The Ultimate Guide to SMS for Woocommerce 2023 (SMS Marketing Guides for E-Commerce)

Citation preview

Contents Chapter 1

Who this Guide is for Chapter 2

10 Reasons SMS a “Must Have” Chapter 3

What SMS Can Do for Your Brand Chapter 4

Business SMS vs Personal texting Chapter 5

Features Chapter 6

Cost Chapter 7

Checklist for Vendor Selection Chapter 8

14 SMS Myths Chapter 9

Author's Note

03 05 10 15 18 27 30 32 40

1

Who this Guide is for

Who this Guide is for Newcomers

Experienced Users

If you’re new to e-commerce SMS messaging,

If your already using SMS messaging, there’s

this guide, we’ll explain,

information in this guide you might not have

Why SMS is now a “must have” for your brand, How it differs from the personal text

been aware of that will help you fine-tune your strategy to grow faster and more profitably such as,

messaging,

Benefits you have not taken advantage of,

Exactly how your brand will benefit, its features, and cost,

New or advanced features,

How to select a vendor.

Changes in pricing and pricing components.

2

10 Reasons SMS a “Must Have”

10 Reasons SMS a “Must Have”

1

Mobile becoming the dominant shopping channel eMmarketer estimates 70% of total ecommerce sales will be mobile by 2024. Shopify indicates that over 80% of all traffic to Shopify stores comes from a mobile device.

Mobile dominates e-shopping

70%

80%

Will be mobile by 2024

of Shopify store traffic mobile



2



Consumers constantly check their phones Small Business Trends found that over 65% of American consumers checked their phones 160 times per day. With SMS, your brand can reach shoppers directly on the device they never stop checking.

3

Your customers already text with other brands

That means a more engaged, more receptive audience.

SMS read in 90 seconds

Texting is the primary way most consumers communicate with friends and family and it’s increasingly the way

90%

that they want to connect with brands.



Global News Wire reports that Over 80% of shoppers already signed up to receive text messages from at least one brand.

Consumers now texting brands

80%

5

98% SMS open rate Twilio reports that SMS open rates average 98% versus email at 15%.

6

45% SMS response rate SMSGlobal found that SMS messages have a 45% response rate while response rates for email were just 8%.

4

SMS read in 90 seconds

SMS / Email Comparison 100

Whereas emails can languish in spam filters, promotion tabs, or overfull

75

inboxes, CTIA, the Telecommunications Industry Association indicates 90% of

50

SMS messages are read within 3 minutes. Because SMS is an opt-in channel, you know that the people who sign up want to receive your messages.

25

0

SMS

Open Rate

Email

Response Rate

7

30% to 45% conversion rate Salesforce found an extraordinary conversation rate of 45% for brands using SMS. Research by UltraSMSscript, puts the average response rate of an SMS campaign that was sent in bulk, above 30%. Again, this is a large number that truly separates SMS marketing and puts it almost in a league of its own. There are so many variables at play when trying to figure out even a rough estimate of conversion rates. However, there is one thing that these and other conversion rate averages for SMS have in common– the results are exceptionally good. By contrast, a Marketing Insider Group study found the email conversion rates were a mere 1% to 5% depending on the email’s purpose.

Avg Conversion Rate 40

30

20

10

0

SMS

Email

8

Convenient For subscribers. Because SMS is

9

native to mobile phones and virtually

Another “get in touch’ choice SMS is not meant to replace existing

spam free, customers prefer SMS to

marketing strategies, like email or

other channels. It keeps your brand

social media. Consumers expect an

top of mind and allows them to know

omnichannel experience.

immediately about promotions, offers, product updates, shipping, delivery,

As you can see from the above, adding

appointments and more.

SMS to your marketing strategy gives you the opportunity to cost-effectively

These types of messages can often

generate more revenue faster by

get lost in emails — but with texts, you

sending customers the right message,

ensure you get the necessary

at the right time, on the right channel.

information to the customer before they must look for it themselves. For your brand. The most advanced applications provide complete automation for list building, campaigns, and customer support along with a variety of easily customizable templates and mobile apps allowing you more time to run your business or stay healthy at the gym.

10

Increases customer lifetime value Because SMS has higher engagement and conversion rates than other channels, it strengthens customer relationships while generating more sales in less time, increasing customer lifetime value (CLV).

3

What SMS Can Do For Your Brand

What SMS Can Do for Your Brand Provide more than marketing

In business SMS terminology this is referred to

Marketing. Most all SMS business messaging

And much more. Depending on the SMS

applications are marketed as “SMS

application, SMS messaging can take you

Marketing.”

beyond “marketing” or “list building, to

The purpose of “marketing” is to attract new prospects to your brand through ads, posts, or other communication channels. Ideally, this promotion using messaging will encourage your target audience to “opt-in” to receive SMS message from your brand, turning them into leads who purchase your product or service.

as “list building” and those new “opted-in” customers are referred to as “subscribers.”

increasing revenue, providing premium customer service, generating and maintaining loyalty, increasing customer lifetime value, and enhancing brand equity. The most advanced applications automate almost all these capabilities and provide bots and a variety of templates to save time and staff.

Build your list

Increase revenue

Because consumers are anxious to text with

Although some initial sales will come

your business, growing your subscriber

through list building offers, most will

(customer) list organically with SMS

originate from other SMS messaging

messaging is easy.

initiatives.

Create an offer. Simply create an attractive

Given its 98% open and 45% response rate vs

offer which prospects accept in one of three

email’s 20% open and 6% response rate, SMS

ways:

is currently the most effective way to:

At your Shopify store checkout,

Promote new products,

Texting a word called a “keyword”

Notify of restocked products,

(promotion identifier)

Upsell and cross sell,

to your SMS phone number,

Recover sales from abandoned carts,

Submitting their name and mobile phone

win back lost business,

number.

encourage subscription renewals, Recover credit card defaults.

