As Ron Radway knows, the landscape for mortgage lenders is changing. As someone who is constantly seeking out the best deals for his clients, Ron needs to be on top of the latest information and be able to pass it on to his clients quickly. His business, OneCall Financial Advice Centre in Benfleet, relies heavily on being able to contact his clients at short notice. Web SMS has opened a new door of communication to him and his company, allowing him to leave messages and requests to call the office in a way that he knows will get a quick response. Being able to send SMS from desktop computers has also saved him time and money.

Size Doesn’t Matter

Ron’s experience of web SMS is such that he says he: “would recommend it to any business – large or small!” This software allows the user to send as many or as few emails as they want to at any given time. But surely that’s what computers are for?

The difference is that, using this software, you can send SMS from desktop computers directly to your customers’ mobile phones. The software converts your email into text message format. If you consider that it is estimated that around 85% of the population are carrying their mobile phone right now, and that research has shown that people respond to text messages within five minutes of receiving them, you can start to see the bigger picture.

Where Web SMS software scores over traditional email is that it gives you the facility to contact your customers at the drop of a hat, even if they’re on the move. In addition, it means that they’ve got a message that they can review and refer back to when it’s convenient. The software is also a two-way street – your customers’ texts are translated back into email, so that you can keep tabs on their replies without having to go anywhere near your own mobile phone.

Loan Ranger

For anyone in the mortgage finding business, this level of communication is a must-have. But the benefits don’t just stop at being able to send SMS from desktop computers.

● If you deal with foreign investors, your web SMS software can convert your email into any language, giving you a broader client target base

● You can check the status of any messages you have sent online, so you’ll know exactly who has received them and who hasn’t

● Instant direct marketing campaigns are also possible using this service. Using SMS from desktop computers, you can keep your clients informed of the latest deals you have on offer

● You may even find that your clients spread the word for you. We all receive and forward funny texts, so a piece of good mortgage advice might just make its way from one phone to another. Word of mouth is a thing of the past – long live word of text!

One of the most important factors for any business – and especially in the current economic climate – is that web SMS can cost significantly less than trying to keep in touch over the phone. For businesses of all sizes, that matters. It also means that Ron and other business users build up a much closer working relationship with their customers and provide them with a far higher standard of customer care. That can only boost a company’s reputation, and a user-friendly company generates more customers than one that’s still losing customer’s queries, missing their calls and forgetting to tell them about an important new deal. SMS messaging negates all of those business pitfalls, and as Ron has found out, keeping his chain of mortgage buyers happy is a sure way to a ‘For Sale’ sign to turn into ‘Sold’!

According to Simon Outing, the secret to excellent customer service is all in the details. Simon runs Western Security Systems in Cardiff, a firm that installs a wide range of security precautions for businesses and individuals, from intruder alarms to CCTV installations. In his experience, many customers want to know how quickly they can get their security measures put in. Often, these customers will be on the move and unable to write down the details of their appointment, leading to missed visits and installation opportunities. Using web to SMS software, Simon is able to ensure that both the client and the installer are both in the same place at the same time. He feels that email to SMS software is a security precaution for the security business!

A Secure Outfit

Anyone working in security installations has a duty to protect their clients’ data, as well as offer up security solutions for their home or workplace. The email to SMS software that Simon’s company uses allows him to limit the accounts that can send web to SMS messages, thereby protecting his customers from any employees that might decide to abuse the system. In the security game, security is everything. But what exactly does email to SMS software do and how has Simon managed to take advantage of it?

Simon Says…

In essence, Web to SMS software converts an email into a text message. This can then be fired down the wire to as many or as few of your customers’ mobile phones as you want, allowing you to create blanket texts for marketing purposes, for example, or individual texts. Western Security Systems use their email to SMS software to send confirmation text messages to customers who have telephoned to book an appointment. Simon says that: “We send our messages straight from Microsoft Outlook for simplicity. Our customers think this small extra service is excellent.”

Instead of waiting for clients to check their emails or writing appointment details on the back of a piece of scrap paper, all of Simon’s clients receive a message on their mobile that they can refer to in their own time. Think about it – who doesn’t check their text messages? But a scrap of paper with a time scribbled on it is all too easily lost. Text messaging ensures that Simon’s customers get the message first time, every time.

Extra Security

One of the main problems with traditional email marketing is that companies have to invest a lot of time and money trying to work out who received an email and who didn’t. This is where web to SMS software comes into its own.

