Text Marketing Holds Endless Business Opportunities

Pepsi, McDonald’s, Elle magazine, the Hilton Hotel group and Dunkin’ Donuts are just a few of the many companies that use text marketing to increase sales, roll-out new products or services, conduct promotions, or communicate with customers. But bulk texting isn’t just for major corporations or multinational conglomerates. Automated calling and messaging services make it possible for professionals, small businesses and companies of all sizes to conduct text marketing. These mass text messaging services enable its subscribers to type one message and send it to a few or thousands of people at once with one single click.

According to the Mobile Marketing Association, a global nonprofit trade group that promotes, educates, measures, guides and protects the mobile marketing industry, mass texting is the most widely-used form of mobile marketing because of the many benefits it holds. Statistics from mobile carriers show that text messaging in the U.S. alone has skyrocketed from 9.8 billion text messages a month in 2005 to 152.2 billion text messages per month in 2009, the most recent year statistics are available. And trends show that texting will continue to grow in future years. For businesses, the numbers strongly support the usage of text marketing as a viable way to reach customers.

How Mass Texting Work

A mass text is any type of communication that is sent to a mobile phone number. It could be a written message, a coupon code, or a survey. Mass texting is the process of transmitting a mass text using a Web connection. By combining automated messaging technology and the vast, secure networks of the Internet, a bulk text is transmitted to recipients at lightening speeds. Bulk texting is an acceptable form of communication because a text message is sent only to recipients who signed up, opted-in, or gave their mobile phone number and permission to receive text communications from the business, establishment, or organization.

How Text Marketing Is Being Used

Bulk texting accommodates both global text marketing campaigns and small, local marketing initiatives. Here are two case studies that demonstrate a countrywide and a centralized text marketing campaign:

Case Study #1: McDonald’s ran a mass text campaign in conjunction with its radio ads. The ads encouraged consumers to text in their name to receive a SMS text voucher for free menu items. In addition, recipients could reply to the SMS text voucher with a “Y” to continue to receive special offers from McDonald’s. As a result, the fast-food restaurant collected a massive database of names and mobile phone numbers to use for future bulk texting campaigns.

Case Study #2: A Texas-based dental practice continually experienced no-shows of appointments made weeks in advance. Staff members making the appointments began collecting mobile phone numbers from patients and asking permission to send text appointment reminders. This enabled the dental office to send out a daily bulk text to those patients who had appointments the following day. Not only did this initiative improve the office’s no-show ratio, it also enabled the dentist to begin monthly text marketing campaigns to inform patients of its other dental services.

Mass texting is used in many different applications by a diverse range of professionals and industries. Some examples of those using business text marketing include realtors, weather-dependent facilities, hotels, restaurants, retail stores, nonprofits, health agencies, emergency management agencies, media outlets, and professionals, such as lawyers, doctors, chiropractors, dentists, counselors, service centers and hair stylists.

Why Bulk Texting Makes Good Business Sense

According to Mobile Marketer, the leading news publication covering mobile marketing, media and commerce, 85 percent of individuals read text messages within 15 minutes of receiving them. This provides businesses with a real-time way to communicate with their customers.

As business owners continuously look for ways to increase their customer base without spending a lot of money, mass texting offers a viable solution, whether it’s a one-person business or a large company. Using bulk texting for text marketing increases company or brand awareness, enhances customer loyalty and retention, increases your customer database, seamlessly works in conjunction with other marketing or advertising efforts and, most importantly, increases revenues.

Other business advantages to sending a bulk text include:

- More people have mobile phones with texting capabilities than computers with e-mail. According to the Mobile Marketing Association, there are four times the number of cell phone subscribers in the world (2.4 billion) versus personal computers.

- More people use cell phones than landline phones, with 20 percent of all U.S. households completely “mobile-only,” according to statistics from the Mobile Marketing Association.

- Low costs. Automated messaging services have monthly plans that start as low as $10 a month, and also include the option of sending an automated text message or an automated voice message.

- Instant gratification. The real-time communication of mass texting appeals to all generations, including the Gen-Y customer base and others who respond to the spontaneity of time-limited deals, specials and promotions.