Hi Community!
SMS has become a marketing tool that a lot of e-commerce brands know is important to their communication strategies, but they struggle with understanding how to communicate effectively through SMS.
Sending out a promotional SMS each time that you have a sale launch on your website is a good starting point, but in today's marketing landscape, creating a relationship and trust is vital to the longevity of your brand. Luckily, SMS can be a great way to support that!
These are my go-to strategies I’ve created for clients who want to integrate SMS into their Klaviyo account, but want to expand their strategies outside of discounts and sales.
There’s more to SMS than just welcome flows
One of the very first SMS messages most brands set up is the go-to welcome offer. Sadly, their SMS communication usually goes dark shortly after that. Instead, what you should aim to do is create messages that connect, educate, and inspire your subscribers to click through the attached link back to your site.
An example of this strategy would be an SMS message directly from the founder about the brand’s story that leads through to a blog post with even more details and product recommendations.
Another example is a product education SMS that shares information the subscriber would find useful and then links to a blog post with further insight.
Here’s a tip: think, “What would my ideal customer find valuable?”… turn that into an SMS!
Consider the customer journey
Besides the Welcome flow, find different trigger points in your customer’s journey where a message fits into their lifecycle with the brand. One of my go-to's is inside of a post-purchase sequence where the timing ideally aligns with the product now being in their hands. A friendly SMS message hits their phone, inviting them to post on social, tag us, and share their experience with the product.
The sky is the limit with SMS campaigns
Outside of flows, sending out campaign SMS is a great way to interact with your subscribers, but again - communicate in a way that provides value! Here are a few ideas to help inspire your SMS campaign communications:
- Sneak Peeks into upcoming launches
- Tease your blog content into SMS messages
- Introduce a Lookbook/Collection
- Invite them to follow your social channels
- Highlight customer reviews/stories
- Company news & updates
- Re-introduce the value propositions of your brand
There are also TONS of SMS ideas you can discover in the Klaviyo Showcase. Like this fun one posted by Elsie Green, Inc that includes a great preview and CTA that leads to more valuable content!
Don’t let discount and sales box your creativity for SMS
SMS is a massive asset in your marketing strategy, but you need to wield this weapon wisely. If you take your time to test and craft thoughtful, nurturing messages, you’ll be well on your way to building an engaged SMS audience in addition to your sales and discount strategies!
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