Mobile advertising is still a new industry, but it has grown exponentially as businesses get involved. SMS text messaging has a lot of power when compared to other types of communication such as direct mail or email. 9.6 trillion messages were sent by text in 2012 according to Portio Research. Since so many people are using texts to communicate, businesses that take advantage of SMS are finding it an effective way to drive conversions.

Mobile advertising revenue continues to grow, rising to $8.9 billion in 2012. SMS is one of the most effective ways to keep customers' attention, build a relationship and retain their loyalty. You can drive loyalty to your business using the SMS text messaging methods outlined below.

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Accurate Targeting

When customers sign up for SMS text messaging they give you their permission to add their phone number to your list. Since this list is permission-based, it is more accurate, targeted and effective. If your business has multiple locations, you can run different marketing campaigns to each locale offering regional products or services relevant to customers in those areas. Your messages can be targeted to specific groups giving them appropriate marketing information that is meaningful to them. For even more accuracy, you can have your customers fill out a survey when they sign up for the SMS service that can help you identify their interests.

Since accurately targeted messages match customer interests, customers are more likely to stay loyal to your business and your SMS message stream. Additionally, mobile users do not get the level of spam through text messages that flood email channels, making them more willing to opt-in to your SMS text messaging campaigns. Continued long-term loyalty is earned through personalizing SMS messages to bridge the gap between you and your audience. Customers will continue to buy from you if they like your messages because you have learned to target them accurately.

Cost Effective Campaigns

Multi-channel marketing gives you the access to customers that you may not get through just one channel. Most customers frequent their preferred channel often but ignore the others. However, if you run your campaigns across many channels you may find yourself really stretching your marketing budget. SMS messaging is affordable and has a high return rate, making it a preferable method to add keeping costs down. Since you do not need to invest as much money in SMS text messaging, you can spend more money on offers and incentives to drive customer conversions. You can also use the money to connect your other channels in one cohesive unit, raising brand awareness across all marketing channels.

How to Establish the Context

SMS text messaging is a powerful tool that you can add to your marketing strategy, but context is important. Context keeps messages relevant to each customer, which in turn builds their trust and loyalty to your brand. Setting boundaries to establish context can be done with geofencing.

Geofencing

Geofencing uses geography to send messages to subscribers within a specific geographical boundary or region that you set. If your customer is located within that specified region, they will receive the coupon or incentive via text. Since they are close by, chances are more likely that they will visit your store in response to the message. Context can also be defined by time of day in the case of restaurant meals or other time-related deals. In this case, a restaurant that is well known for their lunch specials could text their subscriber list right before lunch time with a coupon to drive business. The boundary ensures that the context matches the intent of the messages sent to the subscriber group.

Using an SMS message in context adds value to the offer, driving a higher response rate and more conversions from the message. Once customers have a positive experience through SMS text marketing, they will respond positively when they get the next one.

How are You Using SMS Text Messaging?

Is your business using any of these methods to engage your customers via SMS text messaging? If so, have you gotten the response rate that you expected? How can you improve on your current interactions with your customers through SMS?

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