Thesending of professional SMS via an internet or web service can be a very effective promotional tool, but before sending a text message to your customers, you will need to collect their mobilephone numbers. As we have all noticed, while it is quite easy to obtain an email address today, consumers are generally much more reluctant to share a mobile number, especially when it comes to their personal phone number. We will therefore provide you with some tips that will allow you to set up campaigns to collect mobile numbers so you can use a professional SMS sending method for your prospects.

Use an offer to entice prospects to share their number

A recent study shows that simply dangling an attractive offer is enough to collect your prospects' phone numbers. In fact, 58% of consumers surveyed say they would be willing to provide their mobile phone number if it is clearly explained that the purpose is to send them discount offers online. It is enough to offer them a small gift in the form of a discount coupon provided immediately after they sign up for your services.

Whether or not you choose to grant them an immediate discount, it is imperative that you take the time to explain to your prospects that you may use marketing SMS communication to send them exclusive offers and discount coupons. It is surprising to see how many prospects are taken aback when they receive their first text message because they were not warned about these communications. The risk, of course, is that they will immediately request to unsubscribe upon receipt and ultimately have a negative impression of the brand.

A punchy advertising SMS to encourage sign-ups

If you want to rely on a solution to successfully send marketing SMS campaigns to your consumers, you will need to encourage your prospects to sign up for your lists spontaneously. The concept remains the same; the simplest approach is to highlight a clear and punchy advertising SMS that will make them want to sign up for your services:

"Enjoy a €15 discount on your next purchase." The first sentence has the merit of being short and punchy while leaving the customer wondering about the conditions to take advantage of the offer. We will, of course, add the following in smaller print: "By joining our VIP club." This way, you provide the information without superfluous explanation, which will encourage subscribers to answer the call. This type of SMS can be placed in-store, where your staff can then finish selling the benefits of the "VIP club." However, it can also be placed on a web page or even adapted for an advertising campaign to find new customers. The most important thing is always to highlight the offer and then explain the conditions to be met, which in this case is providing a mobile number to receive messages.

The main goal is to ensure prospects don't unsubscribe immediately after receiving the SMS marketing and that they are receptive to responding and taking advantage of the offers you send them via message.

Preventing fraud and the reuse of SMS promotional offers

Once you have collected a large number of mobile numbers, you will need to anticipate potential fraud in your sending process. You certainly don't want to lose the benefits of your campaign to users who might use the same promotion multiple times. It is therefore essential to take a few precautions when sending messages to prevent subscribers from cheating and taking advantage of the same offer repeatedly. Obviously, a professional SMS discount coupon cannot be torn up, so you will need to find a few tricks to protect each message sent.

A time-limited offer

To prevent prospects from reusing the same offer multiple times, the easiest way is to limit its validity period. It is up to you to determine the right expiration date based on when you send your message communication. However, be careful: if you want to attract customers to your store or restaurant, the further away the prospects you are sending your campaigns to are located, the longer the validity period you should provide to give them time to make the trip.

A system with unique promo codes

If you have an advanced promotion management system, you can implement a unique discount code solution. The principle is quite simple: just send a group message to all prospects asking them to reply via SMS to receive their promo code. It is thus possible to set up a marketing campaign that uses unique codes for each connection. This way, you will prevent consumers from taking advantage of the promotion multiple times in a row. Online promotions also work perfectly.