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Wake up! How customer reactivation via SMS can work for your business

Mobile Marketing
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How to encourage inactive customers to buy via SMS and what you need to bear in mind.

Customer reactivation via SMS has not only made sense since the relaxation of the COVID-19 restrictions. On the one hand, it is much more expensive to acquire new customers, and on the other hand, you already know that former customers are interested in your products, at least in principle.

To encourage these “dormant” customers to buy again, you can try a reactivation campaign in which you use the information at hand to make customers the best possible and most suitable offer or gather valuable additional information. In this post, we’ll take a look at the most important factors to consider in your customer reactivation via SMS.

What you need to consider before you start customer reactivation via SMS

Customer reactivation can only really unfold its full potential if you pay attention to a few elementary things. This applies not only, but especially if you decide to carry out customer reactivation via SMS.

The reason: SMS is one of the most personal ways you have to communicate with customers. This is the biggest advantage, but it can also be counterproductive if your messages are perceived as inappropriate or if you contact your customers without their consent, which we strongly advise against. Really, don’t do it. It’s a grey area at best and illegal at worst.

Impersonal, irrelevant mass messages are also not well received and are more likely to cause customers to unsubscribe from receiving your messages again.

Therefore:

You need to select your customers thoroughly in advance.

Legal basis

We recommend sending SMS of this type only with existing consent. You can find out more about the legal basis for sending SMS messages in our corresponding blog post.

Read blogpost

Define your target groups and use information wisely

Defining your target group is the be-all and end-all when it comes to successful customer reactivation via SMS, because your message should be as individual and personal as possible. Today, this means much more than sending an SMS with a personalized address. All the information you have about your customers can be helpful.

For example, ask yourself:

  • When did the respective customers last buy from you?
  • Have they had any contact with your company? In what form?
  • Have the customers bought from you more than once?
  • Which product was purchased last?
  • Were there any returns?

Depending on the industry, you can of course also use other information. A piece that matches the style in the clothing sizes still available or a special interest in individual collections are just two possible starting points.

The rule is: the more personal the information, the more sensitively you should use it. In addition, your customers are aware that you know what they have bought, but not necessarily that you know which products they have looked at particularly often or which products were in their shopping cart last.

Once you have decided what information you want to use, you can categorize your target customer groups. It usually makes sense to create quite small groups in which the recipients are very similar, for example, all female customers who have bought product X. When you are satisfied with the division, write your SMS for each group individually. Base the text on how you want to win back the corresponding customer group.

The more relevant and exclusive the offer, the higher your chances of success. Keep in mind that there is usually a reason why dormant customers stop buying. In case of doubt, finding out this reason can be more valuable than a new purchase.

What happens after you’ve sent your SMS?

How you integrate customer reactivation via SMS into your overall marketing measures is, of course, up to you. However, it is important that you have a precise plan for how a reactivation will be integrated.

Do you want to request information first and then use it to make an offer? What messages should follow a successful reactivation? What messages should follow if reactivation fails? Do you want to communicate with your customers only via SMS or should other channels be included? Also, make a plan in advance for how you want to retain your recovered customers.

Still unsure whether a response option makes sense for your company?
You can find answers here.

Should you be able to receive SMS?

Why you should consider customer reactivation via SMS

Perhaps you already have gathered some experience with reactivation campaigns and are wondering why, in particular, customer reactivation via SMS would make sense for you.
Let’s take a look at the most important reasons together:

The opportunity

When you try to reactivate your customers through a personal SMS message, you have the chance to initiate more than just a purchase. The personal medium encourages a conversation where you can not only advise, but also learn what may be holding your customers back from making a purchase. Rarely do you have the chance to learn so much.

The medium

But it’s not just the personal touch of SMS that speaks for it as a medium. Already, 52% of people who store online do so via their cell phones. That’s about 28.6 million people in Germany alone. This means that for online stores in particular, the path to purchase is very short. From the SMS, a link can lead your customers directly to the product.

But promotions via SMS are also suitable for stationary retail. If you send invitations or discount codes, for example, customers can simply show them in the retail store and don’t have to remember to pack their voucher. If they have their cell phone with them, they also have your message with them.

The ROI

Personalized, individualized messages have an especially high chance of eliciting a response from your customers; after all, customers don’t usually sign up for your text messages unless they’re interested in your offers. Also, offer your customers the opportunity to reply to your SMS to possibly learn the reasons why they don’t currently want to buy from you. ROI on highly personalized campaigns is much higher, in our experience, than those that send standard generic messages. The personal nature of the SMS can reinforce this.

Examples of reactivation for online shops

Discount codes, offers, new collection – online stores have a particularly easy time reactivating customers with an SMS campaign. Not only can you send offers, but you can also send the appropriate link at the same time. This makes the path to purchase particularly short for your customers.

For your reactivation campaign, you can also get a little more creative. For example, offer customers exclusive, early access to a launch or an early bird discount. Since you probably have detailed information on customers’ buying behavior, you can also recommend products that are a particularly good match for those your customers have already purchased. Of course, you can also offer individual advice via SMS.

Reactivation of customers via SMS in online retailing

Examples of reactivation for retail stores

To bring your customers back into your store, invitations of all kinds are particularly suitable. For those customers who have bought from you frequently in the past, for example, you can offer an exclusive pre-shopping event of the new collection or an individual consultation on site. Event invitations are also an attractive way to win back customers you haven’t seen in your store for a while.

Of course, you can also go a little smaller: point out new offers or offer a discount on purchases over a certain amount – for a limited time, of course. Often, brick-and-mortar retailers also use goodies to lure customers back into the store. For example, a store that offers sustainable household supplies could give away a free canvas bag with purchase upon presentation of the SMS. Basically, there are no limits to your creativity – it’s worth a try in any case.

One example of a customer reactivation via SMS

Take your chance

If you target your knowledge about your customers, you can achieve great results with customer reactivation via SMS. In this case, it means not only that you encourage your customers to buy again, but also that you can enter into an exchange with them that can provide you with valuable information. The personal medium reinforces both the exclusivity of your offers and the bond with your customers. So if you are planning a reactivation campaign, you should include SMS in your strategy.

We wish you all the best for your campaign and look forward to hearing about your experiences.

All the best
Your sms77 team

Header image by Katniss12 via pixabay.com

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