Place the offer on a popup or embedded form. Place the offer on a popup or embedded form on your website, landing and social media pages. The best SMS applications provide a variety of easily customizable form templates to save time by speeding up the creative process. Distribute an app-generated link to those form locations. Paste the link in emails, blogs,

Provide premium customer service Two-way desktop team messaging. Research from Avochato indicates that over half of consumers prefer texting over calling customer support.

newsletters, and anywhere else you can paste

Given this, conversational support via two-

a link on the web. You might also want to

way SMS messaging from a team accessible

create QR code with the link and embed the

inbox can become a game changer in keeping

code on flyers, product sheets, packaging

customers happy and allow you to retain more

materials or other media.

business.

Boost results with paid ads and call to actions

Two-way mobile team messaging. The most

linked to your form locations.

advanced e- commerce SMS apps have

mobile team inboxes with immediate access to all customer messaging history allowing you and your teammates to

Generate and maintain loyalty programs

provide conversational personal service anytime, wherever you are. If your business is growing rapidly, you’ll need this feature whether on desktop or mobile, since it allows any staff member to respond effectively with any customer.

Ensure future sales and referrals. Since your subscribers have opted in to receive your brand messages and their open rates average 98%, you can be assured their loyalty offer acceptance rate will be substantial. Offers send via email, on the other hand, can be

Automated notifications and alerts.

routed to spam or mingled with hundreds of

Another customer service feature

unopened emails in your customers’ inboxes

consumers have come to expect, is

and never be seen.

automated message notifications regarding: order completion, Shipping, Shipping delays, Delivery, Invoices,

Save time through segmentation and automation. Many SMS apps allow you to segment your subscriber list to identify those you’d like to participate in your loyalty program, and then automate implementation and maintenance of the program.

Payment due,

In addition, they track acceptance and

Appointments and reminders,

participation, as well as incentive usage and

Estimated technician arrival times.

drop offs.

Support bots. Bots can save an

Save integration expense. With SMS there’s no

extraordinary amount of time allowing

need to integrate fee-based third-party loyalty

you to grow your business more cost-

program apps.

effectively by giving immediate answers to commonly asked questions. Here are a

Collect information to improve personalization.

few:

Use loyalty offer messages to gather more

Returns, Refund policy, Tracking, Product use, Items ready for pickup.

information about your customers. Since SMS messaging is such a highly personal channel, the more information you can gather about your customers, the more personalized you can make your message to them. More personalized messages equate to more sales.

Increase customer lifetime value The longer customers stay with your brand, the more likely they’ll purchase additional products and the greater their lifetime value to your business (CLV)

Enhance brand equity Loyal customers become brand ambassadors. In many cases these ambassadors are also social media influencers who could grow your sales and revenue exponentially.

Save costs and staff The most advanced SMS texting apps provide time-saving customizable templates, automations for all features, and bots for sales and customer service. In addition, two-way messaging reduces support staffing needs by up to 70% vs phone according to a recent Forrester research study.

Two-way messaging reduces support staff

70%

4

Business SMS vs Personal texting

Business SMS vs Personal texting SMS vs other types of messaging

Internet based messaging providers are not

SMS is telecom based. Unlike interne-

government under TCPA but may have

based messaging apps such Messenger, Instagram DM, and Apple Business Chat, SMS is a service provided by telecommunication companies such as AT&T and Verizon which is regulate by the government under Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and governed as to best practices by Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association members (CTIA). SMS app users are subject to TCPA. The TCPA prohibits sending SMS text messages to wireless telephone numbers without the prior express consent of the messaged party. In a recent declaratory ruling, the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) stated that person-to-person SMS (P2P) was exempt from this rule. However, business or app to person messaging (A2P) is still subject to these rules, even though SMS business app users have had prior communication with their customers.

subject to TCPA. Internet-based messaging services such as WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram DM are not regulated by the US restrictions on use designated by the provider. SMS apps add value. SMS messaging app providers, such as Ngagge SMS for Shopify, access SMS service from telecommunication companies and provide value by adding tools for store owners like yourself to grow your business and measure the effectiveness of this highly engaging channel.

TCPA compliance requirements To prevent spam, the law requires your customers to:

Personalize. Because this channel is so personal, we suggest that messages sent from your store address the recipient by name and contain relevant information based on prior purchases, demographics, and other information

Opt-in to receive messages. Customers

you’ve collected about them and their

must agree to receiving SMS message

needs or desires.

from your store.

Include opt-out instructions with every

Be notified how to opt-out. Initial opt-in

message. Although also not a regulatory

request and first SMS message contain

requirement. Including “STOP” to opt out

the following text:

builds trust.

“You agree to receive automated promotional messages. This is not a condition of purchase. T&C / {link}. You may receive up to {__}, msgs/mo. Msg and data rates may apply. Reply STOP to end HELP for help.”

Choosing the right SMS Messaging provider makes compliance easy

No be sent restricted content. Messages

Built in compliance messages and

may not include content relating to sex,

alerts. Ngagge SMS for Shopify makes

alcohol, firearms, tobacco, vaping, CBD,

TCPA and best practice compliance

and marijuana/cannabis.

easy with built in compliance messages, and alerts to non-business hour and

SMS best practices Avoid multiple and non-business hour messaging. Although not a regulatory requirement, best practices suggest not sending messages to customers during nonbusiness hours as well as sending multiple messages in a short period of time.

multiple messaging issues. Initial message review. Our compliance team reviews initial messages you send to help you avoid inadvertently violating the TCPA content regulations. Monitoring and notification. In addition, we constantly monitor and notify you of federal and state SMS law changes, as well as CTIA best practices updates.

