In 2022, it’s no longer a question of whether SMS marketing can help your winery business—it’s a question of how SMS marketing can help grow your winery business.
According to a recently concluded survey, 85% of smartphone users prefer to receive text messages rather than calls or emails. 55% of respondents stated that they ignore marketing emails altogether.
For businesses that solely depend on email marketing, these figures can be daunting, but it also presents an opportunity to market your winery business to direct-to-consumer (DTC) buyers who are openly interested in receiving marketing campaigns or special offers via text message.
While there are businesses that haven’t experienced any success using text marketing, wineries are seeing incredible growth using this simple solution. From seven times the click-thru rate, four times the open rate, and up to 100 times more sales conversion, wineries are delighting customers by texting instead of emailing them.
So how are wineries harnessing the power of this simple tool to scale their businesses? Here are some best practices to start your SMS marketing services.
Text with consistency
On the one hand, consistency is one of the most overlooked elements of an effective SMS marketing strategy because businesses are worried about spamming their customers with too many communications.
On the other hand, sending too few might make your customers forget your brand and forget that they have signed up for updates, special offers, and more about your winery. So when you send out your text messages, they may be surprised to hear from you after a long time and may even unsubscribe.
DTC buyers often respond more favourably to consistent messaging. Similar to an effective social media strategy, opting for well-thought-out, automated SMS messaging services can help you maintain a consistent cadence.
With the latest studies and surveys showing that consumers prefer to receive marketing campaign messages every two weeks, there’s a lot to be desired with a bi-weekly campaign that can get the right amount of attention without creating unnecessary stress for customers.
If you’re worried about alienating the customers who want to hear from you more frequently or less often, you can schedule your campaigns by separating customers into different segments based on their preferences to ensure that you meet their individual needs.
Be responsive to your customers
At its core, SMS messaging services are communication channels that deliver your messages instantly to customers. Research shows that 95% of SMS recipients open their emails within 30 minutes while 90% report reading texts within 3 minutes of receiving them!
While some opt to go with a no-reply messaging campaign, some wineries prefer to have a more open line of communication with their customers by adopting two-way messaging for sales or customer service so customers can inquire about the offers or other campaigns they’re sent messages about.
To enhance your consumer satisfaction, you can start by clearly communicating your business hours so that customers won’t expect an immediate response should they reply after business hours. You can also assign sales or customer service representatives to send out quick replies, especially during an active marketing campaign.
Using SMS marketing services that give you the flexibility you need to respond to customers and minimise response times is a great way to create a better customer experience and scale your winery business.
Make customers feel exclusive
Before creating an SMS campaign think about the type of message you’re going to send. Is it the type of message your subscribers want to receive? How helpful is the message? Is it something that will interest them?
Your customers or subscribers are offering you their most personal information to have a direct mode of contacting them. So giving them an effective and powerful campaign that adds value can go a long way in securing more loyal customers.
You should also think about the content and offers you’re including in your text messages. If your business includes the same promotions or offers that are on your social media pages and email campaigns, you’re not giving people a compelling reason to sign up with them.
The best way to avoid doing this is to send relevant messages exclusively to your SMS list. For instance, if you’re having a flash sale, send out a message to your subscribers ahead of time. You can even give them first access to new products or services you roll out or any discounts you have during the holidays.
Create campaigns that give you a competitive edge with SMS marketing services
Today, DTC wine buyers are waiting for their favourite wine brands to send them text messages about their new products, offers, special promotions, and more. Unfortunately, many wineries are yet to take the leap, and this epic difference between industry practice and customer preference is an untapped opportunity that winery marketers should target.
With the benefits of SMS marketing becoming more apparent, the sooner you adopt automated SMS marketing services, the faster you can profit from your competitors’ inability to make the move to utilise text message marketing campaigns.
Contemporary customers are looking for businesses that engage with them and their interests. Following some best practices can give your winery the competitive edge it needs to scale your business.
To give your business the best chance of succeeding with its SMS marketing campaign, consider automation—a simple way of executing your strategy the right way. Speak to one of our automation experts by scheduling a consultation today.