6 Top Benefits of SMS in Your Lead Nurturing Strategy

Every business should be looking for ways to turn more prospects into loyal customers, and this is exactly where it needs to use SMS in its lead nurturing strategy. 

SMS is a direct way to communicate with users and a great way to re-engage cold leads. Its 98% open rate is amazing, making it a useful tool that can be completely personalized to connect well with people and make them feel special.

In fact, people are tired of seeing more advertisements, so we need to go for targeted messages that add value to the audience and show that the proposed offer is sent to them according to their real needs. This is especially important when dealing with people who don’t know you well because one mistake means losing a customer.

What is lead nurturing, and why is it important?

After finding new potential customers, which is called lead generation, it’s time to develop relationships with them; this process is known as lead nurturing. 

Lead nurturing is all about building meaningful relationships with potential customers at every step of their journey. At this stage, instead of bombarding them with generic ads, you must provide value, answer their questions, and show that you truly care about their needs.

The necessity of this process is that not everyone is ready to purchase right away. 

Nurturing keeps you on their mind all the time, and when they’re ready to make a purchase, you’re the first they think of, because people are more likely to buy from brands they trust. 

If you have managed to gain the trust of one person during this time, there is a high probability that this person will eventually become your customer.

Nurturing has principles and best practices that you must follow to get the best results. Doing it wrong will not only cause you to lose customers, but it may even damage your brand in some cases. 

Choosing the best tool for nurturing is also very important. To choose the right tool, you need to consider several factors: 

• High personalization
• High open and view rates
• High speed of delivering the message to the user
• The ability to automate its processes 

Given the statistics we mentioned earlier and by taking into account the inherent characteristics of SMS, all of this makes it an ideal tool for lead nurturing.

Creating a winning SMS lead nurturing strategy

Crafting a winning SMS lead nurturing strategy is the key to turning prospects into enthusiastic buyers. It is not just about sending messages—it is about creating meaningful interactions with them. 

This process includes various steps, in which lead qualification should be done with the help of SMS, promotions via SMS should be carried out to nurture leads, and preferably, a two-way communication should take place to increase customer interaction. Below, we explain step by step how to create an SMS Lead Nurturing Strategy.

Define goals

An SMS marketing strategy for lead nurturing should first have a specific goal. This means deciding exactly what you want to achieve with your campaign. For example, increasing sales by a certain percentage can be the goal.

By setting a specific goal, you can see how well your campaign is performing. If you reach your goal, you’ll know your strategy is working. If not, you can identify what didn’t go as well and make improvements for your next campaigns. This way, you can correct any flaws and enhance your SMS marketing over time.

In short, a well-defined goal guides your actions and helps you track progress.

Define the audience and build a subscriber list

The next step is to create a subscriber list, and the first important thing about it is to never add a user to your list without their explicit consent; this is neither ethical, nor professional, nor legal. To build this list, you should use SMS opt-in best practices.

You should also identify your target audience based on the target customers of your product and the goal you have for the campaign and try to attract them to your campaign only. This way, you will incur the least additional cost and see the best possible results.

The reason is that this way you know exactly what content you need to create and how to personalize your SMS to increase the subscribers’ engagement. Because your audience is known, you can impact them more effectively.

Create the SMS message

Now it is time to create your engaging SMS content to attract and re-engage cold leads. In the next section of the post, we will explain in detail how SMS texts should be written to have the best impact. 

Here, we will only point out that your SMS message should completely convey the feeling to the audience that they are not facing a mass advertisement, but that your business is precisely giving them the best possible offer based on the knowledge you have gained from the subscriber.

This way, the subscriber will feel the urgency to seize the opportunity as soon as possible to get the best benefits from it.

Test and modify the message

Once you have written the SMS text, you should not rush and send it to all your subscribers immediately. This mistake can be really fatal and ruin all your dreams. 

You need to make sure that your SMS message is good enough to increase cold leads’ engagement, that the SMS truly qualifies leads, and that it is generally a good promotion for nurturing your leads.

So, it is time to test it first. Send it to a limited number of your audience and evaluate the results. If this test does not give you the desired results, you definitely need to change it. 

Modify the SMS message and test it again. When you are sure that you have good SMS content, it is time to send it in bulk.

Now you can even automate the process of sending SMS periodically to your new and old subscribers to nurture your leads. Depending on the characteristics of each subscriber and the suggestions you can make, you can define that a personalized SMS should be sent to each group of customers automatically and at specific time intervals.

Benefits of SMS in Your Lead Nurturing Strategy

In this section, we will briefly summarize why SMS is an effective tool for re-engaging cold leads and nurturing them.

Instant and Direct Communication

The high open rate of SMS compared to other options—for example, around 27% for email—as well as its instant delivery to the user without requiring an internet connection, and the fact that most SMS messages are read within the first three minutes, are among the key reasons why SMS is suitable for lead nurturing.

Enhanced Engagement Through Personalization

Personalized SMS messages can boost click-through rates by 72%. Addressing leads by name and demonstrating that you truly value their needs can help you earn their trust more effectively.

Cost-Effective SMS Automation

SMS automation tools like WP SMS Pro enable businesses to nurture leads 24/7 without manual effort. For example, an e-commerce brand can automate a campaign as follows:

1. Send a welcome text after sign-up.
2. Follow up with a discount code three days later.
3. Send an abandoned cart reminder after 24 hours.

