Text message campaigns can be great ways to drive revenue and alert customers of your best deals and promotions. They can also be spectacular failures, driving customers away and labeling your brand as “spammy” or “pushy” if not executed correctly. Customers today are fickle, and with the massive amount of marketing content out there, it’s no surprise that customers can be picky with the kinds of material they pay attention to.

Here are five tips to make your text message don’t end up in the “discard” pile…

1.      Get a short code – Getting an SMS short code is a great way to lend credibility to your company and allow users to save your contact information into their phones. It also makes it easier for you when using software to send to multiple accounts. Consistency is key in most marketing campaigns, and it’s no exception here.

2.      Get good software – Leave the hard work to a dedicated texting platform. Make sure you read text message marketing companies reviews before buying something that you could otherwise get for free. You should have a large variety of free programs to choose from.

3.      Use short URLs – Including URLs to more in-depth content is a good way to keep your text messages short and to the point. A call to action and a bitly.com or tinyurl.com web address is all you need for an effective mass text.

4.      Offer value – If you’re not giving the consumer a reason to open your messages, you’ll likely be deleted. Whether you’re giving text vouchers, exclusive coupons codes, or time-sensitive store promotions, you should be providing  something to your customers at all times to maintain relevancy.

5.      Segment and test – This should be familiar from any email campaign, but breaking your recipient list into smaller parts and testing your text performance is crucial to improving your campaigns in smaller markets. Most good software will help you do this, so make sure you’re investing the time and you’ll see better results in the long run.