Is your association considering text messaging (SMS) as an alternative to other forms of communication? Effective communication is the key to building and maintaining strong relationships with members, who want to feel valued and understood. Clear and timely communication helps members understand the products or services being offered, answer any questions they may have, and address any concerns they may raise. Additionally, it helps to build trust between the member and the organization, which can lead to increased member engagement.
To keep members engaged and informed, associations must communicate with their members in a timely and effective manner. One effective tool for achieving this is text messaging through SMS. There are several benefits to using text messaging for your association:
Text messaging is a fast and reliable way to communicate with members, as text messages are delivered almost instantly. Members are more likely to read text messages than other forms of communication, such as emails. According to Gartner, “SMS open and response rates are as high as 98% and 45%, respectively – in contrast to corresponding figures of 20% and 6% for email.”
Text messaging can help increase member engagement and membership recruitment. Associations can send out personalized messages around member segmentation, making it easier to build relationships with members and keep them engaged and informed about what’s important to them.
Text messaging can also help increase non-dues revenue by driving more members and partners to events and your online store. Members and partners are more likely to attend events and purchase products when they receive reminders and updates via text message.
If your association is using predictive analytics, you can send out targeted text messages to members and non-members who may be interested in purchasing products and services. Associations can also offer promotions and discounts to help drive them to a purchase.
Finally, Text messaging through SMS can be used to gather important information that can extremely valuable to your association. Associations can send surveys and polls, allowing associations to gather valuable feedback from their constituents. This feedback can be used to improve member engagement and satisfaction.
There is no question that text messaging is an effective communication tool for associations, offering several benefits such as fast and reliable communication, increased member engagement, non-dues revenue generation, targeted marketing, and member feedback. By leveraging the power of text messaging, associations can build stronger relationships with their members, increase touchpoints, and ultimately, drive revenue the organization.
Salesforce for SMS
Mobile Studio which is part of Salesforce’s Marketing Cloud allows organizations to send out targeted text messages with ease. There are also other options on the Salesforce Appexchange that associations can evaluate. These solutions are cost effective and should certainly drive ROI to your organization.
About Systems Rewired
Systems Rewired provides is a Salesforce consulting company that provides services to the association and nonprofit marketplace. If you are using the Salesforce platform and interested in learning about text messaging (SMS), contact one of our Salesforce association consultants today.