Did you know that the average person checks their smartphone 96 times per day?
So, each time your customers check their phones, it is an opportunity to engage them and make a sale if you use the right SMS marketing strategies.
One key tactic is to make sure you’re looking at the right SMS metrics. And the best way to do so is to define your campaign goals, then monitor the statistics that impact that campaign.
With that in mind, we’ll cover what you need to know about SMS marketing analytics, including the metrics you need to measure and how to track them.
What is SMS marketing analytics?
Simply put, SMS analytics is measuring your text marketing efforts based on your campaign goals. This can include everything from delivery to conversion and response rates.
One key metric SMS thrives on is its massive open rate of 98%.
With such a high open rate, you can be confident that almost all of your SMS messages will reach the intended recipient and that most people will open them.
Other benefits of SMS marketing include:
- Wider audience reach: Almost everyone has a mobile phone these days, with over 5.2 billion smartphone users worldwide. This makes SMS an ideal channel to reach a large audience.
- Possibility for integration: You can combine your SMS campaigns with other marketing platforms, like email and social media, to create a cohesive marketing strategy.
- Opt-in and opt-out options: Customers can subscribe or unsubscribe from your campaigns whenever they want. That helps you comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and focus your marketing efforts on interested users.
Key metrics to analyze in your SMS campaigns
Here are the crucial metrics you should focus on to measure the overall success of your campaign and boost customer engagement.
Conversion rate
This basic metric measures the number of recipients who take a valuable action after clicking on a link in your text messages, such as for example making a purchase or signing up for a webinar.
You can use the formula below to calculate it:
Conversion rate = (number of subscribers who took action/number of campaign recipients) x 100
For instance, suppose you deliver text messages to 1,500 recipients, and 200 subscribers take the desired action of purchasing your product. Your conversion rate will be:
Conversion rate = (200/1,500) x 100 = 13.33%
Delivery rate
This is the percentage of outgoing messages that reach the intended recipient.
Here’s the formula:
Delivery rate = (text messages delivered/total sends) x 100
For example, if you send 2,000 messages and 1,800 are successfully delivered to your subscribers, your delivery rate will be:
Delivery rate = (1,800/2,000) x 100 = 90%
Click-through rate
The click-through rate (CTR) is the number of times users click a link in your message.
The formula is:
CTR = (total clicks/delivered links) x 100
For instance, suppose you deliver messages with links to an offer page to 2,000 subscribers. Of those, 150 subscribers click the links and visit the page.
In that case, your CTR will be:
CTR = (150/2,000) x 100 = 7.5%
Response rate
The response rate measures the number of people who respond to your SMS messages.
Its formula is:
Response rate = (responses received/requested responses) x 100
For example, if 500 customers get survey messages and 100 respond, your response rate will be:
Response rate = (100/500) x 100 = 20%
Unsubscribe rate
This refers to the number of subscribers who’ve opted out from your list after an SMS campaign.
Here’s how to calculate it:
Unsubscribe rate = (number of unsubscribes/number of text messages sent) x 100
For example, suppose you send 1,500 messages, and 50 recipients unsubscribe from further SMS communications. In that case, your unsubscribe rate will be:
Unsubscribe rate = (50/1,500) x 100 = 3.33%
How to plan for an SMS campaign
Now, let’s look at a step-by-step guide to planning and executing a successful SMS campaign that drives positive results.
1. Define your campaign goals
The most important question to answer before planning your SMS campaign is: “What’s the goal?”
Is it to inform recipients about your brand? Engage customers? Offer customer support? Promote a sale campaign? Or sell your products and services?
The answer will help you structure your marketing strategy and measure the right metrics to boost your ROI.
2. Choose your SMS marketing software
Before choosing SMS automation software, consider the following:
- Control over costs
- Ease of use
- Integration with other marketing channels
- Text message templates
- Automation opportunities
3. Build and segment your subscriber list
If you already have a subscriber list, you can segment users based on their needs and preferences, then send relevant and personalized messages. This will dramatically boost your campaign’s effectiveness.
However, if you’re building a new list, adding forms to your social media profiles and website can help get customers to opt-in to your campaigns.
How to track an SMS campaign
You can track your SMS campaigns in two ways:
- Using an SMS marketing automation tool.
- Through Google Analytics.
1. Use an SMS marketing automation tool
The first option is to use a marketing automation platform that lets you combine your SMS campaigns with other channels, like email.
Most automation platforms that have SMS marketing provide analytics dashboards you can use to track your SMS reports.
2. Use Google Analytics
The other option is to track your SMS marketing campaigns in Google Analytics. You can do this by adding Urchin Tracking Module (UTM) parameters to your URL.
You can easily add UTM parameters using the Google Campaign URL Builder:
Next, reduce the length of your links and make them look more appealing to customers with a branded short domain. Then, copy the custom link into your text messages.
Note: Avoid using a public link shortener, as many carriers prohibit them.
Pro tip: Allow your SMS campaigns to run for some time before tracking them on Google Analytics. You’ll get more actionable data to improve your campaigns.
Track your SMS performance to understand your customers better
Tracking your text message analytics will help you know your customers better and optimize your marketing strategies to yield more positive results.
When executed well, SMS can strengthen your other marketing efforts and help you meet customers where they are — on their phones.
With GetResponse MAX, you can combine SMS and email marketing automation to boost your campaigns with trigger-based messages.