Cold texting is a customer outreach technique companies use to raise awareness and boost their product’s success. But, while it has merits, it also comes with limitations.
This article explains the concept of cold texting and introduces you to more effective alternatives for your business strategy.
The downside of cold texting
Over the years, SMS marketing has gained popularity amongst businesses in different sectors. In fact, SMS campaigns have been found to drive impressive conversion rates.
Research suggests that 29% is the average conversion rate of SMS marketing, demonstrating its effectiveness in driving customer actions and achieving desired outcomes. So evidently, texting is widely accepted. However, there are various forms of text messages that aren’t that effective.
Cold texting is one of these customer outreach techniques that involves sending text messages to clients without prior consent. Essentially, it means reaching out to an unknown contact without their permission. This might seem like a good way to boost your target audience, but it isn’t.
Sending a cold text means contacting a client who doesn’t know about your business or might not even need the product. Sometimes, the customer might feel offended, as cold messaging is an intrusive outreach technique.
Is cold texting illegal?
The simple answer is Yes. Cold text marketing is an illegal customer outreach technique as it intrudes on the customers’ rights to privacy. In fact, there are laws against cold texting that protect the customer from infringement on their privacy.
For example, in the United States, the Federal Communications Commission requires businesses to obtain customer consent before sending texts. Companies that default on their obligations are susceptible to consequences such as financial penalties and the potential for legal action.
Aside from the legal drawbacks of cold text messages, they also endanger your business’ image. Cold text messaging could offend potential customers and make them believe you do not value their privacy. Thus, this reduces their chances of even checking out the product you’re advertising.
Here are some cold text examples that demonstrate its negative effects:
- Sending a text to a client whose number you found online:
In this scenario, the customer would find the message strange and might even report your business for cold texting. Additionally, your company might suffer a low response rate from its customers.
- Texting customers from a purchased contact list:
Organizations new to their industries usually don’t have many contacts. At times, they buy contact lists to help increase their audience.
While buying a contact list in itself isn’t an illegal act, the process is undoubtedly shady. It involves selling a list of unknown contacts to a business to help grow its primary audience. These businesses, in turn, call and text these numbers without their consent.
No matter the case, respecting customer privacy is vital. Not only does it boost how customers view your business, but it also ensures you don’t infringe on any privacy regulations. Consented messages also reduce the risk of low response rates and help build your ROI.
Effective alternatives to cold texting
For any business to be successful, customer outreach should be one of your top priorities. However, applying methods like cold text marketing isn’t the best course of action.
It could prevent your organization from gaining the awareness and public image it needs. Additionally, you risk losing potential customers.
Thankfully, there are other effective alternatives to cold texting. These methods are legal, uphold your customers’ privacy, and help you draw the right attention to your business. We will go into detail about these working alternatives below:
1. Keyword opt-in
Keywords are powerful tools used in SMS marketing to direct clients to perform an action. These keyword opt-ins help guide your customers toward a product or service on your website. You can also use them to direct customers to subscribe to your company’s services.
Using keyword opt-ins instead of cold texts helps you establish connections with new customers and maintain relationships with old clients. Here are some additional benefits of keyword opt-ins:
- It gives customers easy access to your products, as all it takes to subscribe to a service is one keyword
- It is an effective way to raise awareness for a new service or product
- With keywords, you can target a particular audience interested in your product or service. This increases the SMS marketing ROI and conversion rates
2. Click-to-text button
Click-to-text refers to a feature or button on a website or digital platform that allows users to initiate a text message conversation with a business or individual by simply clicking on it. It enables quick and direct communication between the user and the recipient, similar to initiating a text message conversation on a mobile device.The button functions by generating an automatic message whenever the customer clicks it.
Adding a click-to-text button to your website lets visitors easily reach out to you right from their first time on the site. It has many advantages, most of which focus on customer retention. Below are a few of them:
- It is a good way to build your SMS marketing contact list since it directs new visitors to your inbox
- It provides an easy way for customers to contact you about their complaints and suggestions. Thus, it helps you build a stronger customer relationship
- A click-to-text button is also a great way to keep track of customer requests and suggestions
3. New marketing tools integration
Customer outreach demands discovering new marketing tools and merging them with existing ones to provide customers with the best service. This means researching market trends, locating new tools, and applying them to your operations to make marketing more effective.
For example, instead of compiling contact lists manually and reaching out to them, you can connect TextMagic to your referred lead generation software to automatically contact interested, high-quality leads. This helps you achieve your goals with less stress and more efficiency.
Some benefits of integrating new marketing tools into your strategy include the following:
- It helps you find new marketing techniques that work better for your business
- It boosts the efficiency of your marketing and increases your ROI
- Using SMS marketing tools can help optimize your targeted messages so you can meet your customers’ needs better
4. SMS sign-up
An excellent way to get a customer’s consent to send them text messages is by suggesting they sign up for your SMS campaigns. When customers create an account or sign up on your site, a pop-up message can prompt them to register for your text-based marketing campaigns.
Once they provide their phone numbers, you can include them in your contact list and send them targeted SMS campaigns. Ultimately, SMS sign-ups serve as a better solution than cold texting. Here are some advantages of using them on your website:
- By applying SMS sign-ups, you can direct visitors interested in your products to sign up for your campaigns
- They are a stellar way to build your contact list and, eventually, your relationship with customers
Turn cold texting into warm texting
Warm texting is the opposite of cold texting as it involves reaching out to individuals who are already familiar with your brand through personalized text messages, creating a sense of value and appreciation. By engaging with them directly and addressing their specific needs, warm texting fosters a stronger connection and enhances the overall customer experience.
It demonstrates that you value their relationship and are dedicated to providing close attention and relevant information. As a result, it enhances their perception of your business and impacts the effectiveness of the text messages
Engaging in warm texting instead of cold text marketing yields more benefits than drawbacks. Nonetheless, crafting a warm text message can be a daunting task. Fortunately, we have provided tips for turning cold text messages into warm texts below:
- Make your phone number public. This makes it easier for new customers to find you.
- Personalize your messages according to the needs of your clients.
- Use short keywords.
- Ensure you obtain permission from the clients to send updates.
- Remember to reference previous interactions.
- Offer value upfront to your audience.
- Invest time in building your connection with customers: know their preferences and engage in conversations.
- Foster interactive dialogue by adopting a conversational tone for enhanced two-way communication.
- Provide opt-out options so customers have the choice of unsubscribing at any point where they want to.
- Follow up with customers appropriately by sending information on other offers according to their preferences. While doing this, you must be patient and respectful at all times.
- Monitor and analyze results. Check the response and engagement rates to gauge how effective your marketing technique is.
Enhance customer outreach with TextMagic
TextMagic is a powerful communication platform that allows you to effectively engage customers. Our platform has multiple features that combine to make your SMS marketing seamless and productive.
With TextMagic, you can send bulk messages quickly and in a cost-effective way. Our two-way chat feature allows you to actively communicate with your clients if they have urgent issues. It also offers you the ability to convert emails to texts and send them within no time.
These features, alongside many others, make TextMagic the perfect choice for all your SMS marketing needs. You can utilize the platform to personalize and optimize your texts to boost your outreach efficiency.
Conclusion
Cold texting comes with many challenges and risks, especially since it is an illegal act. To this effect, the major alternative to cold text marketing is sending warm texts instead.
Since warm texts involve requesting consent first before sending a text, it makes your customers feel respected and important.
You can step up your SMS marketing game by switching to warm texting with TextMagic. From applying personalized text messages to scheduling your SMS campaigns, TextMagic has the ideal features you need. Simply sign up with us to start enjoying these features today.
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