More than three-quarters of the growth in retail sales since the year 2000 has come from online outlets. Consumers now conduct all of their research, browsing, ordering, and transactional activities online, which puts more pressure on physical stores to compete for customers.
Retailers now have to adjust to this new reality or risk being overtaken by a plethora of tech-savvy rivals. Consequently, an increasing number of companies are venturing into the realm of online shopping. However, setting up an online business isn’t enough. Retailers must also adapt their marketing strategies to consumers, whose purchasing patterns and habits have unavoidably changed as a result of the move to the internet.
Modifying actions
A significant increase in the number of people using mobile devices to shop online has occurred in recent years. In fact, over 53% of online shoppers now prefer to conduct their searches on smartphones, according to Bright Vessel. In the meantime, mobile and tablet internet usage now accounts for more than 51% of global internet consumption, surpassing desktop usage.
The way consumers behave is evolving, and in the current retail landscape, it is essential for marketers and companies to reach customers where they are—on their mobile devices. What is at the heart of mobile? SMS is the response.
SMS technology
SMS gives companies a direct line of communication with their clients at any time and from any location. Astute internet merchants are now observing consumer inclinations toward mobile devices and utilizing bulk SMS technologies to disseminate news, acquire insightful data about their customers, foster loyalty, improve customer satisfaction, and boost conversion rates.
A list of some of the methods that retailers are achieving this may be found below:
Promotion and large-scale SMS
SMS is a straightforward, efficient, and reasonably priced method of reaching your target audience where they spend a significant amount of time—and, more significantly, where they shop. 98% of all texts are opened, and 95% are read within the first three minutes of being received, demonstrating the marketing channel’s exceptional deliverability and unmatched open rates.
Advertising sales, sharing special offers, promoting new items, and increasing brand recognition may all be accomplished with bulk SMS marketing.
Reviews and comments
In today’s digital age, where consumers have a wide range of options and frequently evaluate things online based on reviews, having a positive online presence is essential. SMS is a fantastic tool for getting feedback and motivating clients to post about their satisfying experiences online. After a customer makes a purchase, shops can use SMS to ask them to assess their experience.
By providing a link to a review website, shops may then encourage consumers who had a good experience to write a review. Additionally, it enables companies to resolve any issues raised by clients who had a bad experience, decreasing the likelihood that the former will air their grievances in a public online forum.
SMS loyalty schemes
A well-thought-out SMS loyalty program may increase revenue, improve client retention, and ultimately spur growth. Just 12% to 15% of consumers are devoted to a single retailer, according to Northwestern University’s Centre for Retail Management. However, between 55% and 70% of retail sales are attributed to that little group of customers.
Retailers must cultivate these important relationships because a tiny percentage of customers account for a considerable share of their sales. Incentives that could be used include store credit, extra discounts, free stuff, early access to new products, or any other perk that would attract a customer’s loyalty.
Nearly half of internet users prefer to receive offers from loyalty programs via text messaging, per a study by Emarketer. In actuality, SMS is preferred by over twice as many people as email, the second most popular category.
Additionally, SMS gives clients a simple way to use coupons. Consumers can utilize the mobile coupon codes or URLs they receive to make online purchases.
A thoughtful and well-designed SMS loyalty program has the potential to be a company’s most beneficial marketing campaign, despite the fact that putting one into place can need more resources.