At the recent Western Food Services show that we attended, one of the biggest concerns of restaurateurs was about their customers being annoyed by spam.
Western Food Services Expo
Spam is unsolicited communication, most recently associated with email, but as text messaging increases in popularity phones have become a target for spam.
The Mobile Marketing Association has listed guidelines and best practice on its website for some time now, as well as a code of conduct that declares respect for the end user to decide what they receive on their cell phone, and rightly so. Where regulation wasn’t in place, for example in the Philippines, they have just introduced serious fines for spammers following complaints from users who were being spammed, AND CHARGED for the privilege.
The key to prevent customer irritation is to treat them with respect, and keep your promises.
1. Never send unsolicited texts. However tempting it may be to use those cell phone numbers you have been collecting all year for telephone orders or reservations, many of them will see it as a serious invasion of privacy to use the number they entrusted to you in case of emergency.
Providing a text-on-demand service that promises great offers on request means that your customers will only get the texts when they want them. This may not be as appealing as sending out regular blasts by email, or thousands of mailers, but you can say with confidence that most of those who text for your coupon will also spend money in your store.
2. If you have an existing client list, provide a way for them to ‘opt-in’ to your text list. Leverage your email list or website to ask customers if they are interested in the convenience of offers to their cell phone. If you are building a list, make sure that customers have a box to tick that confirms they are willing to receive marketing messages (exclusive deals, specials, sneak event previews) by text to this number.
Customers can opt in by text – eg ‘Text RomanoBC to 52732 to join our breakfast club for great morning offers (up to one each week)’.
3. For Outbound text ‘blasts’, set out ground rules – eg ‘no more than 4 texts per month’ or ‘up to 2 texts each week’ AND STICK TO THEM. This is your promise to your customer.
4. Give your offers exclusivity. Your customer will be far more responsive to a good value offer that feels like they wouldn’t have seen it elsewhere than to the same old same old. I had a winning sticker in the Subway ‘Scrabble’ game only yesterday. When I saw it was for ice tea I promptly threw it in the trash and promised not to waste my time peeling them in future.
5. Messages sent to lists of subscribers should always include an ‘opt out’ option. ‘Text END to stop these messages’.
Subscribers are statistically unlikely to leave your list. They may well, on occasions, mutter and complain that the text they thought was from their long lost uncle in darkest Peru was in fact from the local Pizzeria, but they will keep receiving your texts until a day when they are in the mood for Pizza comes along, and you are first choice.
If you maintain respect, nobody will view your texts as spam. If you make your offers good enough, they will not only we OK with your texts, they will positively DEMAND them.
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Great tips for both consumers and businesses. Thanks.
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