Collecting mobile opt-in is crucial to the modern day business. With people spending more time on their smartphones than ever, marketing through channels like SMS and Facebook Messenger is becoming commonplace.
Smartphone use isn’t the only thing that’s increased. Mobile shopping rates have been steadily rising as well, with 65 percent growth in 2016. There’s a large market on mobile, but how do you access them?
The solution is to increase opt-in by collecting mobile permissions. Regulations around text and mobile marketing remain strict, so it’s vital to get visitors to opt-in. No matter how comfortable you are operating in the mobile sphere, here are three essential strategies to gain mobile permissions for your database strategy.
1. Keep it Clear
Consumers automatically become suspicious when asked to share a phone number. Phone feel private and many people are concerned about spam. To address these concerns, be transparent.
When asking for mobile opt-in, explain exactly what your audience will get from you. Show the value of joining your list and why using mobile is convenient, rather than a nuisance. You should also disclose the standard legal terms, such as noting that data and text messaging rates may apply.
Finally, explain how often you’ll share content with your audience and stick to it. When your audience knows you plan to send out a weekly digest, you may see lower conversion rates on your site, but the visitors who do convert will be genuinely interested in your content. The number of engaged users or leads in your database is far more important than conversion rates for a generic campaign.
2. Imitate Email with a Web Form
Just like you’ve probably done for your email list, craft a web form to collect basic information with a phone number. The minimum amount of information you should collect is your user’s phone number and preferred first name. Add a few more form fields if necessary, but try to keep it short and sweet. Keeping your forms to four items or under can result in a 160 percent increase in conversions.
You should also use a double opt-in system. Double opt-in requires users to sign up on your website, then confirm their subscription through another channel. This strategy is common in email newsletters, but you can also use it through text. After a visitor enters their number on your website, send them a confirmation text requiring a quick, one-word response to verify their opt-in. It may sound like this strategy will lose your business potential customers, but consumers who are unwilling to verify a phone number aren’t strongly interested. Verification also weeds out any fake numbers and keeps your database clean.
3. Start with Your Email Lists
Just because gathering mobile permissions is new to you, doesn’t mean you’re starting from scratch. Your most loyal customers and fans are already at your fingertips – on your email list. Don’t assume that consumers on email wouldn’t be interested in following you over mobile.
Retaining current customers is far more cost efficient than gaining new customers. Improving customer retention rates by just 5 percent can boost profit by anywhere between 25 to 95 percent. Convincing your existing customers to join you on mobile strengthens your customer-brand relationship and gives fans more ways to connect with you.
Inform consumers on your email list about your new SMS or Facebook Messenger options and invite them to participate. With a segmented email list, you can customize your email copy to each group based on demographics, interests, or behaviors, increasing opt-in rates.
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