● Using email to SMS software, you can check the status of each message you have sent online, so that you can organise follow up calls or extra messages in good time

● The software allows you to translate your message into any language, cutting through any language barriers

● Email to SMS is a two-way street: your customers’ texts are sent back as emails, so you can control the whole operation from your computer.

● Your software will let you know when you’re running out of SMS credit, so you’re safe in the knowledge that you’re never going to be caught short.

The result is a secure system that’s easily maintained and monitored, Simon’s customers know exactly when their security installation is due to be fitted and Simon’s team don’t waste time and money turning up for appointments that the client has missed because they ‘didn’t get the message’. SMS messaging ensures that Simon’s messages are safe and secure, every time.

For Richard Johnson of Leeds, instant communication has come to play a vital role in his business. Collectmyparcel.com uses a texting service alongside Internet texting to ensure that he can keep his customers in the loop with up-to-the-minute information about their parcels. Not only does this save him endless man-hours on the telephone, but it also ensures that his customers know exactly when and where their deliveries will be arriving. For the customers, this means there are no wasted visits to sorting offices or hanging around waiting for something to arrive. The information delivered straight to the client is accurate and immediate.

Communication is the Key

How can a texting service help one guy reach all his customers at one time? The beauty of bulk SMS software is that it allows you to reach each client through a mobile communication device – or, as it’s more commonly known, their mobile phone! According to the Times newspaper, there are approximately 62.5 million mobile phones in use in the UK today. Bulk SMS software is compatible with both PCs and Macs, allowing the user to carry out Internet texting to as many or as few of his clients he needs to without even having to pick up the phone. The software works with over 700 different mobile networks, so messages can be delivered almost instantly anywhere in the world. Now, let’s think this through even further – how many people do you know who leave their homes without their mobile phone? The answer is probably very few. The mobile phone is a daily lifeline for most people and if it’s not in their pocket, then it’s probably in their briefcase or handbag.

Textual Dealing

While most people may not be able to check their emails every few minutes, pretty much everyone checks their phone messages, wherever they happen to be. As soon as an alert sounds, the hands go into the pocket and out come the mobiles. For people like Richard Johnson, it means that he can stay on top of his customers’ needs and even drop them a message to contact him when it’s most convenient.

Mobile Marketing

In addition to the benefits of being able to keep his customers informed about important deliveries, Internet texting offers people like Richard further benefits including:

• A bulk SMS texting service that allows business owners to launch powerful marketing campaigns – all at the click of a mouse

• The capacity to store the contact details for literally thousands of clients in one database

• The potential to keep customers informed of the latest developments, promotions and special offers is almost instantaneous – simply compose the text and away it goes

• Bulk SMS has enormous benefits for businesses that need to be able to contact their clients as quickly as possible – it’s fast, efficient and far more cost-effective than the telephone

The benefits of bulk SMS for delivery couriers are substantial. Not only can they inform their clients when and where to receive their parcels, but they can also improve their drop-time as a result. New technology applied to an old industry means that no more time is wasted waiting for a customer who wasn’t expecting a package until another time. It also means an enhanced business reputation for efficiency and customer service. If there’s one thing that customers love, it’s being kept ‘in the loop’. By being able to supply them with fast, accurate information, Richard Johnson and other delivery couriers using the system are improving their quality of service to their customers, as well as business efficiency. For delivery couriers, Internet texting has it all wrapped up.

Bulk SMS marketing is proving increasingly popular with all types of businesses. Quick, easy to use and effective, it also lends itself to working well within lead generation strategies and marketing campaigns. Here we find out how bulk SMS marketing helped Magnetic Marketing pull in the customers.

Dez Futak spends his working day helping businesses create effective marketing strategies. But when it comes to his own marketing, Dez has found that the benefits of bulk SMS marketing have proved to be a big attraction to potential new clients.

Dez runs Magnetic Marketing, based in Basingstoke in the south of England, and has adopted SMS marketing as part of his core marketing strategy. By using it as part of his lead generation strategy, he has been able to not only bring in new business for himself, but also recommend it to other organisations to help their marketing process too.

Quick and easy to set up

SMS text marketing systems makes it easy to deliver targeted, group text messages to consumers in a quick and cost-effective way. The system allows people like Dez to deliver their marketing message straight into people’s pockets. And with texting being one of the most popular forms of instant communication, it’s effective at getting the message across every time. The result is that by incorporating SMS messaging into a general strategy, new leads can be generated that can easily convert into real sales.

