If you are running an SMS marketing campaign, the stakes are always high, and it has to bring you the maximum ROI. 

To make sure you leave no quarter to things going wrong, you must monitor the SMS marketing conversion rate to ensure your efforts bring the expected results. 

In this post, we will check how to calculate SMS marketing conversion rate and also improve it for the best results. 

What is the SMS marketing conversion rate, and what are the factors influencing it?

SMS marketing conversion rate is a metric that tracks if consumers took the expected action upon receiving the SMS. It could be making a purchase or signing up for newsletters or more. 

Factors that influence SMS marketing conversion rate include the following:

• Relevance of messages
• Effective targeting to reach the audience most likely to convert 
• Appropriate timing of the message
• Clear call to action in the message

What is an average SMS marketing conversion rate?

In 2023, eCommerce brands worldwide observed a 7.6% click rate and a 0.13% conversion rate on average. This positive change resulted in a 9.4% growth in orders. 

Therefore, eCommerce brands increased their SMS marketing budgets and sent 57.9% more SMS campaigns compared to 2022. 

How to calculate SMS marketing conversion rate

Theoretically speaking, you can calculate the SMS marketing conversion rate (CVR) by calculating the number of conversions and dividing it by the number of messages delivered. That makes the SMS marketing CVR formula to be:

SMS Marketing CVR = (Number of conversions/Number of messages delivered)*100

But it’s tough to keep track of this number manually. A better solution is to integrate your marketing platform with CRM or the eCommerce platform to automatically calculate the numbers. 

For instance, the all-in-one customer engagement platform Plivo CX easily integrates with your Shopify store and tracks the open rate, click rate, conversion rate, and revenue generated by the campaign. 

7 ways to maximize SMS marketing conversion rate

Now that we have the basics cleared, here are seven practical tips to increase SMS marketing conversion rate:

1. Segment audience

One of the simplest ways to improve SMS marketing conversions is to segment your consumers based on demographics, interests, and more. 

Segmentation gives you more insights into your consumers and helps you tailor the message accordingly. After segmentation, you can send personalized messages to specific consumers. It improves the chances of engagement and conversion. 

Tip: Use an SMS marketing automation platform like Plivo CX for a trouble-free segmentation process. It automatically divides users into segments based on key attributes, such as demographics, browsing activity, online behavior, etc. 

Plus, you can send more relevant messages targeting different user segments with Plivo CX. 

2. Optimize messages

After segmenting the consumers for better targeting, the next step to increase conversions would be optimizing messages. It can be done by:

• Keep the message concise
• Use simple and direct language
• Make the message engaging by using graphics
• Add a clear and compelling call to action

Tip: Use generative AI to your advantage to create multiple versions of a campaign and shortlist the best one. 

Plivo CX comes with an inbuilt Copywriter AI that instantly crafts campaign messages for you. You just need to fill out the form with your campaign objectives, goal, parameters, timing, urgency, expected tone, and voila! 

3. Optimize timing and frequency

Apart from optimizing messages, identifying the optimal timing is also important. Send messages to your consumers when they are most likely to be active. Also, identify the right timing by analyzing past campaigns, open rates, and consumer data. 

However, choosing the right frequency of messages is also important. Too many messages are spam, and too few are not effective enough. Hit the right balance for the best results. 

Tip: Identifying patterns in data manually is tedious. Here is where AI can come to your aid again. Plivo AI assistant also suggests the right time to send messages by analyzing past data. 

4. Test campaigns

Once you have optimized messages and frequency, it’s time for testing. Run different variations of optimized messages and gather metrics. 

With these results, you can check what’s working and what’s not. Once you have the data, promote the campaigns that are giving expected returns. 

Tip: Plivo CX automatically tracks the important metrics: delivered rate, open rate, click rate, conversion rate, and revenue. This data allows you to allocate budgets to campaigns with higher SMS marketing conversion rates. 

5. Create customer journeys

SMS supports every stage of the consumer life cycle and not just conversion. It helps in the initial acquisition phase, onboarding, engagement, support, and building long-term brand advocates. 

But how do you plan for the entire consumer lifecycle? A marketing platform that designs consumer journeys will automate the entire process.

Tip: Plivo CX allows you to design the entire consumer journey. You can set up trigger events and deliver the right message at the right time based on the consumer's activity. 

