What the Text: Boost Engagement with SMS

Len Fridman, CEO and co-founder of Wellnessliving, shares why SMS marketing is a proven strategy that can convert more leads.

Communicating with your clients is at the heart of your fitness studio. In 2020, real-time, direct communication became the only way to show your leads and loyal members that you’re there for them during challenging times. 

What if a client missed your livestreamed class or didn’t know they were upgraded from your wait list? 

The solution is two-way text message marketing — a proven strategy that converts more leads and keeps your clients engaged. According to the cloud communications platform Twilio, 85% of consumers prefer two-way messaging capabilities from businesses. Here are four ways to grow your business with two-way text messaging. 

Get your messages read 

Did you know text message marketing open rates are as high as 98%, compared to 20% for email? According to a report from Vibes, 78% of consumers say that SMS marketing is the fastest way to reach them. 

With the average person checking their phone at least 58 times per day,  hearing that text message chime will surely instill a sense of urgency. Given the fact that 90% of all text messages are read within three minutes, text messaging is the perfect way to promote your time-sensitive offers. 

Personalize the client experience

One-way automated texting works, but it doesn’t engage and convert your clients like two-way conversational texting. Two-way texting allows you to communicate with clients in the same way as your friends. Personalized texting builds a stronger relationship between your company and your clients. On top of that, 49% of customers complete a purchase after receiving a personalized message from a business. 

How do you personalize your text? Address your client by name and keep the message short whenever you reach out. 

Ensure your schedule is fully booked

Two-way text messaging is crucial for ensuring your class schedule is always at full capacity. Confirm fitness sessions and promote attendance by sending out text reminders that keep your classes at full. 

The two main challenges for scheduling classes are confirming a date and time while minimizing cancellations or no-shows. With just two interactions between staff and clients per month reducing cancellations by 33%, SMS is an easy solution to these problems. 

Boost your online business reviews

Online client reviews are essential for your business to thrive. In fact, according to Spiegel, 95% of customers will read reviews before they purchase from a company. Use text message marketing to request client feedback and direct them to the platform where they can leave a positive review about your business. 

Texting solutions to grow your business

Many consumers now prefer to communicate with businesses through text. Two-way text message marketing is a solution to boost conversion and retention rates while leading to an overall better client experience.