5

Features

Features Advanced applications will offer most all the features listed below including templates so you’re up and running in minutes not days. These marketing, sales and support features

message. For most applications sending MMS messages is limited to the US and Canada and most applications charge 3 SMS messages for one MMS message

allow you to engage your customers at every stage of their journey, from first touch to their latest transaction presenting opportunities to generate revenue, save staff time and encourage loyalty.

Compliance Opt-in required by law to receive SMS. Because SMS and MMS are heavily regulated by the Federal government under TCPA to prevent

SMS & MMS SMS 160-character / msg limit no images

spam, most SMS messaging applications have built in or readily available safeguards to avoid sending messages that violate the law.

allowed. SMS (short message service) is a

Among other things, the law requires you to

telecom (vs internet) based service, as

obtain a recipient’s consent before you can

described in a previous chapter, providing

send them SMS messages. This consent is

messaging limited to 160 characters each.

termed “opting in.”

Messages with more than 160 characters can be sent but will be considered multiple

Message content restrictions. The Telecom

messages for billing purposes.

Industry Association, CTIA, also publishes guideline and best practices, which most

SMS Emojis allowed. SMS will accept and

applications refer to in order to help brands

display emoijs to the message recipient but will

follow the law and optimize customer

reduce the number of permissible characters in

experience.

that message to 70. Image files, however, cannot be sent via SMS but can be sent with MMS which most all application support. MMS 1600-character / msg rich media allowed. MMS (multimedia messaging service) allow you to send image files, including GIFs and videos plus 1600 characters in a single

The CTIA outlines the categories of text messages that can’t be sent due to moral and legal issues such as those containing content relating to sex, hate, alcohol, firearms, tobacco, vaping, CBD, and marijuana/cannabis.

List building Acquiring opt-in subscribers. List building in the SMS messaging industry refers to acquiring a list of subscribers who have “opted-in” to receive SMS messages from your store.

You can then place links to these pages in Emails, Newsletters, Blogs and, Anywhere you can paste the link.

Contrary to what you might think, existing

You can also create QR codes linked to these

customers are not deemed to have “opted in”

pages for placement on

even though you’ve done business with them before. To qualify them to receive your SMS messages, email them an opt-in request. List building with SMS can be very productive

Packaging, Inserts, Product sheets and, In traditional print media.

since you can collect subscriber op-ins at checkout in you Shopify store, as well as place

Offer content. Consumers are value-driven and

your offers to “subscribe” on your website,

price- conscious. A recent study found the

landing pages, social media pages, and

following offer incentives to be most effective in

anywhere you can paste, link, or embed a QR

this order.

code. Creating offers, forms, and links. The first step in list building is to create a form with an offer to attract subscribers. The form can then be placed on Your website, Landing pages and, Social media pages.

Dollar-off discounts, (orders over $100), Percentage-off discounts (orders under $100), Free gift offers, Loyalty or rewards points, Access to exclusive content / giveaways Becoming part of a VIP community Also consider offers of new product alerts as well as creating polls, contests, surveys, or games as incentives.

Subscribers opt-in. The forms described above, requests potential subscribers to either text a keyword (offer identifier) back to your SMS phone number or submit their name and mobile phone number.

Campaigns The need to personalize campaigns. Like email campaigns, an SMS campaign is a coordinated set of individual SMS messages that are sent

Note that keywords used with SMS toll-free

over a specific period with one specific call to

numbers are free, while those used with

action.

short-code number are fee based.

Subscribers and segmentation The need to personalize messages. With your store messages next to those from family and friends on your subscribers’ phones, it’s critical for SMS messaging success that your messages be highly personalized. That means sending the right message to the right person at the right time. Segmenting manually to personalize messages. Grouping subscribers by. Past purchases, Intervals between purchases, Average purchase price, Location, Known interests and demographics are just a few segmentation criteria that will help you accomplish this. Segmenting with AI. Unlike segmenting subscribers manually into groups, AI allows for automated, hyper-personalization where you can match and send product offers and associated messages automatically at the right time and frequency to individual subscribers.

As mentioned above, the key to generating high ROIs with SMS campaigns is personalization. Message content. Special offers have proven to be the most effective campaign messaging content. These can include coupons, free shipping, limited-time sales, new product announcement, and restocked inventory. Also store news, your mission and product or industry education content has also proven to be effective.

Emojis and multimedia in campaign messages. Emojis are highly engaging. We recommend using them in campaign messages where appropriate. Although you can send video links via SMS, you cannot send images, photos, or GIFs. You’ll need to use MMS for to send these. Again these are very engaging and should be included with you campaign messages whenever possible. A recent study Podium study found that 41% of consumers were more likely to engage with a message (MMS) that contained images, GIFs, or videos. A/B testing and conversion rate optimization (CRO). SMS campaign A/B testing involves

MMS more engaging

sending two or more offers to two or more groups of subscribers within a single segment

41%

or sending one offer to two or more segments and then seeing which converts better. You can also similarly A/B test a single offer by changing the offer text or incentive. Conversion rate optimization involves

Drip campaigns. These campaigns consist of

constantly A/B testing and adjusting offers and

multiple messages sent over a period of time

message content accordingly.

with a specified time between message sends These are often used for welcome messages, product onboarding, and education campaigns. Conditional branching campaigns or flows. These campaigns also consist of multiple messages. The message sent (or not sent) after the initial message is conditioned upon the occurrence of a specified event, such accepting a discount offered by the initial message. Scheduling. Campaigns can be sent immediately or scheduled to send at a specified future date.

