What are the Best SMS Marketing Success Stories – JookSMS

According to our 2020 Global Messaging Engagement Report, SMS marketing is becoming increasingly popular, and it will continue to rise by 52% over the next decade. It remains the second-most-chosen communication channel among both young and old generations worldwide.

However, not all text message campaigns are created equal. Some lead to high conversion rates and customer engagement, while others result in frustration, uninstalls, and brand damage.

You’d prefer the former to the latter—but that’s easier said than done. Allow us to share some of the fantastic wins and successes that popular brands experienced through SMS marketing.

Kiehl’s started in 1851 as a pharmacy on 13th Street in the East Village of New York City. It has produced many celebrated products since then. Their clientele is the elite and those who appreciate pampering their skin to perfection.

Today, Kiehl’s has over 250 locations worldwide, sells its goods in high-end department stores, and offers an online shop. Even after all of these successes, Kiehl’s recognized there was a lot of business on the table.

The firm tried a six-month mobile marketing campaign and saw fantastic results. Customers who signed up for the SMS campaign could receive three location-specific deals each month by texting KIEHLS to the shortcode advertised, or they could register on Kiehl’s website and fill out their phone number.

Over 73% of the customers who opted in participated in the experiment and purchased due to receiving emails. In addition, 81 percent completed an evaluation to provide Kiehl with important information for future endeavors.

Chuck E. Cheese’s is a beloved and notable brand among children and adults alike. The brand gives kids a chance to be kids while an adult may sit down and watch their kids entertained by an anthropomorphic mouse. Chuck E. Cheese’s wanted to boost sign-ups for their email loyalty program by leveraging the power and reach of SMS.

Chuck E. Cheese’s decided to launch an SMS campaign in 2009 to improve their already successful marketing campaigns.

Patrons were urged to text their email address to the shortcode and join the Email Club instead of using their pen and paper sign-up sheet. The new sign-up method accounted for 5% of total daily sign-ups. 

Furthermore, customers who opted into the program by text message opened emails 10-20% more and clicked discounts 8-10% more than those who joined up using the sign-up sheet.

The company increased the number of new customers by 25 percent, kept existing ones engaged, and pushed people through the door more often.

Carl’s Jr. is a fast-service restaurant with over 1,300 locations in more than 90 countries. With a billion different culinary choices, Carl’s Jr. recognized the need to find a way to appeal to hungry and impatient consumers before they moved on to somewhere else.

The company tried a campaign that used the same shortcode as other marketing campaigns.

Carl’s Jr. launched a limited-time promotion for a burger and fries combo for just $2.99, rather than the usual $6.00. Within hours of launching the SMS campaign, 20% of Carl’s Jr.’s opted-in consumers redeemed their unique code at restaurants. Carl’s Jr. earned $14 in new sales for every dollar of their budget.

Their campaign was an overwhelming success. They also experienced an 8% opt-in rate and saw great click-through rates on mobile devices. They made it simple for people to click the link and redeem their discounts.

Peta2 (or PETA 2, as peta2 stands for “People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, version 2”) is a branch of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which is an American animal rights organization.

Peta2 wanted to build their subscriber list for potential influencer outreach, which is when you reach out to people who influence others in the hopes they will impact their audience to follow or support your brand. The campaign was a success and saw great results at a low cost.

When it came to marketing their “Animals Don’t Smoke” campaign at Warped Tour, they already knew that SMS was the solution. The shortcode received an immediate win message with directions to a booth at the concert and instructions on obtaining their prize.

The attendee was immediately sent an email by the Federal Drug Administration, asking them to reply Y if they wanted the FDA to cease animal testing for cigarettes. Over 25,000 people texted in to receive a free prize and simply advocate for an important issue.

A 35-location tanning salon in Washington state, Seattle Sun Tan, began using SMS marketing, and it almost immediately produced some outstanding results for an SMS marketing campaign success.

Seattle Sun Tan wanted to include an SMS component in their marketing strategy. Although they had 80,000 email subscribers and 37,000 social media followers, Seattle Sun Tan lacked a database of mobile phone numbers for their clients.

They used text messaging to promote their message in-store, on their website, and on other online and conventional platforms. In 30 days, they increased the number of SMS subscribers by almost 4,000.

Seattle Sun Tan’s first SMS campaign gave new text users $20 off their next purchase, and it had a 57 percent redemption rate and netted about $196,100 in sales. What’s more, consumers who took advantage of the SMS deal spent $500 more than those that didn’t receive any SMS offers. 

The company behind this national steakhouse chain created a mobile loyalty program and amassed over 60,000 new members in just one year. It then began leveraging SMS to communicate with customers and deliver promotions via text message.

Texas Roadhouse had a strong following of loyal customers. Still, it wanted to increase its return visits and overall revenue by establishing relationships with more customers and developing a deeper connection with existing ones.

The steakhouse chain used shortcodes to deliver deals on the fly throughout the entire week, so loyal customers had the opportunity to get deals on their favorite menu items.

The campaign was a huge success. It added $2 million in revenue and increased attendance at Texas Roadhouse locations by 12 percent!  

The restaurant claims that their mobile loyalty club members are their most dedicated clients based on coupon redemptions and response rates. Texas Roadhouse had a 17 percent redemption rate for the sign-up offer, and only 2.3 percent of the list opted out after it was redeemed over six months.

Dreamland Baby, located in New York City, is the go-to baby store for people who want the best for their children, and they wanted to create a loyalty program that could help them accomplish their goals.

They employed social media to draw traffic, but not enough people visited their checkout, so they utilized text marketing to persuade them to finish their shopping.

Dreamland Baby asked a mobile app partner to develop an SMS marketing solution – one that would allow it to share news, promotions, and discounts with any customers who had given them their cell number.

