How to write a text campaign people answer

A text lands on the same screen as messages from someone's mother, their boss and their group chat. That is why it works, and it's also why a sloppy one gets ignored or, worse, earns a STOP. The good news is that the habits behind a campaign people reply to are simple, and none of them need a copywriter.

Start with the one thing you want them to do

Before you write a word, finish this sentence: after reading this, I want the customer to. Book Friday. Show the text at the counter. Reply YES to hold a spot. If you have two answers, you have two messages. A campaign with one ask gets more of that ask than a campaign with three gets of any of them.

Put the ask near the start. Many phones show only the first line or two in a notification, so a message that opens with your shop's history and ends with the offer is often read as just the history.

Fit it in one text

A standard text is 160 characters. Go over and the message is split in two, which costs you two texts per person and can arrive out of order on some phones. Emoji and some special characters shrink the limit to 70. In Textcierge the composer counts as you type and tells you how many texts each send will use, so you can trim before you schedule.

Trimming usually makes the message better anyway. Cut the greeting down to a first name. Drop words like "just", "really" and "we wanted to let you know". Use numbers instead of spelled-out words. "Fall menu is here. Show this text Fri to Sun for a free side" says everything in 60 characters.

Say who you are

People save a few dozen business numbers at most. Yours probably isn't one of them. Put your business name in the first few words, or end with it, so the reader isn't guessing who "we" is. Carriers also expect it, and so does the law in most places.

Make replying easy

If you want replies, ask a question that takes one word to answer. "Want the 4pm slot? Reply YES" will get more answers than "Let us know if you're interested in booking." When the replies come in, they go to your shared inbox, where whoever is free can answer. Plan for that before you send: a campaign that invites 600 replies on a Saturday morning needs someone watching the inbox.

Send at a sensible hour

Texts are read within minutes, so timing matters more than it does for email. For most local businesses, late morning on weekdays and early afternoon on weekends work well. Avoid early mornings and anything after 8pm in your customer's time zone. Many states restrict marketing texts to certain hours, and a 7am promo is a quick way to lose a customer.

Match the send to the decision. A restaurant offer works best a couple of hours before people decide where to eat. A class with open spots works best the evening before. A sale reminder works best the morning it starts.

Send less often than you think

There is no perfect number, but most small businesses do well with two to four campaigns a month, plus the reminders and replies customers actually asked for. If your opt-out rate jumps after a send, look at what changed. Usually it's frequency, or a message that felt like it was meant for someone else.

Segments help here. Sending the new-client discount only to people who haven't booked yet, and the loyalty offer only to regulars, means fewer people get texts that don't apply to them.

Always include the way out

Every marketing text should let people opt out, usually with "Reply STOP to opt out" at the end. Textcierge handles the STOP reply automatically and removes the number from future sends, but the words still need to be in your message. It costs about 20 characters and keeps your number in good standing with the carriers.

Check the numbers, then write the next one

After each campaign, look at three figures: how many were delivered, how many people clicked or replied, and how many opted out. Compare the last few sends side by side. Over a month or two you will see which openings, offers and send times your customers respond to. Keep those, and drop the rest.

A good campaign is short, says who it's from, asks for one thing and arrives when people can act on it. Get those four right and most of the rest takes care of itself.