This process, which should be carried over to paid ad campaigns, your website and landing pages, is the key to store revenue growth and achieving high ROI multiples with SMS message applications. How long should you test offers? The answer depends on a number of variables including test data size and determining statistical significance. Neil Patel wrote a very helpful article on this subject referencing a statistical significance calculator by Convert.com Patel suggests testing until you achieve a statistical significance of at least 95%+.

Automations

SMS Bots

Trigger events. Automations are SMS

Answer commonly asked questions. Bots are

messages sent when a Shopify event called

intended increase sales and create positive

a “trigger” occurs such as a shopping cart is

customer experiences while saving staff time

abandoned, a product is purchased, an order

by answering commonly asked sales and

is shipped, a subscriber accepts your opt-in

support questions.

offer, or hasn’t purchased in a specified period of time. Subscriber filters. When automations are sent can be further refined by subscriber defined “filters” such subscribers who have purchased a certain amount, those who have purchased product with high prices, VIPs and many more. Campaign similarities. Personalization, emoijs, multimedia, drip messages, message flows, scheduling and A/B testing apply to automations as well as campaigns.

SMS bots are not chat bots. SMS bots should not be confused with chat bots. Although the concept is similar, chat bots do not work with SMS messaging. At this writing we believe that Ngagge SMS for Shopify is the only e-commerce SMS application offering SMS bots. Bot handoffs to live staff. If a customer needs additional help, they’ll chose the bot response option giving them access to one of your staff via your SMS two-way messaging capability. Manage expectations with an automated response indicating when staff will be available to respond. Ngagge live SMS message service. If you’re short staffed and need a live person to respond the incoming message, during or after business hours or on weekends, Ngagge can help with rates as low as $1/hour. Create bots from templates or from scratch. Ngagge SMS bots do not require coding knowledge and can be quickly and easily customized from templates or created from scratch to meet your specific sales and support needs.

Two-way messaging For customers support and sales. Two-way messaging, sometime referred to as

Unlike most SMS providers, Ngagge offers a multichannel team inbox which allows you to respond to emails, live chat, Messenger, and support tickets a well as SMS.

“conversational”’ messaging is perfect for customer support and sales. A recent industry study found that 70% of consumers would be extremely likely to text a business for customer support while it also discovered that less than 35% of consumers were taking advantage of this opportunity.

International SMS messaging International SMS messaging allows to attract and service customers around the world from your US based store. Unfortunately, this service is only outgoing (not two-way) and does not support MMS messages. Ngagge offers international SMS messaging

35% Now text

unlike some other Shopify SMS app suppliers.

65% Would text

Mobile Apps Mobile apps allow two-way team messaging with your customers when you’re away from the office. They also can provide dashboard metrics so you

Limited to US and Canada with most providers. Most all SMS messaging

can keep on top of your SMS messaging results in real time.

applications provide for two-way, or what’s often referred to as “conversational,” messaging.

Dashboards

For US based application providers, two-way messaging may only be available in the US

The critical need to track data. Because consumer

and Canada.

shopping trends shift on almost a daily basis, tracking, visualizing, and analyzing prospect,

Multi-channel team inbox. As you grow you

customer and staff performance data is critical to

want to make sure you have a single inbox for

accelerating revenue growth and managing your

staff to use which has access to all customer

store cost-effectively.

SMS interactions.

Matching insights gained from analyzing your dashboards and reports at least monthly with your store goals and making necessary adjustments is the key not only to survival but to sustained growth. SMS Store goals. Having a target or goal to shoot for increases the chances that your SMS message efforts will succeed and provides for accountability. Here are a few goals to consider: Increasing revenue Increasing return on investment (ROI) Increasing your customer base (List building) o Encouraging customer loyalty and retention o Improving customer service Reducing customer service expense Reducing returns and refunds Reducing expenses through automation

SMS Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). KPIs are calculations of performance over time for a specific goal using the data you’ve tracked in your SMS application. Comparing KPIs over comparable time periods provides insights that help you and your staff make better decisions. KPIs consist of five types of results: counts, percentages, totals, averages, and ratios. KPIs for SMS can be grouped by goal functions with a few sample KPIs noted:

Campaigns (# sends, % delivered, click through rate, conversion rate, $ sales, # products sold, opt out rate) Automations ((# sends, # delivered, click through rate, conversion rate, $ sales)

Financial ($ sales, # products sold, SMS

SMS bots (# conversations initiated, #

ROI, avg sale price, % sales by product)

completed, # required agent)

List building (# new opt ins, # opt outs, opt

Customer service / two-way messaging (#

out rate, list growth rate, # clicks, $

issues opened, # issues closed, avg time of

customer acquisition cost)

close, avg time to close by teammate)

Analysis and A/B testing As noted above, analyze your data by

To meet these concerns we offer each subscriber to our application a dedicated personal strategist.

comparing KPIs over comparable time periods

Subscribers can make appointments to meet

looking for patterns and trends.

with their strategist at any time to create SMS

Before giving up on a product that is not selling, A/B test your message content, use of multimedia, message delivery days and times, product image, descriptive text, and placement in your store, as well as pricing. Changing any one or a combination of these could reverse the trend and result in significant revenue gains over and above the cost of testing.

messaging strategies customized to their brand’s needs.

24/7 support One of the most important services an application vendor can provide is round-theclock live support which we provide here at Ngagge. Look for this service when selecting a

Strategic assistance We at Ngagge SMS for Shopify found that one

vendor.

Data security | GDPR

of the biggest barriers to adoption of SMS by brands was a lack of understanding how to best use SMS and what best practices were. Potential users also expressed concerns over compliance and integration with their existing tech stack.