Re-Engagement of Cold Leads

Cold leads often need a nudge, and SMS is a perfect tool for re-engagement campaigns due to its immediacy. By combining SMS texts with exclusivity and urgency, you can create a highly effective campaign that drives a significant portion of leads into the buying cycle.

Two-Way Interaction for Real-Time Feedback

Unlike emails, SMS allows leads to reply instantly. By using this feature for polls, nudging, or gathering feedback (for example, a real estate agent could text: ‘Want a virtual tour of the property? Reply YES!’), you can qualify leads faster in real-time.

Higher Conversion Rates with Promotional Campaigns

SMS promotions have an average conversion rate of 29%, while email has an average conversion rate of 15.2%. In addition, SMS yields a higher ROI than email. Both of these advantages stem from the fact that SMS makes it easier and faster to reach the audience compared to email. These statistics highlight the effectiveness of this tool.

Best Practices to create an effective SMS message for lead nurturing

Creating an effective SMS message for lead nurturing is truly both an art and a science. With the right approach, you can turn an audience into loyal customers. SMS’s inherent characteristics, such as its high open rates, direct and immediate communication, and personalization capabilities, make it a powerful tool in your lead nurturing strategy. 

We can create effective SMS messages for lead nurturing and benefit from them because of these features that enable SMS to be such a good tool.

In this section, we will uncover the best practices that will help you create great SMS content for your lead nurturing strategy. We will discuss how to personalize SMS messages, the importance of creating two-way communication for more interaction with customers, and how to use SMS for lead qualification.

Use Personalized SMS for Better Engagement

Statistics show that about 72% of people only pay attention to messages that are personalized. This number alone demonstrates how important personalization is for better engagement. 

By personalizing your messages, you show your leads that you really understand them and foster a sense of trust. 

Additionally, by addressing specific needs and preferences, you increase their satisfaction and thus the likelihood of them becoming loyal customers.

A very simple personalized text message could start like this: ‘Hey Alex, we’ve got a special offer just for you!‘

Also, mentioning previous purchases or engagements can be effective. For example: ‘Hi Sarah, we hope you’re loving your new running shoes!‘

Use SMS Automation for Lead Nurturing

Time is precious, and manually sending messages to each lead is not feasible as your business grows. You need a tool that can send specific messages regularly at different times, with complete personalization, and according to specified audience groupings.

WP SMS Pro can provide you with this complete package to manage your SMS campaigns for lead nurturing efficiently. Messages should be sent based on different triggers and at specific times that are appropriate and for different purposes, for example, as a reminder or to promote a specific opportunity.

Use SMS to re-engage with cold leads

Sometimes the solution to a user’s lack of engagement is a gentle nudge to bring them back, and SMS is an excellent tool for re-engaging cold leads due to its immediacy and high open rates. 

A friendly message can rekindle interest and remind leads why they connected with you in the first place.

For example, ‘We’ve just launched our new app feature—come check it out!‘ could be a good reminder. However, do not bombard them with messages, as this can have a negative impact.

Use Two-Way SMS for Customer Interaction

Do you want more interaction? Do you want to engage the user more? Fortunately, SMS has the ability to receive messages from your subscribers, and two-way communication is what you need for more customer interaction. With the ability to receive SMS, you can hold contests, conduct surveys, and get feedback. 

You can even understand users’ enthusiasm for a service by receiving an SMS from them. For example: ‘To reserve your spot, reply with the word RESERVE.‘

WP SMS Pro gives you an inbox and allows you to receive SMS from users so you can use it in the most optimal way.

Use SMS for Lead Qualification

Not all leads are generated equal. Some are ready to buy, while others need more nurturing. You can find out who can soon become a customer by asking questions and analyzing some user behavior. 

For example: ‘Are you interested in a free demo of our software? Reply YES to schedule.‘ is a simple and direct SMS text that qualifies your leads. However, sometimes more indirect measures are required, and polls can take on this responsibility.

Note that you should keep your messages simple and short because short messages are more likely to get a response. In addition, be respectful and don’t press too hard; if they’re not interested, thank them for their time.

Send Promotional SMS for nurturing leads

Promotions can be a powerful motivator when done thoughtfully, and SMS is a great channel for sending promotional SMS to nurture your leads. Promotions can be sent in different ways. Some of them are exclusive discounts. For example: ‘Exclusive offer! Get 25% off with code SAVE25.‘

Others are limited-time offers, such as: ‘Flash Sale! 50% off until midnight tonight.‘

Additionally, they might be new product announcements. For instance: ‘Just launched! Check out our latest collection today: https://wp-sms-pro.com‘

However, be careful about laws and compliance. For example, complying with GDPR for European customers and TCPA for American ones is necessary.

Conclusion

In conclusion, nurturing leads effectively is not just beneficial—it’s essential. By employing best practices such as personalizing messages, using SMS automation, re-engaging cold leads, enabling two-way communication, qualifying leads via specific questions, and sending promotional content, you can significantly enhance your engagement and conversion rates. However, the success of your SMS lead nurturing efforts largely depends on the tools you use to implement them. WP SMS Pro offers a comprehensive solution to manage your SMS campaigns efficiently and effectively.

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