Sending customers SMS marketing is the most effective way to reach them consistently. It’s also a great way to build trust and brand loyalty. However, there are so many opportunities to send out SMS offers that it can be overwhelming. Consequently, you might find yourself asking: When should I send a text marketing campaign? The answer is not straightforward, as there are many factors to consider before sending a text marketing campaign. Read on to learn more about the best time to send SMS marketing to your customers.
Know your audience
The first step in knowing when to send SMS text marketing messages is to know your audience. This means understanding the demographics of your customers, as well as their purchasing habits and age range. For example, if most of your customers are young parents, you’ll want to send your messages during a time when they’re most likely to be at home with their children. Likewise, if many of your customers are professionals who are out at work during the day, you may want to send your messages on the way home or mid to late evening.
Use your ecommerce platform statistics
There is no better way to establish the best time to send your SMS marketing campaign than using your ecommerce platform or Google analytics stats. Most online retailers use an ecommerce platform like Shopify, Woocommerce or WordPress to host their online store. All of which come with a dashboard and statistics with intelligent data on when customers are visiting the store or purchasing items. Meaning, you can send your SMS text marketing campaign around the most optimum time where customers visit the store and placing orders. For example, if your site visitors and online sales spike around 19:30pm most week days, the most optimum time to send would be 18:30pm. Allowing customers time to receive the SMS message, visit your store and place an order. Valuable insights to leverage the best possible return on investment from you SMS text marketing campaign.
Finding the optimal day and time for your campaign
Another way to determine the best days to send SMS text marketing campaign is by finding the optimal time. This means identifying the peak times for purchases. For example, you may find that people are most likely to make purchases on the way home from work. Or, you may discover that people are most likely to make purchases during their lunch breaks. Another consideration is the best day to send. There is no right answer here, ultimately it depends on the promotion and timeframe to redeem the offer. However, pay day weekends work incredibly well as consumers have more capital income to spend on their favorite brands. Sending your SMS text marketing campaign on the last Friday of the month around lunchtime (12 noon) hits customers on the same day they have been paid, maximizing the likelihood of an order being placed. Alternatively, another great day to send is the Sunday evening after a payday weekend around 18:30pm-19:30pm. Ensuring the SMS offer is received at a time where consumers are most likely to be at home and have time to shop online.
Don’t forget to stagger the SMS text marketing campaign
One of the biggest mistakes with SMS marketing is sending thousands of SMS text offers in one go. SMS text marketing is far more impactful than email marketing due to the instant delivery and average response time of just 90 seconds. Meaning, if too many SMS texts are sent in bulk, you’ll generate an influx of visitors to your website which can effect site speed, page load times or even crash the site completely. Our advice is to use the “Message sending speed” tool on our Enterprise Platform to stagger the SMS messages over a longer period of time. As a result, easing the flow of traffic to your online store and ensuring an excellent shopping experience for your customers.
Conclusion
Ultimately, determining the best times to send SMS marketing messages is not a precise science. Instead, it’s a process of trial and error. To reduce the risk of your SMS text marketing campaign performing poorly contact a member of our team for expert advice and support.