With personal data security top of mind these days, make sure your SMS vendor has a data security and GDPR (if you have customers in Europe) policy that meets your needs.

6

Cost

What does SMS Messaging Cost? Limited analysis The analysis below relates only to SMS applications integrated with e-commerce platforms such Shopify, Shopify Plus, Woocommerce, Wix and others. Pricing discussion is limited to those vendors providing just SMS and not features in addition to SMS such as email, popups, or push notifications.

Free trials

at $1000 per month have a guaranteed MPS starting at 100 and take from 6-10 weeks for approval. There is a third option, 10-igit numbers referred to as 10DCL. Like short codes, 10 DCL has a registration process. Throughput, however, on A2P 10DLC is variable. The registration process results in a Trust Score, which dictates maximum throughput allocation and volume of messages. Depending on your brand and use

Most vendors offer free trials ranging from 14-

case you could receive anywhere between 3

30 days which include free messages ranging

and 180 MPS.

from 50-500 messages.

Two-way messaging

Keywords for list building opt-in messages. With toll-free numbers there is no charge for and no limit on the words you can use as a “keyword” in your opt-in messages. However,

Limited to certain countries. Two-way

keywords used with short codes are limited

messaging is available from phone numbers in

and vendors charge from $15-$25 per month

the US to other US phone numbers. Some SMS

for their use.

app vendors are also able to provide similar two- way messaging within Canada, the UK and

Free incoming messages. All application

Brazil.

charge for outgoing message but many offer incoming messages free.

Phone number type. Phone number type. Most vendors offer toll-free numbers at no cost. Toll-

Per message pricing. With these plans you

free numbers can send from 3 to 150 MPS

purchase messages at a specified price per

(Messages Per Second).

message which price decreases as purchase volume increases. Discounts are often offered

On the other hand, short code numbers starting

for annual commitments.

Some apps require a fixed monthly payment for messages, while others offer pay as you use plans. All app features are included for both payment options.

Recommendations Plan to use basic SMS features with limited growth.

Per message pricing plus fixed or platform fee.

Obtain a toll-free number

Apps offering this pricing option typically involve

Sing up for a free trial

escalating fixed fees based on the inclusion of

Select per message pricing or per message

additional features and / or reduced price per

plus fixed fee selecting plan with $0 fixed

message.

fee.

Many apps with this pricing option offer a starter plan with no fixed fee but limited features. With this option subscribers pay for messages sent, usually at a higher rate per message than in fixed fee plans.

Compare per message pricing and $0 fixed fee with per message pricing provided by various vendors. Make sure the vendor offers free incoming messages and a free toll-free phone number.

Carrier surcharge fees. Some vendors add carrier

Make sure carrier fees are included in the

surcharges to their per message fee, which

posted price per message.

currently averages $.0025 in the US.

Make sure the basic features you need are included.

MMS availability and pricing. Sending MMS is currently available only within the US. Pricing for

Plan to use all SMS features with aggressive

MMS by most vendors is approximately three

growth strategies.

times the SMS per message price.

Obtain a toll-free number unless your business requires sending five to ten

International Messaging SMS messages send from a US phone number to phone number in any other country is considered an international message and charged according to the vendors international message pricing schedule. International messages are one way or send only.

thousand messages or more at once, in which a short code number may be preferable. Sign up for a free trial. Select per message pricing. Compare per message pricing with various vendors. Make sure the vendor offers free incoming messages and free phone number if you don’t need a short code number. Make sure carrier fees are included in the posted price per message. Make sure the features you need are offered.

7

Checklist for Selecting a Vendor

Checklist for selecting a vendor Although this checklist seems a bit

SMS support / sales bots

overwhelming, we believe it’s helpful to know all

Real-time two-way SMS messaging

the latest features, opportunities, and options business SMS offers to help you grow faster,

International messaging

provide premium support, and build customer

Reports / analytics

loyalty.

Mobile app Click-to-text website button

Pricing Carrier fees included in price Per message Per message + fixed fee Plan features included

Support Compliance 24/7 live support Personal success strategist Knowledgebase

Features Free trial w/free messages Free toll-free number

Education resources

Integrations

Free incoming SMS messages

Shopify

MMS capabilities

Third party

Dashboard

API

List building tools /forms Personalize via list segmentation Unlimited keywords

Data Security

CRM

2 factor authentication

Campaigns /templates, A|B testing

Permissions

Automations /templates

GDPR

Team inbox

8

14 SMS Myths

14 SMS Myths Despite well-known facts about the effectiveness of SMS for e-commerce, we found there are many misperceptions about this channel. If you haven’t adopted SMS yet, know you need to, but have some of the concerns discussed below, you’re not alone. In this chapter, we debunk 14 myths about

1

SMS messaging for ecommerce that should

At inconvenient times (after

give you confidence that you’re making the

business hours),

right choice in adopting this game-changing

That don’t provide ability to opt-out

engagement channel.

of receiving further communications. Follow these simple guidelines and

SMS is Intrusive

you’ll have loyal, repeat customers and enthusiastic brand ambassadors.

Since US law (TCPA) requires you as business to obtain customer consent to receive SMS messages, customers who “opt-in” are looking forward to receiving these communications. In fact, a recent Harris poll reported that 77% of consumers say they’re likely to have a positive perception of a company offering SMS.

2

SMS Is Difficult to Get Started The most advanced applications such as Ngagge, will have you up, running, and productive in minutes versus days with easily customizable templates for

Customers will only get irritated when they

most all features and built-in

receive messages,

compliance tools.

With offers of products or services not

Ngagge makes the process even easier

relevant to their interests,

with 24/7 live support and a personal

That are not personalized by failing to

SMS success strategist to help you

mention their name and / or business,

quickly adopt the application to your

Too frequently (more than twice a week),

specific store needs.

