SMS has become a regular tool in the arsenal of every marketer a long time ago. You can usually see how SMS messages are used for B2C communications to deliver promotional offers or connect with clients.
However, there is a huge untapped potential for B2B SMS marketing. For some reason, it is hard to see an SMS B2B campaign, while it can give B2B businesses additional powerful instruments to enhance their marketing efforts.
Does SMS B2B marketing really work and do you need to give it a try? Let’s figure it out in this article.
What is B2B SMS Marketing?
SMS B2B marketing means using bulk SMS campaigns for the marketing purposes of your company. What does B2B mean in texting? The same things it means in any other context: business-to-business type of enterprises.
Does B2B SMS Marketing Work?
The technical aspect of mass texting for B2B stays the same as with B2C messages. You still need to use the SMS tool to set up and launch bulk campaigns, as well as test SMS delivery with another relevant system.
At the strategic level, you can’t approach B2B SMS campaigns the same way you might have done with the B2C segment. Unfortunately, a lot of people associate bulk SMS campaigns with spam or blatantly direct promotions. It makes things harder, but it doesn’t mean that SMS has zero impact. You just need to be careful and understand that it should be only one of the steps in your marketing plan. The best way to use SMS marketing for B2B is to consider it as a tool for lead generation and engagement.
5 Tips & Best Practices for B2B SMS Marketing
So, how can you use SMS campaigns and achieve decent results? We gathered a few tips that should help you.
Tip 1: Deliver Value
You don’t need to sell outright with your initial SMS messages: it will only scare your prospects away. Instead, use the same approaches you would use for outbound marketing. Focus on the value you can bring to the client and how your input can make their lives easier.
SMS can be a great point to show your potential customers that you are willing to share some useful content with them, and do it in an unintrusive and convenient way.
Tip 2: Pay Attention to Your Timing
The success of your campaign depends on the time your recipients will get the message on their phones. The moment they are overwhelmed with tasks or when they are resting after a long workday would rather cause irritation instead of working great for you. Analyze the habits of your prospects and try to find a time when they would be in a working mood but not swamped with work.
Tip 3: Use SMS Delivery Testing
Testing your SMS routes helps you detect any technical issues and see if your messages actually reach the end-point recipients. Thankfully, it doesn’t take a lot from you: testing tools offer API to test SMS delivery. Moreover, automated SMS testing can scale your business communications and enhance your results.
Tip 4: Convey The Right Message
An SMS message isn’t an email, and you have only 160 characters to deliver your message to your customer. So, it is important to focus on the essentials, pick the right words to catch the attention of the receiver, and show the value you are bringing.
Tip 5: Think Call-to-Action Through
Sending an SMS campaign without a call-to-action would be a huge mistake. While you need to win the trust of the receivers, you still need to present them with your offer and direct them further down your sales funnel. Hence, take your time to create an informative, but catchy call-to-action. Your CTA should look like the next step your prospects should take are seamless and easy.
Conclusion
SMS campaigns can be a strong part of mobile marketing for B2B companies. While some don’t consider it suitable for B2B communications, it still can make a difference and help companies connect with prospects and engage them.
Analyze your audience, don’t be afraid to test different approaches, and you will reach the desired result.
