Best Practices for Preparing Communication Blasts around the Holiday Season

When preparing for the upcoming holiday shopping frenzy, it’s crucial to have a strategic approach for launching communication blasts to your audience.

Here are some best practices to consider before crafting and sending out your messages to your members and prospects:

Never send to a list you bought or loaded

Avoid purchasing or loading lists. Obtaining consent from recipients before messaging is essential. Consent cannot be bought or sold, and it is imperative that you have explicit permission before reaching out to any leads on your list.

Personalize and target your messages.

Make sure to tailor your messages to specific audience segments to improve engagement and avoid high opt-out rates.

Use extreme caution texting cold leads

Approach old/cold lists carefully. Be cautious when contacting old or inactive lists to prevent high opt-out rates. Avoid sending too many messages in quick succession and focus on personalizing your messages to improve relevance.

Set clear messaging frequency

Communicate to your customers the expected frequency of your promotional messages. Avoid exceeding the communicated frequency and refrain from sudden changes in messaging patterns.

Monitor failed messages and log & adapt messaging

Stay vigilant! Keep an eye on your failed messages log and adjust your messaging strategy based on error codes received.

Avoid potential blocking

Be mindful of common spam words and phrases that carriers filter out. steer clear of using them in your SMS marketing messages to ensure successful delivery.

Additional Tips

• Clear identification – Always identify your business as the sender to build trust with your recipients.
• Include STOP to opt out – Make it easy for recipients to opt out of promotional messages.
• Avoid common spam triggers – Refrain from using spam words, exaggerated claims, urgency drivers, excessive emojis, all caps, or misspelled words.
• Understand your audience – Have a clear goal for your message and consider your audience’s preferences.
• Keep it short – Convey your message concisely to respect your audience’s time.
• Have a clear CTA – One clear call-to-action per message to avoid confusion.

By following these best practices, your center can effectively communicate with your audience during the busy holiday period while maintaining compliance and maximizing engagement. Happy blasting!

Written by Charlotte Hitchcock