5 unmatched benefits of ecommerce SMS notifications for online stores

Ecommerce SMS notifications have been used since long for bulk communications with the online customers. Due to the 2-way interaction text messaging is one of the most engaging channels for notifying customers. 94% of text messages are opened within 5 minutes of being sent and thus offer a great opportunity to connect with customers instantly.

SMS notifications have a 4% growth rate year on year, thus being one of the most important communication channels to target customers on the move. They are known to be effective in conversions for limited period offers with one-time discount codes. SMS notifications provide a cost effective means of brand building in much less time than other marketing mediums.

Let us evaluate the benefits of using SMS notifications as a part of  ecommerce communications mix by online selling sites:

1. Instant Delivery without the Internet

Except for SMS, all the other notification mediums for Ecommerce are dependent on internet availability. Even with the boom in internet penetration, customers might not be connected to internet 24x7.  Customers often turn off the internet deliberately to avoid distraction or to save battery.

If there is no internet connection all other communication mediums are rendered useless for time sensitive offers. By using text messages to keep your customers informed about special deals, delivery etc you can ensure better customer engagement and ROI from your marketing efforts.

2. Boosts Marketing Opportunities

The main aim of multi channel notifications for ecommerce is to offer fast and time notifications to customers that create a trust for your brand. Customers are more likely to keep coming to your online store if they receive quality services along with good products and pricing.

When you deliver OTP, passwords, order confirmation, shipping and delivery notifications through text messages it increases the adaptability of your users towards text messages. This goes a long way in gently pushing the same set of customers towards your promotional offers in future.

3. Improved Customer Experience

The main focus of eCommerce communication channels is to improve customer experience so it results in conversion. With an average response rate of 19% text notifications is a clear winner in engaging customers in real-time. You can create a smooth purchasing experience for your customers by keeping them updated about each stage of their order.

With real-time updates on orders, transactions, processing and shipping you can be perceived as a brand transparent portal that cares for its customers. This, in turn, increases customer loyalty and also brings more traffic to your site by word of mouth. SMS notifications also reduce customer queries and save your support resources for other important support tasks.

4. High Open Rate

ECommerce SMS notifications have an open rate of over 98%. An average person looks at his phone every 15-20 minutes. So, it becomes almost difficult to miss a test message. Also, since text messages are internet independent they do not get delayed or lost when the internet is unavailable.

When compared to emails open rate of 20% for emails, text messages are a clear winner in engaging and converting your audiences. The average cost of sending a text message is less than 2 paise and it with a high rate open rate they ensure cost effective customer engagement. SMS is also the fastest communication medium and combined with high open and read-rate it takes an edge over any other channel of notification for ecommerce.

5. Easy Integration with other Channels

Configuring SMS ecommerce notifications as part of the marketing mix for online stores enhances the overall effectiveness of online marketing. Text messages have a great potential as a stand-alone communication channel as well. However, when used as supporting medium for other channels it ensures better engagement and results.

SMS messages can be very easily streamlined as a follow-up channel after sending emails for various marketing activities as well as regular order and delivery processes. This integration of SMS with other channels can be used a precursor or follow up for all marketing activities to get higher ROI from them.

Conclusion

With the increase in worldwide usage of mobile phones, SMS becomes one of the single most powerful channels that are used by a variety of audience segments. SMS enables an online seller to connect with a larger audience group instantly and hence is very useful in bringing higher conversions.

StoreHippo ecommerce platform India offers easy integration of SMS channel for your online business along with other unified notifications. Stay ahead of your competitors by integrating text messages as a part of your marketing mix.

Keep watching our blog section as we will be publishing more articles on other unified notifications.