3

SMS Is Too Expensive SMS generates higher ROI than email.

4

SMS Takes Too Much Time to Execute

Because of its low cost per message, 98% open rate (Twilio) and 30+%

Most applications provide time-saving

conversion rate (Simpletexting)

automations for abandoned cart

compared with email’s 21% open rate

recovery, welcome message series,

(MailChimp) and 1.33% conversion rate

customer win back, loyalty programs, as

(Barilliance), SMS will generate an ROI

well as order, shipping, tracking and

substantially higher than email with a

delivery notifications.

similar offer to the same customer

These automations can be activated in

segment.

minutes with easily customizable templates.

Saves graphic design expense. In addition, you’ll save on graphic

Ngagge provides an additional time-

designers since SMS is primarily a text

saving feature with SMS bots that

only channel.

provide premium support by answering commonly asked questions in real time.

Saves copywriting expense. Also, because SMS messages are limited to 160 character and most applications provide easily customizable message templates, you won’t require copywriting services.

5

SMS Doesn’t Perform As mentioned above, SMS has a substantially higher open and conversion rate than email resulting in faster, more consistent growth. In fact, A study by Gartner found SMS response rates averaged 45% vs email at only a 6% and,

Response Rates

45%

6%

SMS

Email

CTIA (Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association) reports that SMS response time is 90 seconds while email averages 90 minutes.

Response Time

3 min

90 min

SMS

Email

A recent study by Mobiniti found that only 10% of SMS marketing messages are spam, compared to nearly 49.7% of emails.

6

Requesting Phone Numbers Reduces Response

Spam

10%

49.7%

SMS

Email

This myth assumes that the form does not mention SMS in the offer. In fact, an e-commerce expert mentioned in a recent podcast episode that business owners with SMS opt-in offers saw a 10%

A survey by Mobile Monkey reports

increase in acceptance.

that coupons delivered via SMS have redemption rates 10 times higher

Zip Whip, a Twilio messaging

than those of printed coupons.

company, found that 64% of consumers think businesses should

SMS Coupon redemption

10 x Printed coupon rate

contact them via text messages more often, while SmallBizDaily reports 75% of consumers want to receive texts with special offers.

7

SMS Is Only for Large Companies The immediate nature of SMS Because SMS is a highly personal

messaging makes it ideal for time-

communication channel, knowing your

sensitive announcements, such as

customers and sending them relevant offers is the key to effective SMS campaigns, not the size of your business. If anything, SMS allows smaller businesses to compete with larger businesses due to its costeffectiveness, ease of use, and the fact that smaller businesses are more likely to have a closer personal relationship with their customers.

8

Flash sales, Reminders, Security alerts, Confirmations, Shipping or delivery notifications, while messages with lots of visuals and explanatory content are better suited for email. Most importantly, giving customers the freedom to choose SMS, email, or both demonstrates that you value their

SMS and Email Aren’t Compatible

preferences. In fact, G2 reports marketers using three or more channels in their

In fact SMS and email complement one

campaigns see a purchase and

another.

engagement rate 250% higher than marketers using single channels.

9

SMS Is a Fad

By opting-in to receive SMS messages from your brand, prospects have given you their vote of confidence. It’s up to you

The COVID pandemic accelerated the

from that point to make them loyal, long-

growing use of messaging channels

term customers.

such as SMS for marketing, sales, and support.

SMS and the appropriate application provide you with just the tools you need to

Twilio reports that 34% of businesses

accomplish this.

surveyed said they adopted texting because of the pandemic and 77% say

Continue to build trust with new opt-in

they will continue to use it texting after

subscribers by personalizing your

the pandemic ends.”

messages in several ways which are not character dependent.

10

SMS is Only for Millennials A recent AARP study found that 86 % of Americans over age 50 use SMS messaging. The number of mobile phone users continues to grow, and, before long millennials will be approaching advanced age. We believe, the sooner your brand adopts SMS the more competitive you’ll be.

Segment your SMS subscriber (customer) list so that the right customer gets the right offer. Personalize you message by using the customer’s name and / or business and a friendly tone. Don’t send offers to frequently. Don’t send offers after business hours. Be sure to send transactional messages when appropriate, for example, when an order ships, is delayed, or is delivered. Be sure to offer an opt-out option in every message. Following these simple steps will ensure

11

SMS is Impersonal

more sales faster and more loyal, longterm brand ambassadors. Most all SMS providers permit MMS

Put another way, it takes more than

messaging which allows for sending 1600

160 characters per message to build

vs 160 characters per message as well as

trust with a customer.

rich media but is usually two to three times the cost of SMS messages.

12

Not only does Ngagge offer an inbox for

SMS is a One-Way Channel

two-way SMS messaging, but it allows for two-way messaging with Facebook Messenger, live chat, and email, as well

Business SMS has gotten a reputation

as provides an activity timeline for all

over the years of for being a one-way

customers across channels. This allows

channel used only for bulk messaging

you to scale seamlessly, with any staff

customers coupons, discounts, and

member able to message any customer

other offers as well as transaction and

in context at any time.

appointment notifications.

Best of all Ngagge SMS offers intelligent However, many applications currently

message routing, directing income

provide an inbox which

messages to the staff member most

accommodates two-way, or what’s

qualified to respond.

often termed as “Conversational” SMS messaging. Conversational SMS messaging allows you to provide better customer service and by actually “engaging” with your customers, build more substantial long-term relationships with them. Ngagge SMS for Shopify, provides the ultimate in two-way conversational messaging.

13

SMS Requires Customers Have a Smartphone SMS messaging does not require an internet connection and therefore a “smartphone”. SMS is a native application on all mobile phones provided by your mobile phone company.

