If you’re still wondering how SMS marketing can help your business, ask yourself this: how many times have you heard your friends describe their relationship with their smartphones as deeply personal? They bring it everywhere they go — they eat with it, sleep with it, go around town with it, everywhere! Perhaps even you could say the same about you and your phone.

Let’s face it. People are constantly with their phones these days. And if you want to keep up with your competition, you should consider adding text message marketing into your business plans.

There are several ways you can ask for people’s numbers. Include a field for their mobile numbers each time they sign up on your website. You can use your landing page to ask your visitors for their contact information — don’t just ask for their email addresses, ask for their mobile numbers, too.

Once you have their numbers, there are several ways you can entice them to come back and purchase online.

Alert them about special offers and discounts

Everybody likes a good deal, but your typical customer might not have the time to browse through your website daily. Why not send them a text to alert them of upcoming sales and special offers? You can even send them special coupons or discount codes that they can use.

Here’s another idea. Some online shops have “wish list” features. Perhaps one or two items on your customer’s wish list have gone or are going on sale. Why not alert them through SMS? You know that they already want them, and that little nudge may be what they need to get them to make that purchase.

Text as reminders

Maybe you offer products that require periodic ordering. Or perhaps you’re in the service business that provides subscriptions or periodic maintenance. Your busy customers will appreciate receiving SMS reminders a few days before they’re scheduled for a re-order or a renewal.

Use SMS to build customer relationships

All of the tips mentioned above add value to your relationship with your customers. Any value you add to this relationship encourages them to keep coming back, because you keep them happy. More importantly, happy customers are more likely to recommend you to their friends, helping you grow your business further.

Caveat: But do exercise prudence when sending texts to your customers. A successful SMS marketing campaign does not mean sending them texts on a daily basis. Your customers might find frequent texts from you intrusive and annoying that they might end up opting out of the subscription, so consider segmenting your text subscribers so that you send targeted texts each time.