interested in the information.
• Use your own name of the sender to form company awareness and customer loyalty.

Try, test. Perhaps SMS marketing is exactly what will help to bring sales to a new level for you!

Irina Chugay, marketer SendPulse