I appreciate the opinions of multi-channel marketing and other industry experts that help me to do my job more effectively. But I’ve also been known to balk at a few. One that sticks out in my mind likens sales conversions to dating. Okay, so what does that mean? I’m not sure whether or not it has anything to do with appearing busy or being indifferent at times. But I must admit that the optimum results tend to come from customers that willingly decide to engage with your business. It simply means that it is better to have customers come to you, feeling that they’ve made the first move instead of the other way around.

Think of customers as you would potential dates. What would happen if you tracked down that guy, letting him know you were ready to go out with him? And what if your approach was to call that girl – you know, the one out of your league – every day until she said yes?  You would be off-putting at best and obnoxious at worst.

Let’s face it, many customers prefer to be hunter-gatherers – especially those most ready to buy. When you take away the hunt, you may very well lose their interest. That is why mobile text marketing and multi-channel marketing are so powerful. They give control back to your customers – so they can choose how they connect and engage with you. Customers who opt-in to receive your mobile text marketing messages, emails or IMs by signing up on your Online Sign-Up Page (OSP), texting-in your mobile keyword or scanning the QR Code displayed on your in-store poster are more likely to be the most profitable ones for your business. They will be waiting with bated breath to receive your campaigns and take advantage of your offers.

As a wise woman once told me, it works better if the guy loves you more.  And the same logic applies to SMS marketing and integrated, multi-channel marketing. Leaving it to your potential customers to opt-in and drive the process, leveraging the power of technology, will only make them even more loyal.