14

SMS Campaigns are Difficult to Track Most advanced SMS applications such as Ngagge SMS for Shopify provide a variety of tracking metrics. These metrics conveniently displayed in dashboards and reports not only track SMS campaigns, but also the effectiveness of automations, new subscriber acquisition (list building), and customer support via two-way “conversational” messaging. These metrics include, Messages sent / received. Messages delivered / failed. Subscriber (customer) opt-ins and opt-outs. Subscriber source Link click-through rate (CTR). $ sales attributable to SMS. # orders attributable to SMS. Products sold attributable to SMS. Some of these and additional metrics can be tracked through Google Analytics including conversions. Using UTM code attached to links in SMS messages you can track conversions in Google Analytics by source, media, and campaign.

9

Note from the Author

Hi. I’m Steve Seeberg the author of this guide, founder of Ngagge SMS, and producer of the video show and podcast “Digital Marketing Intelligence for E-Commerce: Ask the Experts,” as well as a E-Commerce case study series.

A decade of messaging experience. For almost a decade, our call center division has been providing marketing, sales and support messaging capabilities for hundreds of industries representing thousands of use cases and millions of conversations. SMS marketing experts. We’ve been providing brands like yours with digital marketing

I hope you found this Guide helpful and

insights from industry leaders,

enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed

through our video show and

creating it.

podcasts, “Digital Marketing

Deep integration. Ngagge SMS is deeply integrated with many e-commerce

Intelligence for E-commerce: Ask the Experts.”

platforms to provide a convenient,

Our intent is to provide value to the

seamless, time-saving and data-rich

“E-Commerce platform ecosystem”

experience for you and your team.

including brand owners, store developers, app providers, investors,

All features included in all plans.

and marketing agencies through

Use all the capabilities described in the

case studies and discussions with

“Features” chapter or just those you

ecosystem participants and experts.

need. They’re included in all of our lowcost, pay-per-message, pay-as-you-go pricing plans. Free trial with free messages. In addition, Ngagge offers free incoming messages, a free toll-free number, no added carrier fees, and a free trial with free messages to give our platform a test drive.

Getting started. Regardless of whether your new to SMS or an experienced user, we’re firm believers that personal interaction with a professional who understands the software and your business is the quickest way to realize your expectations from this gamechanging engagement channel. Your personal success strategist. As soon as you sign up for your free trial, you’ll be introduced to your personal success strategist. Based on your schedule and availability, he or she will schedule three optional 15-minute meetings to, 1. Understand your business and objectives with SMS. 2. Provide strategy suggestions on how to achieve your goals and qualify your existing customers to receive SMS. 3. Help you create your first customer segment, campaign, automation, and two-way message depending on your goals. Have a question? We’re here live 24/7 to help. Cheers to you and your brand's success!

Steve Author & Founder Ngagge SMS

Glossary

SMS for E-Commerce Glossary A-C

“Subscribers” (those customers who have “opted-in” to receive SMS messages from your store).

A/B Testing A/B testing involves sending multiple versions

Characters

of an SMS message or one message to

Characters refer to the number of letters,

multiple subscriber segments to find which

numbers, special characters, and spaces

variables such as images, length, and send

allowed in SMS and MMS messages,

time or subscriber segment resonate best.

generally 160 and 1600 characters respectively.

A2P Messaging Application-to-person (A2P) SMS messaging

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

is the process of sending SMS messages from

Metric to measure a message’s

a software application to a mobile phone user.

effectiveness at driving subscribers to click a link within your message. CTR is the

Automation

percentage of total recipients who clicked

An SMS automation is one or a sequence of

on a link within the text message divided by

messages sent on the activation of trigger

the number of messages received.

events such as cart abandonment, acceptance of an offer, order completion, shipped order or

Compliance

delivered product.

Following the rules and requirements set out in the TCPA and by CTIA.

Bulk SMS Bulk SMS messaging is the practice of

Conversion Rate (CVR)

sending many SMS messages to the mobile

Generally a conversion refers to the

phones of a predetermined group of

successful completion of any call to action

subscribers at once.

(CTA). For example if the CTA is the purchase of a product, a conversion would

Campaign

be a purchase of that product.

This term refers to any SMS messaging

With respect to SMS campaigns a

activity that involves sending text messages to

conversion is most often considered the purchase of a product or service.

The conversion rate then would be the

Keywords can be used to segment or identify

percentage of SMS recipients who

subscribers who have opted-in to particular

completed a purchase after receiving an

offers.

SMS message divided by the number of subscribers receiving the message.

Message Content Guidelines The CTIA designates categories of

CTIA

prohibited SMS message content. They

The Cellular Telecommunications Industry

characterize this content with the acronym

Association (CTIA) is an organization that

S.H.A.F.T. which stands for Sex, Hate,

represents the U.S. wireless

Alcohol, Firearms, and Tobacco. SHAFT also

communications industry.

covers any messages that contain verbiage related to vaping, CBD, marihuana/cannabis,

D-O

and any content associated with it. MMS

Delivery Rate

MMS means Multimedia Messaging Service,

The percentage of text messages that were

and like SMS are sent through the telephone

successfully delivered. This metric can help

network. MMS messages can have up to

“clean” your subscriber list by identifying

1600 character per message and unlike

which numbers are undeliverable.

SMS, can include a mix of text and graphic content such as images and GIFs.

‍Drip campaign An automated series of SMS messages sent based on a time schedule. GDPR General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a European data protection and privacy regulation that protects the privacy and personal data of individuals within the European Union and includes compliance guidelines on text marketing. Keywords An SMS keyword is a word or phrase that customers text to your SMS phone number to “opt-in” to receive message from your store.

