My friend has a small clothing & jewelry boutique and is trying to get back to business after a devastating year. She has maybe 1200 (?) people on an email list and in the past she used campaign monitor to send email blasts for events.

Her feeling is that she would get more response from TEXTING her customers/potential customers.
She'd like to find a company that can do this -- better yet do text and email -- better yet affordable for a very small business (only her, not even one employee) owned by a person who is financially strapped so needs to watch her expenses.

I do her design (for trade) so she just needs the tech part taken care of. She desires the statistics that a company gives on engagement so DIY is out.
PS: she hates Go Daddy, if that's pertinent to the conversation. PS2: I would be the one handling this, so it would be good if it had an easy-for-doofuses interface.

For the moment, a simple sms-marketing source is fine, she can delve into an all-in-one solution later on if that complicates matters. Right now she has an event on May 22, so she wants to get the word out.
Thanks in advance for any ideas for places she can check out. Googling turns up oodles and oodles of companies but she'd rather hear from people who have used one and can recommend and/or warn her about them.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/05/2021 04:25PM by $tevie.

$tevie,

I can't speak for a company that does this kind of stuff. I can speak as a customer. I _hate_ getting marketing information via text. Email, sure. Easy to ignore if I'm not interested. Via text? That's a disruption unless I've specifically requested it. And, that's key. It has to be opt-in. She'll just anger existing customers and turn-off potential customers if she SPAM texts them. Just my opinion.

Robert



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/05/2021 09:55PM by Robert M.

Ditto what Robert said. Text spam really pisses me off.

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"In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion." (1987) -- Carl Sagan

If I got a promotional text from a business, you can bet I would never shop there again.

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“Live your life, love your life, don’t regret…live, learn and move forward positively.” – CR Johnson
Loving life in Lake Tahoe, CA

My response to SMS spam is hatred hot enough to spark the fires of a thousand hells.

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I imagine that all the grumpy old men on your friends list would agree with the above, but it nevertheless might still lead to more sales.

a search for 'commercial texting services' yielded some interesting results. [www.google.com]

I wish your friend luck - these are hard times for a lot of people.

No grumpy old men on the list.

This list is from her shop's guestbook, and it would be to let people know when she was holding a sale or having a fashion show. So it's not like she's texting every week, it's to let people know that there is a good reason to stop by on such-and-such-a-date. I say "potential customers" because not everyone who signs up has actually ever made a purchase.

I've been doing her emails for these events for a couple of years and I doubt I've done more than a dozen in all that time.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/06/2021 12:12AM by $tevie.

$tevie,

Same answer and I find your use of the phrase “Grumpy old man” dismissive of the concerns voiced in the thread. I’d be annoyed if I visited her shop, signed the guestbook (to show I visited) and then started getting even the occasional text from her. Signing a guestbook doesn’t equate opting into receiving marketing via text message. That happened with a local restaurant. They haven’t seen a dime of business from me since I got the marketing text.

Robert



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/06/2021 05:18PM by Robert M.

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Robert M
That happened with a local restaurant. They haven’t seen a dime of business from me since I got the marketing text.

Same here, but I also left a scathing Yelp review. I left my number with them to confirm a reservation, not to have them interrupt my workday and home-life with their marketing BS.

SMS marketing should only EVER be opt-in. Never opt-out. Unsolicited text messages are a plague.

I can easily ignore an email message, but texts go to my cell phone and watch for my immediate attention. My friends and family know to only send urgent messages during the workday. Anyone who ignores this rule does so at their peril.

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Who signs a guestbook in a store or museum and doesn't understand why your phone number and/or email is being requested? If you only want to show you visited (why would you feel that need in the first place???) then just write your name and don’t give your contact info.

It appears that nobody on this thread understands what a guestbook in a clothing boutique is.

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$tevie,

Incorrect. I see what you're saying and disagree with you wholeheartedly. That you feel we don't understand what a guestbook is tells me you clearly can't see this from out point of view. It's all about disclosure and opting in or opting out to text based marketing. It's irritating and bad business if your friend doesn't inform people signing the guestbook means they'll get marketing texts from her.

Robert

Quote
Robert M
$tevie,

Incorrect. I see what you're saying and disagree with you wholeheartedly. That you feel we don't understand what a guestbook is tells me you clearly can't see this from out point of view. It's all about disclosure and opting in or opting out to text based marketing. It's irritating and bad business if your friend doesn't inform people signing the guestbook means they'll get marketing texts from her.

Robert

It's also a legal thing.

And while many people bend these laws and never get caught, it would be VERY bad form for a marketing professional to tell a client "it's ok to ignore the rules - you'll never get in trouble."

bik,

Yup. That, too. FWIW, I rarely see anything related to marketing via text disclosed when it comes to signing guestbooks. On a separate form or on a web site, yes, but never guestbooks.

Robert

$tevie,

I'm intrigued. What was the point of the picture?

Robert