Dreamland Baby began using text marketing and sent out their first SMS marketing campaign, after which their ROI was a 2000% success rate, with sales increasing by 300% in the first month.

According to Tara Williams, the company’s creator, customers were exposed to various campaigns from mixed media, with text messaging as the final call-to-action personal approach that sealed the deal.

SMS marketing made it easier and more convenient to reach Dreamland Baby’s audience than email campaigns since 94% of the site’s audience is mobile. Customers get to see a personalized message and a discount code through text messaging immediately.

You can re-engage customers who have stopped opening emails or visiting your website using SMS campaigns. A simple text message to your subscribers requesting they check their email for an exclusive offer may boost your email open rates.

Yesterday’s Books is a renowned book store that caters to all types of readers, from mild to passionate. They’ve been in business for decades and are the largest independent bookshop in California. Instead of creating an e-commerce shop, they opted to have their landline phone number text-enabled to handle customer purchases.

Initially, the bookstore started using SMS during the pandemic for its operations. However, many customers experience missing responses and lags during follow-ups. So, the store decided to text-enabled their landline.

The owner was able to follow up with book requests by text. The speed of response was the main advantage of switching to text messaging. Text messaging has a lot of benefits, including convenience and speed. It’s easier to manage orders and cut down on back-and-forth conversations with customers since it’s all done via texting. 

Text messaging is a fantastic method for delivering excellent customer service because it’s quick and straightforward. You may even employ SMS bots to answer simple questions while referring more complicated or sensitive inquiries to your knowledgeable support staff.

HBO is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Time Warner. HBO is the oldest and longest continuously operating pay television service in the United States.

The firm wanted to provide Game of Thrones (GOT) fans a more immersive experience than typical television advertisements, and Facebook postings could offer. The Three-Eyed Raven campaign, which used SMS messaging to deliver customized text messages, attempted to tap into the power of SMS.

The text-powered service delivered notifications, hints, and links to subscribed fans. The Three-Eyed Raven gained 70,000 subscribers in the first two months of operation, contributing to record-high excitement for each GOT episode of the season.

The Three-Eyed Raven was a big success, and it helped provide viewers with an interactive experience that drove subscriptions and increased viewership of GOT. However, the service required more than 200 hours of staff time to set it up and maintain its operation during the four months.

Longmont Climbing is a sports training facility focused on rock climbing. They needed an efficient, cost-effective way to reach their audience and increase engagement. SMS marketing was the answer.

A point-based system is used at the Longmont Climbing Collective to recognize members who visit the club, encourage their friends to join, promote the gym’s postings on social media, and so on. All are complimentary guest passes, shoe rentals, discounts on retail items, and even an hour-long privilege of selecting the gym’s Pandora radio station.

However, most members forget about these incentives unless prompted by a friendly reminder. The gym sends out SMS notifications whenever you earn enough points to unlock a new benefit as a way to keep it at the top of everyone’s mind. It’s a fun method to get people involved and encourage visitors to bring friends and spend money in the retail store.

In the past, business-to-consumer (B2C) businesses could not connect directly with their customers. However, this is no longer the case thanks to SMS marketing. 

SMS service enables marketers and SMEs alike to communicate with their customers in real-time while offering a wealth of information through text messaging.

When Salesforce throws a party, you can anticipate a big turnout. Dreamforce, which took place in San Francisco’s Moscone Convention Center in 2009, had over 19,000 attendees. Salesforce didn’t want to crown the “Best Partner App” on their own—they wanted the audience to decide.

The brand created a user-friendly app with an SMS marketing firm that attendees could text to vote for their favorite apps. Users voted via SMS, generating an active, real-time engagement component to the event.

Hydroflask is a producer of insulated containers for drinking water. The company’s containers are double-walled stainless steel that keeps beverages at their optimal temperature. Hydroflask wanted to generate brand awareness while engaging with consumers on an opt-in basis through SMS marketing.

The firm sends marketing text messages on a few occasions each month to showcase its newest bottles and themes. They successfully balance show and tell without overloading consumers with excessive advertising communications.

How does SMS Marketing Help you Achieve Success?

People spend more time on their mobile devices than ever before. Thus, it is no longer surprising to see big brands leveraging the power of SMS marketing to reach more customers and audiences. This service not only helps you maintain existing contacts but also generates new opportunities.

You might ask, what is the connection of SMS marketing to reaching out to more potential customers?

Let’s take a quick look:

It’s simple to see that when messaging services like SMS, mobile, video, email, and social media are used in conjunction with a comprehensive marketing campaign via channels such as mobile, video, email, and social media is booming.

There are a few benefits of SMS marketing that marketers care about:

The key to success with SMS marketing is to offer something of value that enhances the overall customer experience. Be sure to provide your subscribers with exclusive offers, coupons, and even tips that they can’t get anywhere else.

What is the Success Rate of SMS Marketing?

According to a study by the University of Kent, SMS marketing has a 545 percent ROI, and these stats are only increasing.

The same study found that 92% of marketers who used SMS said that it successfully achieved its goal or objectives.

72% of businesses surveyed indicated they have plans to increase their investment in mobile marketing over the next 12 months.

SMS is an ideal approach to distributing coupons to increase store visits and purchases. Following a text marketing campaign, Kiehl’s Skin Care had 73 percent of their opted-in consumers make a purchase.

Considering all of the success stories we’ve covered and the prevailing statistics about SMS marketing, the success rate of SMS marketing is exponentially growing worldwide.

What are the Best Strategies that Companies Use for SMS Marketing?

Text messaging (also known as SMS marketing) is a valuable marketing technique, but only if used correctly. We’ll go through a few basic SMS marketing strategies to get you started on the right foot.