O-R Offer Personalization Besides list segmentation, offer personalization includes using the recipient’s name and / or company name, and an engaging familiar tone in the message as well as emojis. Opt-In Besides list segmentation, offer personalization includes using the recipient’s name and / or company name, and an engaging familiar tone in the message as well as emojis.

Opt-In Opting in occurs when a prospect explicitly agrees to receive SMS communications from your brand by either texting a keyword to your SMS phone number or submitting their mobile number. Prospects who have opted-in are deemed to be “subscribers” in most apps. Note that previous customers do not become “subscribers” until they have explicitly opted-in to receive SMS from you store as required by TCPA. Opt-Out Opting out is the act of unsubscribing from your brand’s text messages. This occurs when a subscriber texts “STOP” to your SMS number. Phone Numbers SMS enabled toll-free numbers are the least expensive and currently the most convenient way to send A2P SMS messages

variable. The registration process results in a Trust Score, which dictates maximum throughput allocation and volume of messages. Depending on your brand and use case you could receive anywhere between 3 and 180 MPS. Promotional Messages Unlike transactional messages, these are SMS messages sent by a brand with the intention to drive revenue. Return on investment (ROI) SMS ROI is a key performance metric used to measure the financial success of campaigns, automations, and two-way messaging. To determine ROI divide the revenue driven from the above by their cost. Rich Media These are multimedia elements like photos, GIFs, videos, and audio that can be sent via MMS.

with throughput rates ranging from 3-150 MPS (Message Segments per Second). Short code numbers (5-6 digits) are also

S-U

available but are expensive starting at $1000 per month with guaranteed MPS

Short Link

starting at 100 and take 6-10 weeks to

Short links are URLs that have been shortened

approve.

using a link shortening service for use in SMS

Like short codes, 10-digit local numbers (10

communications to save on message

DCL) now also have a registration process.

characters.

Unlike short codes, this process is approved almost instantly and is significantly cheaper.

SMS

Throughput, however, on A2P 10DLC is

SMS stands for Short Message Service, more commonly known as texting and with messages limited to text and 160 characters per message.

Messages between mobile phones (P2P-

Transactional Messages

Person to Person) or businesses and mobile

This type of SMS message provides

phones (A2P-Apllication to Person) are facilitated through the telephone network and not the internet. Therefor an internet connection is not required to send an SMS message. SMS Bots An SMS Bot is a designed to provide SMS message responses to commonly asked sale and support questions messaged to your application from subscribers. Subscriber List Segmentation Grouping subscribers by a variety of characteristics such as products purchased, average amount per purchase, location and demographics allows for the delivery or the right offer to the right person at the right time. TCPA The Telephone Consumer Protection Act is a set of regulations from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that aim to protect consumers’ privacy and reduce spam. It specifically prohibits certain types of automated calls, texts, and faxes. Templates These are SMS message examples that you can instantly send or use as a starting point for customizing your own SMS strategies. Templates are available in most applications for campaigns and automations such as those involving product launches, abandoned carts, win back efforts, welcome subscriber series, and VIP promotions.

customers with information about their order, including confirmation, status, and delivery. Two-Way Messaging Tw-way or “conversational” messaging occurs when an SMS or MMS message recipient can respond to your outgoing message. Urchin Tracking Module (UTM) A unique code attached to any link that identifies which marketing channels are directing traffic to your brand’s website. By adding a UTM code to the end of a link in an SMS message, you can differentiate the web traffic coming from that link and track the text messaging campaign’s performance.

Resources

Resources https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/tcpa-rules.pdf https://www.emarketer.com/topics/industry/mcommerce https://smallbiztrends.com/2020/03/2020-mobile-phone-usagestatistics.html https://www.globenewswire.com/newsrelease/2022/03/16/2404468/0/en/81-of-Consumers-Subscribe-toText-Messages-from-at-Least-One-Brand-for-Personalized-andFrictionless-Experiences.html https://www.twilio.com/blog/sms-marketing-pros-cons https://www.smsglobal.com/blog/sms-marketing-2021/ https://www.ctia.org/news/reports https://www.salesforce.com/content/blogs/us/en/2016/11/smsmarketing.html https://www.ultrasmsscript.com/what-kind-of-conversion-rates-canyou-expect-from-a-properly-optimized-sms-campaign/ https://marketinginsidergroup.com/content-marketing/emailmarketing-conversion-rate-comparison/ https://www.forrester.com/bold https://www.podium.com/2021-local-business-messaging-trends/ https://neilpatel.com/blog/how-long-to-run-an-ab-test/ https://www.convert.com/calculator/conversion-rate/? confidence=0.95&power=0.8&tails=2&correction=none&v0=5000& c0=555 https://onereach.ai/harris-poll-customers-prefer-sms-over-phonefor-many-tasks-its-official/

https://simpletexting.com/what-are-sms-conversion-rates/ https://www.barilliance.com/email-marketing-statistics/#tab-con20 https://mailchimp.com/resources/email-marketing-benchmarks/ https://www.gartner.com/en/marketing/insights/articles/tap-intothe-marketing-power-of-sms http://www.mobiniti.com/2021/01/29/industry-stats-for-smsmarketing-messages/ https://mobilemonkey.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sms-list-growthdebunking-this-myth-about-capturing/id1495875193? i=1000539154004 https://support.zipwhip.com/s/ https://www.smallbizdaily.com/4-stats-prove-small-business-smsmarketing-game-plan/ https://g2crowd-4099946.hs-sites.com/sms-marketing-statistics https://www.aarp.org/research/topics/technology/info2018/technology-use-attitudes.html https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/reports-and-analytics/googleanalytics/google-analytics-setup