For instance, you can set up a trigger event to send a welcome message right when they sign up or send an abandoned cart message if they leave the cart without making a purchase. 

6. Run different types of campaigns

Create different types of campaigns to keep the customers engaged and support the entire customer journey. Some common campaigns are:

• Cart abandonment: These campaigns help to convert back the customers who are having second thoughts. It could contain a special discount, a free shipping offer, or an inventory alert.
• Flash deals: These campaigns provide enticing offers for a limited period, creating fear of missing out (FOMO) in consumers.
• Exclusive deals: These campaigns are exclusive to SMS subscribers, providing a special discount code or early access to a new collection.
• Seasonal and holiday discounts: Consumers have a holiday shopping budget, and these campaigns directly tap into that budget.
• Win-back deals: Lastly, offering deals to consumers who haven't shopped with you in a while could be great to win them back.

A marketing automation platform can help you design all these campaigns based on consumer behavior and actions. 

Tip: As suggested previously, Plivo CX works end-to-end for Shopify consumers. You can run different campaigns based on their action and purchase history. 

7. Integrate with other channels

Lastly, integrate SMS with other marketing channels to provide the most consistent brand experience to your consumers. By integrating platforms, you can deliver the message on the channel where it works best. 

For instance, if you find flash deals working best on SMS, plan those campaigns on SMS. 

Another example is if you find cart abandonment to be working best on email. Deliver those over email. You have all platforms integrated into one, creating a huge data powerhouse for better personalization for all campaigns. 

Tip: Plivo CX serves as an omnichannel platform that combines all common marketing channels: SMS, MMS, WhatsApp, and email (coming soon). It establishes an integrated system for all your marketing efforts and consumer data. 

This integration lays the groundwork for improved personalization, making all campaigns more compatible with the platform. 

Run effective SMS marketing campaigns with Plivo CX

To sum it up, Plivo CX can be a great asset to your SMS marketing efforts, as it supports the entire customer journey by:

• Gathering customer data
• Segmenting based on key attributes
• Designing campaigns with AI support
• Delivering campaigns with an inbuilt carrier network
• And gathering metrics

Plivo CX also works end-to-end for Shopify consumers with all the necessary features required to boost conversion. 

The best part is, Plivo CX leverages Plivo’s proprietary premium carrier network that lets you send personalized messages to 220+ countries and territories at an affordable rate. 

You can send a text message in the US for as little as $0.0065 from Plivo compared to the $0.0150 /SMS cost of competitors. As a result, you can slash SMS costs by 70% and triple your marketing ROI.

Sign up for a quick demo now!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the conversion rate for SMS marketing?

In 2023, eCommerce brands worldwide observed an average 7.6% click rate and a 0.13% conversion rate. 

2. What is the success rate of SMS marketing?

In 2023, eCommerce brands worldwide observed an average 7.6% click rate and a 0.13% success rate. 

3. How to calculate SMS conversion rate? 

You can calculate SMS marketing CVR by taking the number of conversions and dividing it by the number of messages delivered. 

SMS marketing CVR formula= (Number of conversions/Number of messages delivered)*100

4. How do you calculate ROI for SMS marketing?

SMS ROI is calculated by dividing the profit of the campaign against the total investment made in it. A simple SMS marketing ROI formula for a marketing campaign is: 

ROI = ((Total revenue- Campaign cost)/Campaign cost)*100.

5. What is the CTR of SMS marketing?

In 2023, eCommerce brands worldwide observed an average 7.6% clickthrough rate (CTR) and a 0.13% conversion rate. 

6. Is SMS marketing expensive?

No, SMS marketing is not expensive if you choose the right marketing platform. By using Plivo CX, you can send a text message in the US for as little as $0.0065 compared to the $0.0150 /SMS cost of competitors.

7. How can I increase my CTR in SMS?

Seven ways to increase click rate are:

1. Segment audience

2. Optimize messages

3. Optimize timing and frequency

4. Test campaigns

5. Create customer journeys

6. Run exclusive deals

7. Integrate with other channels

8. What is a good SMS click rate?

In 2023, eCommerce brands worldwide observed an average 7.6% click rate and a 0.13% conversion rate. 

9. What is the cost of SMS?

The cost of SMS depends on the provider. With Plivo CX, you can send a text message in the US for as little as $0.0065 compared to the $0.0150 /SMS cost of competitors.