Everywhere you look, there are people engrossed in their mobile devices. Increasingly, consumers are using their mobile devices instead of a computer to surf the web and look up businesses they may need to hire. As a result, most businesses that have websites have had to find ways to reach consumers on their digital level â i.e. their mobile devices.
One marketing strategy that is increasingly popular is SMS marketing â also known as text message marketing. SMS marketing is a reliable way to reach consumers, but how do you know if they find your messages valuable or delete them as spam?
Honestly, sometimes you canât. However, you can minimize that risk by being creative and implementing effective SMS marketing strategies.
Tips for Effective SMS Marketing for Your Law Firm
Stand out from the crowd and make sure your messages donât end up in the trash bin by following these tips:
1. Make Your SMS Marketing Measurable
You will never know if your SMS campaign is effective without making it measurable. To do that, you can use analytics that monitor clicks that come from those messages. You can track when someone gets a text from you and clicks the link. You can also track revenue that comes from texts, so you know which campaigns worked and which ones didnât.
2. Send Texts at the Right Time
A general rule for SMS marketing is not to send texts between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m. When you send texts within that window depends on who your audience is. You want to aim for times that are not busy, like first thing in the morning on a workday, or during dinner time. Think about your day and when you are most likely to have down-time to browse your mobile device. Chances are that other people likely have similar down-times in their day. Â
3. Consider Segmenting Your Subscribers
Even though all of your text subscribers may have a common goal in that they have a legal problem, they are all very different. Some clients may need a simple legal answer, while others have more involved legal cases. If you have multiple areas of practice, you may also have subscribers who are interested in one area but not the other. This is where segmenting can be helpful.
Segmenting means that you have more than one SMS campaign. Maybe one group of subscribers get a special offer for a divorce package, but others get information about a new personal injury law. What you donât want is to send someone interested in divorce law an offer for a personal injury consultation. That doesnât make sense and is irrelevant to that subscriber. Â
4. Send More than Advertisements
One thing that consumers love is helpful and relevant information. So donât make all of your SMS campaigns strictly marketing-related. Send out informative information, tips, tricks, or info about current events. You want your audience to, ultimately, consider you a useful resource for more than just a legal question.
So, when your subscribers get those first text messages, make sure that they are supplied with engaging and interesting texts and incentives for signing up. If consumers view your messages as spammy marketing tactics only, they are likely to unsubscribe.
5. Use Interactive Techniques
Online users enjoy interactive experiences. You can do this via SMS marketing by hosting a contest or quiz, including links in your text, and incentivizing sharing. Anything you can do to create a sense of consumer involvement and engagement is worth a try.
6. Incorporate Media
Online users also increasingly respond to media, such as video or images. With social sites like Instagram and TikTok being as popular as they are, itâs not hard to see why. Use this to your advantage and include videos or graphic media in your texts. These multimedia messages will spark interest and encourage the user to click.
7. Give Perks to Your Most Loyal Subscribers
Have a few subscribers that are clients and consistently spread the word about your firm? Give them some perks! VIP subscribers should get something more exclusive and personalized, which makes them feel special. And we all want to feel special. Giving VIPs something that no one else is getting is appealing and engaging, and instills trust in you.
Put Your SMS Marketing Plan to Action
Like most marketing strategies, effective SMS marketing involves some trial-and-error and honing your skills. Use the tips above to get started, and make sure you are measuring any successes or not-so-successful campaigns (we donât believe in failure). As you get more comfortable with your subscribers and your campaigns, you will start to see more interaction and engagement. With the right amount of patience and diligence, you could find that SMS marketing makes a tremendous difference for your law firm.Â