SMS Marketing Best Practices

Text-to-Win Campaigns: Good For Growing SMS Subscriber Lists?

Text-to-Win Campaigns Good For Growing SMS Subscriber Lists

Political and nonprofit organizations are always looking for new ways to reach and engage with new customers and stand out in an overcrowded space. That’s why many organizations turn to text message marketing to grow their audience. But, how does SMS messaging help campaigns attract new supporters? 

A text-to-win campaign, also known as text sweepstakes messaging, is one of the many ways text messaging can help your organization gain more traction. “Text-to-win” is a term used for contests run entirely through SMS messaging. In a text-to-win campaign, consumers text a   designated keyword to an SMS short code. An SMS short code is a five- or six-digit phone number a brand can use to run its SMS messaging marketing campaigns. Subscribers opt in for a chance to win by sending a designated keyword to the SMS short code. 

Keep reading to learn why text-to-win campaigns are good for increasing your SMS subscribers.

 

Why Are Text-to-Win Campaigns Good for Growing Your SMS Subscribers?

Text messaging is strictly a subscriber-only marketing channel. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) prohibits businesses and organizations from sending text messages to users who haven’t opted in to their message subscriber list. However, the more subscribers you have, the more you can increase awareness, raise donations, and even win elections as a political organization. Text-to-win campaigns are a great way to incentivize your audience to opt in to your SMS messaging program to grow your amount of SMS subscribers.

Text-to-win sweepstakes are a win-win situation as contests are exciting, and people love to receive prizes and free stuff. Research shows that 58% of people are more likely to engage in mobile advertising if it includes an offer, deal, or coupon. That’s partly why text-to-win campaigns have become more popular over the years. These SMS campaigns are an effective and powerful way to engage with your audience and build strong relationships. They are a great way to increase your brand’s awareness, grow your text message subscriber list, and contact subscribers again in the future. 

Benefits of a Text-to-Win Campaign

Benefits of a text-to-win campaign include..

  • Increase brand awareness. A well-developed and promoted text-to-win campaign will grab your audience’s attention and turn your would-be supporters into loyal advocates who open and engage with your messages.
  • Gain loyal supporters. People like to participate in fun campaigns where they can win prizes. Giveaway campaigns help build relationships with your subscribers, who can then receive exclusive promotions, updates, or coupons from you in the future. It helps people feel like you give to them before you ever ask for something from them, like a donation in the future.
  • Grow a subscriber database. Tatango’s platform helps you capture detailed information about supporters who join your campaign. The right opt-in method allows you to capture information such as mobile phone numbers, zip codes, email addresses, and birthdays. 
  • Facilitate engagement. Data shows that people don’t opt out at the same rate as they opt in to text message campaigns. Once they’ve opted in to an SMS marketing program, you can easily engage with them, often with just the click of a button. 

 

How to Create a Text-to-Win Marketing Campaign 

The structure of a text-to-win marketing campaign is quite simple. Follow these easy steps to launch your campaign.

  1. Partner with a text message marketing software provider.
  2. Choose the SMS keyword you want your supporters to use.
  3. Determine the start and end dates of your campaign.
  4. Select a prize and the number of winners you’ll reward.
  5. Craft an automated response message for supporters who enter the campaign.
  6. Craft a text message winners will receive once the contest ends. 
  7. Craft a text message that will go out to supporters who didn’t win. 

Regardless of what you use text-to-win campaigns for, the basic structure remains the same. (Contact our text messaging experts for help with all the details.) 

 

Examples of Text-to-Win Campaigns 

Let’s take a look at some political and nonprofit text-to-win examples.

Political Text-to-Win Campaign

Text-to-Win Campaigns Good For Growing SMS Subscriber Lists

The example above shows a text-to-win campaign from a political candidate. In this campaign, supporters were invited to text the keyword “SENATOR” to the short code 12345 to enter the contest and get a chance to win the prize. Sending the SMS keyword is how potential supporters opt in to receive future text messages from that particular political candidate.

Nonprofit Text-to-Win Campaign

Text-to-Win Campaigns Good For Growing SMS Subscriber Lists

The example above shows a text-to-win campaign from a nonprofit organization. In this campaign, supporters were invited to text the keyword “SAVE” to the short code 12345 to enter the contest and get a chance to win the prize. A keyword like this can be especially relevant for nonprofit organizations who focus on conservation efforts such as saving the ocean, forests, or animals.

The nonprofit organization informs their subscribers that by sending the text, they’re opting in to the nonprofit’s SMS messaging campaign. 

Opt-In Methods 

Collecting contact information such as mobile phone numbers is highly valuable for any political or nonprofit organization. Generally, the primary goal behind a text-to-win campaign is to gather supporters’ information so you can message them in the future about important donation opportunities, events, and news for your organization.

A word to the wise: Organizations must ensure they don’t violate regulations set forth by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). A proper opt-in method is one of the TCPA’s key requirements. Your subscribers must give “prior express consent” before you contact them. 

With that in mind, there are two opt-in methods––a double opt-in and a single opt-in.

Single Opt-In

With the single opt-in method, you automatically send a text when a subscriber opts in, letting them know they’re opting in to receive future text messages from your organization. With a single opt-in, you don’t ask them to confirm again (a double time) that they want to receive messages from your organization by texting back a letter or keyword. But you do provide information about how they can opt out in case they did so by mistake.

Double Opt-In

With a double opt-in, you automatically send a text after a subscriber opts in, asking them to confirm that they want to receive future text messages from your organization. 

Although single opt-in methods are TCPA compliant, a double opt-in method is always your best bet to ensure compliance. 

Text-to-Win Campaigns Good For Growing SMS Subscriber Lists

Let’s Run a Text-to-Win SMS Campaign Together!

If you’re thinking about starting a text-to-win campaign, partner with Tatango! Tatango is an SMS marketing software provider that has partnered with political and nonprofit organizations for more than 14 years. We’ve made it our mission to provide the best software for political and nonprofit text messaging. Schedule a time to talk to an SMS marketing expert and learn how to run your next text-to-win campaign.


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