SMS Messaging for Uncertain Economic Times

If there’s one thing most of us can agree on, it’s that our economic future is uncertain. The world economy reacted to the Brexit vote with unstable and falling stock markets. And no one knows exactly what the Leave vote means for the UK. But there are other uncertainties too.

According to Lord Davies (former trade minister) in an article in Financial Times, “You have got so many issues out there — the US election, immigration, terrorism, the China slowdown”. He continues, “When you add it all together it was already a very uncertain period, and the EU referendum is making it a little bit of a perfect storm”.

Another article, this one on Fast Company, listed various strategies companies could use to remain stable in a business world that is becoming more unpredictable. The article is several years old, and written for a more general purpose, but it applies to the current circumstances too. And as it turns out, SMS messaging fits right in with those strategies.

The first strategy is “Find and rely on the predictable elements of the situation”. The mobile market is one area that is predictable – at least in the sense that people will still have their mobile phones. They aren’t all of a sudden going to go throw them in the bin. They will still carry them around wherever they go. Some of us even sleep with them.

Granted, people may not upgrade to the next model as fast as usual, or they may opt for a less expensive phone. But the devices are entrenched into our lives to the point where we don’t want to give them up. Surveys have shown that their smartphone is more important to people than sex, their car, or even wearing shoes!

So if you need to connect with your customers, SMS messaging is about as predictable as it gets.

The second strategy is “Remain agile, and strive to respond quickly”. While the article aimed this strategy at social media, it’s a perfect match for SMS messaging too.

You can learn a lot in a short time from an SMS marketing campaign. You’ll be able to tell right away whether you’ve made your customers happy or pushed them all to unsubscribe. If you have lots of unsubscribes after a particular campaign, respond quickly to that and figure out what went wrong.

If you’re using SMS messaging within your organisation, you can get fast feedback from sales reps, maintenance, or support staff. An issue in any of these areas could have an impact, or at least implications, on the rest of the company. Getting and responding to internal messages quickly could also help you remain stable if your customer base is shifting.

“Companies react to uncertainty by delaying or reducing their investment”, Markus Kerber (the director-general of a German business lobby) commented in the Financial Times article.

It’s natural that companies want to hold off on investments when they aren’t sure what’s coming down the line. For example, a UK company that was looking to do a massive product launch across the UK and Europe may hold off. There are so many unresolved issues that could affect that sort of venture.

But, for a smaller investment, they could look at doing a launch across the UK using SMS messaging. The cost for an SMS marketing campaign is reasonably low, and the return on investment is often in the hundreds of percent.

This sort of investment is ideal for these times because:

• people still have their mobile phones
• if they’re on your list they want to buy your products
• you can run the whole campaign quickly

You can make the most of the situation by maximising your current customers, or running an opt in campaign for new customers in the UK.

Of course, every business will need to examine their priorities, investments, and plans going forward. If you still want to reach customers, or employees, in a cost-effective and timely manner then you’ll want to take a look at what SMS messaging can do for you.

We’re happy to answer any questions you have on how SMS messaging could work in your situation. Just click to chat, email or give us a call to speak with our SMS experts.