SMS Marketing

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Emily Grant

Mobile marketing started way back in 2000 when the trend rapidly grew in Europe. SMS marketing was the most popular form of mobile marketing then and up to date it still is. Basically, this marketing technique involves collecting contact information from customers and then sending short messages related to the business. This marketing tool is one of the most effective. This is because almost everyone opens an SMS and scans through it. Unlike Email marketing that many recipients not bothering to open the email at all and read it. Marketers have therefore taken advantage of the effectiveness offered by SMS marketing and channelled substantial resources towards it. Even though the platform is plagued by various privacy and recipient issues, it is still widely used and highly effective.

Just like most other forms of digital advertising, the content of the advert is the most important aspect of the whole marketing campaign. It is the content that appeals to the prospective clients, turns them into loyal customers and retains them in the business. Therefore, a marketer needs to be very careful and considerate about the content of the SMS being sent. For one the SMS should be simple and clear. Do not write a whole page of meaningless information that cannot be understood. Ensure that the first line capture the attention of the reader to encourage them to continue reading.

The length of the SMS is also very important. Some businesses use SMSs as monthly newsletters where they blabber about nothing of importance. The SMS should be a way of updating the customer on what is new, available offers and prevailing trends that they should be aware about. If you are not sure about what to put in the SMS it is advisable that you simply write down a one sentence call to action. The call to action can be a visit to the business website. You can read more about it on our GoTo Mobile feature.

Meaningful and helpful information is also very important. Send your customers information about helpful tips to accomplish a certain task. This way, they will feel important and will be looking forward to the next SMS from the business.

Finally, identify yourself. This should actually be the first point. The system you are using may not display the company name and location on the customer’s mobile phone. Ensure that you have mentioned your company’s identity and if possible, location. In general, ethical and effective SMS marketing works to avoid spamming the customers while at the same time appealing to them and sharing meaningful content with them. With good SMS marketing you may even create traffic to your site by using calls of action in the SMSs.

Posted in Digital Marketing Software, Direct Digital Marketing, Mobile Marketing | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Online Social Marketing

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Emily Grant

The dawn of the 21st century brought with it the age of the internet. Subsequently, the business sector was greatly affected in various ways. Communication became faster, business transactions could now be done safely over long distances and most importantly businesses were able to communicate and interact with their customers. The improved interaction platform created by the internet created an effective marketing strategy. A few years down the line social media hit the internet and soon after almost everyone was a fan of a certain social networking site. Today social media has become one of the most widely used and effective marketing platforms.

However, the effectiveness of social marketing online depends on the marketer and the marketing strategies put in place. It is very possible to have thousands of fans on your business Facebook page but no visible impact on your business revenues. To run a successful social media marketing campaign there are three golden rules that you have to incorporate into your marketing strategy. They include, goal setting, content and social interaction.

For one you must have a goal. This is the most basic of necessities. Ask yourself what you are hoping to achieve by opening a business page on Google plus. Once you have set out and understood your goal, you can now focus on it and expend your precious energy and resources in attaining it.

The second rule of the thumb involves the content of your social media business page. This is pivotal in determining the success or failure of your social marketing campaign. People do not care about your business so do not center your content on the business or trying to goad people into buying your products and services. Instead provide content that is beneficial to them; content that will actually help them out and improve a certain aspect of their lives. Of course, the information should be related to your products or services. This way you will attain meaningful fans and keep them.

Lastly, your interaction with the social media world; this has to do with frequency, tone and emotions. Ensure that you make regular posts on social networks to keep the fans both entertained and informed. As you post content, remember to make use of appropriate social tags. This further spreads your business information all over the social network thus garnering you a wider market base.  Also learn to empathize with your prospective customers; this will help you choose the best tone to use in your posts. Get interested in their lives and appeal to their emotional selves. Once people feel that they are cared for they will respond positively to a call of action.

The above three tips will help you learn how to do effective online social marketing with visible results in your business.

Posted in Email Marketing | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Email Marketing – how much is too much?

Posted on February 28, 2013 by Emily Grant

Let’s start from the end – there is no good answer on how many newsletter one should send and when to send them. In order to determine the ideal frequency of a specific newsletter, an in-depth analysis of your target market and the product or service you wish to promote, based on statistic data analysis your company gathered. However, it is important to remember that frequency that is too low will not be effective and your marketing will not seared in the consciousness of your target market, and frequency that is too high may cause the customer to be flooded with over information that will be an arrestment and will lead people to unsubscribe themselves from your mailing list.

One of the most effective means to find out what is the optimal frequency of Email marketing is changing the frequency slowly but steady and monitor how the subscribers react to these changes. Regardless, it is important to mention upon subscription that amount of newsletters and their frequency are dynamic according to the company’s activities; therefore you must track the campaign performances.

Recommended frequency for newsletter sending

As mentioned below, there is one answer for what is the corrected amount of newsletters to be sent, but you can be assisted with relevant researches and studies made in this field and adjust them to your needs.

Constant Frequency – in every frequency that you will decide to send, if it is once a week, every 2 weeks or once a month, it is important to keep constant and scheduled dates in order to create a routine with your subscribers and make them wait for your next newsletter.

Not too much – it is always better to leave your reader wanting more, than send him too many newsletters that might make him feel full and start to dislike you. On the other hand, make sure you won’t be forgotten…

Timing – sending a newsletter before the weekend is good especially for tempting sales or activity that is suitable for the weekend such as entertainment, culture or tourism. In general, it is safe to say that for privet customers it is best to send as the weekend approach while sending to business customers should be made during normal business week, usually around mid-day, since these Email are irrelevant to them while they are spending their weekend with their family and will forget about your Email if it was sent just before the weekend. On this subject, also be aware that it is best to be avoid from sending newsletter on Monday morning, as the inbox is most likely full with junk mail from the weekend at the amount of Emails that are been screened and deleted is higher.

Holidays and special occasions – it is a well-known fact that sales of products and services are intensify as the holidays are closer, so it is important to be prepared in advanced and suit your content to the holiday or occasion that is coming. It is important to send also warm regards and not just special offer – make your customers feel that you also care about them and not just if they will buy or not.

Special Dates – it is important to use your customers’ personal information and send them newsletter with regards and small token (special discount, unique coupon) on their birthday. It is also recommended to pay attention to other special dates such as anniversaries.

Hour a day – when to send the newsletter should be scheduled according to your recipients internet uses habits. This is why it is highly recommended to segment these habits with the features your newsletter delivery system is offering you. For example, you can send late newsletters for those “night birds” or newsletter with content that suit those who open it during business hours.

Quality will determine quantity and frequency

It is important to mention that at the end of the day, what will determine if your campaign will be successful or not is the quality of its content, as well how relevant and attractive it is to its target market. Therefore a unique newsletter that contains already known, shallow and familiar information may cause damage to the image of the company in any delivery frequency and in this case it is better to avoid it to begin with. On the other hand, a quality and attractive newsletter that offers gifts and relevant and up-to-date information will make the readers interested even if it will be sent in a frequency that is too high.

Posted in Direct Digital Marketing, Email Marketing | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment