Over the last decade, nonprofit organizations, political candidates, advocacy groups, and businesses have used SMS message marketing to reach their audiences and build loyalty.
Brands and organizations use SMS message marketing (also known as text message marketing) to send text messages to specific audiences. SMS message marketing has served as a powerful channel to share announcements, promotions, election alerts, and breaking news for many years now.
Text messages have a 99% open rate, and 90% of messages are read within three minutes of being received. With its astonishing open and read rates, text message marketing is the most efficient and effective way to reach your audience.
In this blog post, you’ll learn more about the advantages of including text messaging in your marketing strategy, the benefits of partnering with Tatango, and what to expect during your first year working with our team.
The Advantages of Text Message Marketing
As mentioned before, text messages have an astonishing open rate of 99%. In other words, you can rest assured most of your subscribers will open your text messages. Data shows SMS marketing campaigns can be highly effective, with conversion rates of up to 45%.
Text messaging is widely used to reach people across all ages and demographics, unlike other marketing channels that typically target very specific audiences. The millennial generation uses their mobile phones to send texts 300% more than they send email or make calls. And mobile phone users aged 55 or older send more than 16 text messages daily. Research shows texting is one of mobile phone users’ most frequent activities, and it’s the fastest way to reach people. Plus, an internet connection isn’t required to send or receive text messages.
Also beneficial is that you can use SMS messaging in real time and achieve massive reach. It’s easy to share immediate news with thousands of people at the click of a button.
Many SMS software providers like Tatango integrate easily with other fundraising tools, so you can continue using the tools that best meet your marketing team’s needs and goals. Additionally, a platform like Tatango makes it effortless to measure and optimize your campaign so you can make better decisions for your organization.
What to Expect in Your First Year Working with Tatango
Tatango is a true partner. During your first year working with Tatango, our Customer Success Team will walk with you every step of the way.
In your first year with Tatango, here are some things you can expect.
Strategize with Our Customer Success Team Based on Your Goals
We understand every client has different needs and goals. During your first year with Tatango, our customer success team will help you develop an SMS marketing strategy aligned with your organization’s vision, whether you want to raise donations, increase voter turnout, raise awareness for your cause, or win your next election.
Set Up a Short Code and SMS Keyword
One of the first things needed before launching an SMS campaign is choosing and setting up a short code and SMS keyword.
A short code is the five- or six-digit phone number you’ll use to send text messages to your opted-in supporters. There are four types of short codes: vanity short codes, random or non-vanity short codes, shared short codes, and dedicated short codes. Each one has advantages and disadvantages. Our customer success team can help you choose the best option based on your needs, goals, and budget.
An SMS keyword is a word or phrase supporters can text to your short code from their mobile phones to join your SMS subscriber list. It’s best to choose a keyword relevant to your organization or campaign. Words like “join,” “win,” or “vote” are some examples of effective keywords. Having a keyword aligned to your campaign can significantly impact your reach and increase the number of opted-in supporters. One of the benefits of working with Tatango is that our team handles all the short code provisioning process for you.
Grow Your Subscribers List
Something else you can expect during your first year with Tatango is that you’ll grow the number of supporters who join your SMS campaign. Because SMS messaging is a subscriber-only marketing strategy, mobile users have to consent to receive text messages from a political candidate or nonprofit organization.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency in the United States that regulates SMS message marketing. It enforces a set of strict guidelines and regulations under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The SMS experts at Tatango know those regulations well and will help you follow them when sending text messages to your opted-in supporters to avoid penalty.
Mobile users can join an SMS list through one of several opt-in methods. Our customer success team will help you choose the best method based on your audience and goals.
For example, offering opt-in incentives is a great way to encourage people to join your SMS campaign. Regardless of the opt-in method, promoting your SMS keyword and short code everywhere is essential. Promote your text message campaign on your website, flyers, receipts, emails, billboards, swag, social media, YouTube ads, and any other place your supporters could see it.
Send More Effective Texts than Your Competition with the Tatango Design Studio
During your first year with Tatango, you’ll learn how to send more effective text messages than your competition.
Text message marketing uses short message services (SMS) and multimedia messaging services (MMS) to send text messages. SMS messages can include text, emojis, and hyperlinks. MMS messages can include text, emojis and hyperlinks, plus images, videos, GIFs, audio files, and other media.
We created the Tatango Design Studio to simplify this process for our clients. Our in-house designers and marketing experts help our clients craft text messages and design media content at no extra cost. You won’t need to spend part of your budget and time designing SMS content—as a Tatango client, you have unlimited access to this amazing resource.
Launch Engaging SMS Campaigns With Tatango
One of the keys to success when launching a successful SMS campaign is partnering with the right SMS software provider. Our expertise in political and nonprofit campaigns makes Tatango the right partner for you. Our team is here to help you launch engaging SMS campaigns and reach your goals.
Schedule a call with a Tatango text marketing expert for a free demo and check out our website regularly for free resources on every aspect of SMS message marketing.
