As SMS marketing has grown in popularity, so has awareness of privacy issues, with new legislation such as GDPR and the CAN-SPAM Act introduced in many countries to protect consumers’ privacy and restrict unwanted marketing via electronic communications such as text messaging. 

There are a lot of similarities between these rules in some areas, such as the requirement to obtain users’ express consent to send marketing communications, and to provide accurate contact details. However, the necessary steps to comply with regulations can also have their own quirks.

Failing to follow these rules could lead to significant fines and legal action from unhappy customers. Since these rules exist to protect people from unwanted marketing and privacy breaches, it is also likely to have a very negative impact on your Net Promoter Score. And improving NPS should be a focus of any great customer service team.

Effective Ways to Get Customer Phone Numbers

Wherever your business is operating, in addition to following the regulations you also need to actually convince people to sign up for your SMS marketing campaign. Most consumers aren’t going to give you their contact details unless they can see what is in it for them. 

There are a number of ways to offer value to users in exchange for a marketing opt-in:

Sign-Ups and Purchases

Users who are in the process of signing up or purchasing from your business are clearly interested in your products, so it is a great time to offer messages about future products and deals while their enthusiasm is still high.

Competitions and Contests

A social media contest or giveaway gives your audience a clear incentive to take action, by asking them to sign up for your SMS marketing in order to enter the contest.

67% of consumers are more likely to buy from a brand they follow on social media, so this can be a great way to attract attention to your SMS marketing campaign that translates into actual purchases. If you’re not sure how to create an effective social media contest, analyzing the competition can be a great place to start.

Exclusive Deals

By offering promotions and discounts which are only available to your SMS subscribers, frequent customers can be rewarded with exclusive offers. Your promotion doesn’t need to be anything extravagant either. Taco Bell was able to increase its mobile marketing subscribers by 13,000 people over 5 weeks simply by offering a free drink with food item purchases.

Business Updates and Service Changes

Customers who are engaged with your business might want to get updates about your business and changes that affect their services, such as new features, upgrades or extras.

In-Store Promotion

Many of your customers might not be aware that they can get discounts and updates via SMS. Providing a number that customers can text to opt in to marketing in your online or physical store can greatly increase awareness of your SMS marketing campaign.

Now that you’ve got some ideas about how to grow your SMS list, let’s move onto the legal stuff — how do you get consent to send SMSes to customers?

Use the links below to get to the information relevant to your market.

• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the USA
• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the UK
• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Canada
• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Australia

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the USA

To send SMS marketing in the USA, you need to comply with rules set out in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and CAN-SPAM Act. These regulations cover how and when you can contact people, and the correct way to obtain marketing opt-ins. It is important to remember that in addition to these federal regulations, there may be additional rules and requirements from state to state.

TCPA

The TCPA was primarily aimed at restricting cold calls and recorded voice messages, however, it introduces a few rules which also apply to SMS marketing:

Identification

Marketing must be sent using systems that identify the business sending the message and provide contact information, including the number used to send the message.

Privacy

Marketers cannot send marketing messages to consumers before 8am or after 9pm local time without their express consent. Some bulk text messaging providers, such as TextMagic, will automatically adjust your SMS marketing schedule to local time zones.

Additionally, all marketing must respect the National Do Not Call Registry, and maintain their own company-wide Do Not Call list. The best CRMs for small businesses can track and maintain your Do Not Call list across all contact methods.

CAN-SPAM

The CAN-SPAM Act covers all forms of commercial electronic messages, including SMS and email. It shares the same rules on identification and privacy as the TCPA, with the additional stipulation that messages must also include an accurate postal address for your business. 

The CAN-SPAM Act also introduces new rules concerning the proper disclosure of marketing opt-ins and the content of messages, as well as consumers’ rights to stop receiving marketing from you.

According to the CAN-SPAM Act, you can be held legally responsible if marketers working on your behalf are using non-compliant methods.

Opting In

You cannot send someone marketing messages without their express consent, even if you already have their contact details from a previous transaction. You need to obtain consent separately for each contact method – having permission to email someone does not mean you also have permission to call or text them.

Consent is not valid unless you clearly explained what kind of messages your recipient is agreeing to receive, and whether they are agreeing to a one-off message or recurring contacts from you.

Identification

All marketing messages must be clearly identified as advertising. Similarly, the subject line of your message should accurately reflect the message’s contents.

Opting Out

Every marketing message you send must contain clear instructions on how to stop receiving future messages. For SMS marketing, the easiest way to do this is to let consumers opt-out by replying ‘STOP’ to your text. Opt-out requests must be honored within 10 working days.

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the UK

In the UK, the rules covering SMS marketing and other communication services are set out by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). