Welcome back! In part one, we discussed the ‘dos’ of bulk SMS marketing and the main points to remember when curating the perfect message to the perfect recipient list.
 
This advice included steps often overlooked, such as personalising your messages and ensuring you introduce your business’s name early in the message to foster trust and engagement.
 
You could suggest that, to the recipient, the best bulk SMS message should feel like it was explicitly sent to the recipient in mind.
 
Here in part two, we list the common traps that people should avoid in bulk SMS marketing, and I think you’ll be surprised by what’s listed.
 
If you missed part one, I would highly recommend you first revisit last month’s issue (Retail Pharmacy July) to read what we recommend.
Retail Pharmacy Magazine August article
The don’ts: common pitfalls to avoid in SMS marketing
  • Don’t use excessive abbreviations or jargon. While shortening your message length can reduce costs, abbreviations can cause confusion and alienate your recipients. Consider a longer or more succinct message to ensure clarity (see point one of the dos).
  • Don’t use all capitals. Although this may seem like you’re trying to get the message across clearer and with more emphasis, it often comes across as shouting, aggressive, spammy and simply unprofessional. Use capitalisation judiciously for emphasis or proper nouns.
  • Don’t use too many exclamation marks. See the above point for explanation. Don’t send too many similar messages. Bombarding your customers with an excessive number of SMS messages can lead to annoyance and increased opt-outs. Maintain a suitable frequency.
  • Don’t use misleading or deceptive language. Build trust and credibility by being transparent and honest in your messaging, avoiding any misleading or deceptive terms or tactics.
  • Don’t over-complicate your message. This might feel like a duplication of point one of the dos, but stick to one clear subject and call to action, rather than offering too many options. If the customer needs more information, your contact details in the message will come in handy.
  • Don’t forget to test and optimise. Continuously experiment with different elements of your SMS campaigns, such as word choice, calls to action and appropriate timing, and refine your approach based on customer feedback and data-driven insights.
  • Don’t forget to focus on the benefit. Highlight the advantage or value that recipients will gain by taking the desired action, ensuring they’ll understand why it’s worth taking action.

 

If you follow the guidelines from parts one and two, you’re well equipped to excel in the realm of bulk SMS campaigns. A communication platform that integrates with your pharmacy’s database, Scrypt.HQ for example, is an easy-to-use two-way communication tool that finds customers’ mobile numbers in your system to enable personalisation. Scrypt.HQ also offers user-friendly database searches and business analytics to refine and curate that perfect recipient list.

Now you’ll be, without doubt, maximising your response rate while keeping the costs to a minimum, all leading to a great return on investment. If you’re interested in how this information can be used in your business, get in touch. Good luck, and may your bulk SMS campaigns be a resounding success.

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