Spam Approach in SMS Marketing

A spam message is any kind of unwanted or unsolicited communication, often sent in bulk over the internet or through an electronic messaging service. On mobile, unwanted text messages usually come from unknown numbers or as robotexts sent by auto-dialers.

This article provides details about the following questions:

• What is considered a Spam Text Message?
• How can you improve your message?
• What are Carrier Filters instead of Spam Status?
• What are the status information types in SMS marketing?

What is Considered a Spam Text Message?

Spam texts include several types of junk messages, either designed to sell you unwanted products or to steal your data, passwords, and personal information. You might consider a text message spam if it is also filled with typos or grammatical errors. You might also interpret text messages as spam if they are impersonal with simple greetings, create a sense of urgency, or provide an offer that is too good to be true. In common business practices, spam text messaging includes;

• Texting a company marketing without the consumer’s consent,
• Sending multiple texts at one time,
• Employing multiple forms of communication for the same call to action (CTA), such as calling or emailing a customer and then sending a text with the same information,
• More malicious types of spam texts include phishing or “smishing.” These text messages attempt to collect a customer’s data by posing as a business, friend, or family member. By engaging with these messages, recipients could risk a data breach.

Avoid sending texts relating to the following topics, which your customers might confuse with spam;

• Winning a contest not related to your business
• Refund notifications
• Credit card offers
• Package delivery is not related to your business
• Personal account numbers
• Verification of a bank account
• Compromised login credentials
• A friend or family member
• Financial assistance requests

Improve Your Message

Be authentic

Introduce yourself or your brand in the initial text message. Your phone number might not be in users' contact lists. Users want to know what kind of text messages they might receive from you. Segmenting your users will help you target the right customers. 

Consider your audience

If you are more direct, a casual tone invites the customer into the conversation. You should avoid long or confusing messages. Overly capitalized SMS messages look like spam and can give an aggressive impression. Consider your wording, too; avoid hyperbole like 100% guaranteed, completely FREE, or no charge.

Personalize each message

Use dynamic content to personalize the text for each customer. Addressing your customers by their names and other personal data gives the impression that you know them and that they consented to receive SMS messages from your brand. Since most spam and phishing scammers do not have access to personal data, just phone number databases, people tend to trust messages that address them by their name more.

Always proofread each message before you send it

Grammatical errors are one of the easiest ways to detect a spam message, so be accurate in your writing style. Also, grammatical errors might create a false image of an unprofessional company. Consider that your text messages are part of your company’s public image. 

Define the action

If you are asking for an action from your user, always include detailed information in the text. For example, if you remind your user of their flight, let them know all the related details. If you send a CTA in an SMS message, do not use it to send an email; using multiple channels can bother your users, and this might cause unsubscription.

Shorten the URLs

A message with a long URL can be disturbing while reading it. Also, URLs with generic domains look like spam in most cases. Therefore, use branded domains for shortening your links.

Do not exceed the 160-character limit

Sending too long messages can confuse the user and make it hard for them to read them fully. In addition, long texts might get split into multiple texts, and the user might receive them in the wrong order with multiple notifications, which can frustrate the user.

Do not include private information

Having personal information in your message might be risky. Ensure you use an encryption service platform to send and receive confidential information.

Limit the number of texts you send

If you want to increase leads or encourage your users to purchase again, don’t bother them with repetitive texts. Keep them to a minimum. Channel Frequency Capping will help you with that.

Always offer an unsubscribe option

Users might no longer want to receive messages from your brand. So, you should give them the option to unsubscribe at the end of your message.

What are Carrier Filters instead of Spam Status?

Mobile subscribers who receive many spam SMS messages might consider changing their carrier. Rather than losing their subscribers, carriers set up filters that block certain messages from getting through and block out spam SMS messages.

These filters might be keywords that prevent messages from getting through or machine-learning filters that protect customers from being frustrated by unwanted messages. Filters can also block high-volume senders, even if the message is harmless.

Carriers closely protect their filters, so there is no way to know with certainty if a message will get through. Unfortunately, carrier filters do not take user preferences into account when blocking a message.

According to these filters, in SMS marketing, providers cannot recover the spam status of the messages, but they can get undelivered and rejection statuses. You can utilize these logs to track your campaigns' performance and health. 

Status Information Types In SMS Marketing