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Mobile technology is quickly overtaking desktop and laptop computers; you only have to walk through your local shopping mall and look around to see evidence of that. Pew Research reports that more than 90% of people in the U.S. have a smartphone. That is just the beginning though. The latest statistics on SMS text marketing build a mighty strong case for its use.

Mobile usage in the U.S. has surpassed desktop usage. According to SmartInsights, mobile digital media time is 51 percent while desktop has slipped to 42 percent. According to Digital Marketing Magazine 98 percent of all SMS text messages are opened. By contrast, only around 20 percent of emails are ever opened.

People are using their mobile devices during the research, decision making, and purchasing stages. In fact, Social Media Today found that 90 percent of shoppers with a smartphone used it for pre-purchasing activities including researching products and comparing prices. 84 percent of shoppers with a smartphone used it to help shop while they were in the store. Finally, as for mobile searches, 70 percent of them lead to action within an hour.

You can’t afford not to use SMS text messaging as part of your marketing strategy.

Get their permission before you send.

You can’t just sign up your customers for SMS messages once you get their mobile information. That usually doesn’t sit well with most people. Make sure that you have an opt-in procedure in place – and make sure that they have indeed opted in prior to sending them any marketing messages.

Your opt-in procedure may involve them signing up for messages on your website then confirming that they want to receive the messages by replying to a confirmation text. Another possibility is that they can text a code or word to a certain number, then reply with confirmation when the confirmation text is sent.

Example of opt in: Have the user text a code to a number which will opt them in. If you do a double opt-in, you should send a text instructing the user to text back “yes” or some other term. Alternatively, you can have them sign up on your website and then confirm via text.

Include a call to action.

This may seem like marketing 101, but the truth is many people forget the call to action in their text marketing messages. A call to action is an important part of the sales funnel, but it also gets customers engaged. When you tell them to text a word to a short code so they can get a coupon or more information on something you draw them in and get them engaged with your company, your brand, and your product.

Every marketing message you send out needs to have a call to action. If it doesn’t then you’ve just sent a regular text with no marketing value at all.

Example of CTAs: “Text YES for a 20% off coupon on your next purchase” or “Text 1234 to get free access to our members only site”

Give them something of value.

When you have a call to action you need to have something on the other end of it, something of value to your customer. It gives them a reason to click. Keep in mind, this does not have to be something of monetary value, although a coupon or special deal can certainly get some action.

The value on the other end of the CTA can also be informational in nature. Give your customer a great blog post on something that is relevant to them or an infographic that can lead them to take action on a sale. The key is to make every step count. Each message, each click must take the prospect another step forward in the sale process.

Example of something of value: 20% off coupon, exclusive information, ebook that is accessible only to members.

Create a mobile ready landing page.

You are using a mobile device to send your text message so it stands to reason that you would have a mobile friendly landing page for your prospect when they answer the call to action and click through. It is integral that the site you send them to is mobile friendly. If you don’t your prospect may have a difficult time reading it.

Google updated their algorithm in April 2015 pushing hard for mobile friendly websites. The goal is for every website to have a mobile friendly version, or, better yet, be a responsive design website so that is can be viewed on any mobile device.

Example of a mobile ready web page: When your page is viewed on a smartphone or mobile device, all links work and all information can easily be read.

Measure your results.

This is where many marketers fail. They don’t measure their results so they don’t know what is working and what isn’t. SMS text marketing is fairly easy to measure, all you have to do is count how many people used a certain text code or how many visited the landing page linked to a certain text message. When you track the codes, click throughs, and conversions you can easily see what is working and what isn’t.

Example of measuring your results: Assign different codes to different text marketing messages. Count the codes to see which ones are getting the best response, then you can tie that back to the corresponding text marketing message and you know what is performing and what isn’t.

SMS text marketing can be an effective marketing tool for your small business. Employ these tips and it will boost your marketing and your sales will take off.