Commune Media | Measurably Effective Digital Marketing™

Does direct mail crush SMS for teen marketing?

Posted on Wednesday, November 26th, 2008 at 10:42 PM by Sara Chappel  |  Comments (0)

I’ll make a confession here.

I’ve probably sent a grand total of two text messages my entire life.

Never bumped into a lamppost while walking and texting.

Never felt the twinge of repetitive strain injury in my thumbs.

But I know I’m in a dwindling minority.

So you’d think that with all the twiddling, texting thumbs out there, targeting media-savvy market segments with a digital campaign shouldn’t be all that hard.

Throw together a couple of emails, draft a Facebook page, push through a couple of texts and BAM—ROI out the wazoo.

Well, not quite.

In fact, a new whitepaper from ExactTarget (an email marketing firm—enough said) found that email and short message service (SMS) marketing weren’t the most effective way to target two key text-happy demographics: teens and young homemakers.

And what was the most attention-grabbing, purchase-encouraging marketing format?

Wait for it.

Direct mail.

Mail first, email second, text a distant third

Yup. Direct mail. Old-fashioned, "Here’s a dollar bill" direct mail.

58% of teens and 72% of young homemakers surveyed said they’d been influenced to buy something through a direct mail campaign.

According to the study, email letters came second and text messages came a distant third when it came to influencing decisions to purchase.

So why does direct mail make more of an impact than something more modern, more…well, digital?

Think about it.

Texting is a pretty intimate way of communicating (insofar as anything that isn’t actually face-to-face can be intimate).

So inserting marketing messages into that conversation is about as unwelcome as a toddler at a martini bar.

How to optimize your SMS campaign

So what’s a mobile marketer to do?

Market analyst Gerry Purdy, quoted in a 2006 Associated Press article, said that cellphones would be "the most important medium for advertising in the 21st century."

That may not have happened yet—exactly—but the potential is there.

So, if you want to make the foray into SMS marketing, how do you keep your messages from becoming the digital equivalent of Rush Limbaugh on a nude beach?

1. Get permission. You’ll get a better response if your prospects know what they’re receiving and who it’s from. Sending a pile of unsolicited texts is about as effective as screaming your marketing message out your office window.

2. Offer an incentive. A coupon, a contest, exclusive content—anything that gives your prospect something for nothing will catch their attention and (an added bonus) make them commit to your product. And we all know that a small commitment now can translate into bigger commitments later.

3. Make messages specific and relevant. Target your campaign to a specific geographic location or time of year, or save your text messages for announcing new products and services. Don’t waste your time on a general, blah-blah message no one will notice.

4. Be personable. Remember, people are used to getting texts from their friends. Make sure your message echoes that kind of friendly, intimate communication.

SMS campaigns aren’t going to be the cornerstone of anyone’s marketing campaign—yet.

But it may only be a matter of time.

Until then, though, keep a stash of dollar bills handy.

Have any other tips for an effective SMS campaign? Post them in the comments below!

Tags: direct mail, direct marketing, email marketing, mobile marketing, sms marketing, teenagers