How to plan an SMS marketing campaign: list, message, cost and timing

The short answer: an SMS campaign comes down to four decisions: who (only contacts who agreed to receive messages), what (one offer, a deadline, who is sending and how to stop receiving), how much (recipients times parts gives the credits) and when (the day and time the customer can act). In My MozOut, “New campaign” takes you through it step by step and shows the estimated cost before you confirm.

1. The list

Start with the right group, not every contact you have. A school supplies campaign goes to parents, a weekend offer to people who have bought before. Before you send, check three things:

2. The message

One goal per message. The benefit first, the deadline next, and a way to use the offer. End with your company name and a contact for opting out, written in the message, because named senders cannot receive replies. In the examples, the parts in square brackets, such as [COMPANY], [PHONE] or [DATE], are there for you to replace with your own details before sending.

3. The cost

The sum is simple: number of recipients × parts per message = credits. A message with accents such as ã, ç or á fits fewer characters per part; see how many credits an SMS uses.

Credits are bought from 1,000 upwards, and the whole quantity is charged at the price of the tier it falls in. So before buying for a large campaign, check the tier: a quantity just above a tier limit can cost less in total than the quantity just below it. The details are in SMS credits and price tiers.

4. The timing

Send when the customer can act: in the morning for a same-day offer, on Thursday or Friday for the weekend, a few hours before lunch for a restaurant. Working days and business hours, never at night. At the last step you choose to send now or set a date and time; a date that has already passed sends the campaign straight away. There is a daily sending limit per account: with a very large list, keep that in mind when you pick the date.

Before you confirm