By now, most marketers have realized the value of mobile marketing and have at least considered making mobile a large part of their greater marketing campaigns. Email has long been a part of successful marketing strategies, and social media has recently taken the marketing world by storm. SMS marketing, however, is still a relatively-unexplored marketing platform, but it is one with plenty of room for expansion and growth.

If you haven’t yet made SMS marketing a part of your marketing strategy, here are a few tips to get started:

1.      Get software – No one wants to spend hours sending mass texts from a mobile device, so get a bulk SMS sender to aid in your automation efforts. You can send unlimited messages, segments your recipient list into smaller groups, and track and analyze your text message performance.

2.      Respect privacy – SMS messaging is still a relatively “personal” form of communication. This translates into a lot of value for companies, but it poses a problem with consumer privacy. Start by offering services on your website, like deals and promotions, then having people opt in and provide their phone numbers. You can also implement text services for appointments and shipping information to provide information other than promotions. SMS service with an RSVP for an event, for example, can be a great way to build trust without coming across as pushy.

3.      Get a short code – In New Zealand or anywhere else, a short code provides credibility for your company when sending emails to your recipients. A dedicated code gives consumers the ability to save your contact information in their phones and greatly increases the level of familiarity and trust with consumers. Before you Google “short code text NZ”, make sure you do your research and properly secure a legitimate code for your account.