The Coolest Guy In The World Is Now Doing SMS Marketing

That man is, of course, none other than Jeff Goldblum. (And if you disagree with me? That’s fine. You’re most certainly entitled to your opinion.) But that opinion is wrong and you should move on. Nothing to see here. These aren’t the Droid’s you’re looking for.

Moving on . . .

Oh . . . right . . . there’s also the small matter of the country’s most popular daytime talk show host in on it. Ellen DeGeneres just launched her program.

Here’s a video.

Here’s another one.

Need a refresher on SMS marketing? Here’s a 90 second video. Scroll down a tad. (It’s geared toward hospitality, but the idea is the same for any vertical.)

So. . . tell me again why you think text message marketing isn’t “right” for your small business?

But these are celebs! It has nothing to do with ‘real’ business! some of you may be saying. Ok. If that’s the case, here’s a “small” list of brands that have used, or continue to use, SMS:

**Inhales**

Cartier. Audi. Citibank. Chipotle. Staples. Jaguar. Kiehl’s. Lifetime Fitness. Heineken. Lincoln Center. Facebook. CNN. NY Times. Express. Macy’s. Ikea. Reebok. Tommy Hilfiger. Subway. Jack in the Box. Nordstrom. Abercrombie. Arby’s. Office Depot. Office Max. Avenue. Pappa John’s. Payless. Redbox. Target. TMZ. Van’s. Walgreen’s. WWE. Tao Nightclub. The Obama campaign. The Hillary campaign. The Sanders Campaign. The Trump campaign.

**Exhales**

And there are thousands more.

So the correct answer is…it’s right for literally every, single, business. Period. No discussion. (Ok, maybe some like medicine, finance and law where there are heavy regulations in place, you can’t do it . . . but most can. And should.) Some businesses like retail, gyms, bars & restaurants, it should be front and center. Others? Perhaps less so, but it absolutely should still be part of the marketing mix.

• Bars & Restaurants? Get people to opt-in for the chance to win a $50 monthly gift card. (Which you then, of course, announce on social media with their permission!) Send out offers to help fill slow times. Create a separate list and keep your staff updated on the latest specials, what to push, staff schedule changes, etc. Use it for automatic birthday greetings (with an offer attached.) Happy hour specials. And on and on. . .
• Event planners? This should be a no-brainer. Segment the list to attendees. (Offer early reg incentives.) Put an SMS opt-in on your event site. Segment to sponsors. (Advise/remind on load in times, logistics, shipping deadlines, goodie bag insert deadlines, etc.) Use it as an upsell for sponsorships. (“Get a single, dedicated SMS blast to all attendees during the show at YYY time!”) Segment another list to volunteers. The list is very long here too.
• Influencers? Get your people OFF IG or FB and ON to your own lists. Email and SMS. Until you own their actual contact info, they’re not YOUR customers. They’re Instagram’s or Facebook.

*Reread that last sentence*

• Bands? Get a list so you can text people your gig/ticket info/offer early bird discounts. As a thank you for them opting in, give them a hidden MP3 download.
• Gyms? Send out confirmations for PT appointments. Changes in group ex schedule. Holiday specials. Follow up with leads. Send out fitness tips.

Examples are endless. Stop saying, “It’s too personal!” or “It’s too invasive!” (I’ve actually heard both on more than one occasion.)

First? It’s not “invasive” if your client opts-in by literally going to his/her phone, texting “joescoffee” to 12345 (or whatever.) By doing that, they’re figuratively raising their hands and more or less screaming at you saying, Hey! I really like you guys! Definitely stay in touch. . and I’m gonna give you my cell to make sure I don’t miss your stuff. (Oh, yeah, and the offer you’ve incentivized me with to GIVE you my cell is pretty awesome too.)

And second?

Your personal, anecdotal feelings about a particular mode of marketing should not dictate what (should be) an empirically oriented business decision that will contribute more money to the bottom line. (And depending on the size of the list . . . a substantial amount of money.)

*Reread that last sentence.*

Do you have all the money you want? If so? GREAT! What are you still doing reading this? I highly suspect, however. You don’t. So again, keep your “feelings” out of your marketing plan.

If people like you, like your brand, you’ve worked really hard to earn their trust, and they want to stay in touch– why would you NOT give them the opportunity to do so?

This is not spam either. People must literally pick up their phone and opt in to your program. It’s 100% permission-based.

Will everyone? No. But many will. And that’s all you need. The ones who do are your VIPs… so treat them accordingly.

98% of texts are read within 10 minutes with a near 100% open rate. Email? Also incredibly important but the numbers can’t even compare. It’s not even close. Here’s an infographic if you’re inclined.

Why some business owners still push against this, especially given what I’ve mentioned above is truly beyond me.

Will it make you money right away? Nope. But neither did your email list when you were first building it!

And the pricing is incredibly reasonable. Like any email service provider, pricing is based on the size of the list. Many of our customers pay either $49, $99, or $199. The larger (and quicker) the list gets, the more money you make.

Email used to have that sort of “send an email, make more money now” kind of effect. . . but it’s not that way anymore, and hasn't been for a while.

Take the time to build up your text list and it will, hands down, be your highest performing marketing channel.

Reach out for your free consultation and a 30 day trial now.