SMS text marketing gives you a number of key benefits including:

• The chance to maximise your ROI, giving you great value for money

• The opportunity to build up a strong communication link with existing and new customers on the go

• Stimulate new leads by using smart text messaging solutions such as SMS coupons, dealer locators and promotional SMS games that your clients will want to interact with

• Build a strong brand awareness by getting people interested in your brand through an opt-in SMS campaign, SMS freebies, contests and sweepstakes

• The ability to carry out detailed monitoring of your SMS campaign’s performance and to adjust your strategy instantly according to the results

SMS marketing hasn’t just allowed Dez to boost his own business, though. He’s been busy recommending it to businesses he works with on a daily basis, and monitor what kind of responses he’s been getting too. “SMS messaging is very easy and quick to set up, and its email to SMS gateway allows me to monitor, in real time, leads that are being generated both for my primary business, and those business I support through Magnetic Marketing Ltd.” He has found the service to be comprehensive, allowing him to plan marketing campaigns carefully for maximum effect.

So are you maximising your business potential? Does your messaging system allow you to combine it with lead generation tactics, or are you still just ‘hoping’ that the message will get through? SMS text marketing is proving increasingly popular with businesses across the UK, so why not optimise every potential lead?

SMS marketing campaigns can be extremely cheap and effective. As we’ve seen in our recent series, they are not hard to set up and run, either.

Probably the greatest challenge you will face is a relatively simple one: how do you pack an effective sales message into just 160 characters – the length of a standard SMS text message? In this post we’ll look at some techniques you can use to be as concise as possible without losing any marketing punch.

The first thing to say, of course, is that you don’t have to be concise at all. TextMagic allows you to send concatenated text messages, and you can use up to 459 characters to get your message across.

That’s great if you’re sending a small number of messages, or you need to send detailed instructions or greetings to customers, colleagues or friends. But the long approach isn’t usually the best when it comes to bulk SMS marketing. The whole point of using text messages to pitch to your customer base is to present your target audience with a short, pithy text that gets your message across quickly and efficiently, and as far as possible recreates the experience of receiving an SMS from a family member or friend. If you make your customers scroll through a concatenated message of 300 or 400 characters, you’re going to lose many of them even before the halfway point.

All the same, you have a lot to say. How do you get the best possible results from just 160 characters?

The key is to focus on your core message, and nothing more. If you’re thinking of running an SMS marketing campaign it might be worth designing your offer with the medium of SMS in mind, rather than trying to make SMS fit an existing campaign. Try to focus on creating a simple offer, such as a limited-time discount on your most popular product.

Anything too complicated risks getting lost in 160 characters. On the other hand, a good, clear, simple offer with an obvious benefit and call to action is perfect for SMS. Here are a couple of SMS marketing messages that would probably work really well:

“Jones’ Jewellers SALE: 10% off all items until 5pm Tuesday!”

“Car need a service? Come to Davies’ Motors, Moston and get a FREE wash ‘n’ wax!”

Each one is a combination of brevity and classic copywriting techniques. Let’s have a look at what’s going on.

First, each message would be targeted at a specific, tightly defined audience. The first one would probably go out to existing customers of Jones the Jeweller, while the second might go either to former customers of Davies’ Motors, or at least to residents of the town where the business is based. This customer pre-knowledge is key to a successful SMS campaign: if the list you’re sending to has never heard of your business, you need to use part of your message to explain what and where it is. (Top tip: the easiest way to do that can be to include a web address).

Second, each message is delivering a clear, simple, easy-to-understand offer. Key offer words like FREE and SALE are capitalised (a very effective technique, but restrict it to one word per message, or you’ll lose the effect) and – in the first message – there is a clear time limit on the offer.

The second message starts with a question which is designed to provoke a clear response in the reader’s mind (either “yes, my car does need a service!” or “no, but it will do soon…” – after all, every car needs a service sooner or later).

So there we go: a short, clear message aimed at a defined audience who either know about your business already or which is able to discover and understand it quickly and easily. That approach combined with robust, proven copywriting methodology should help to ensure that you get the best possible results from your SMS marketing campaign.

Photo: Maggie Smith

In this new video I will show you how to collect mobile phone numbers from your website’s visitors using our mobile marketing sign-up forms.

You can use these forms to collect contacts to you mobile marketing database. All contacts will be inserted to groups. Once your database has some contacts you can send a group SMS in a few clicks to all your contacts.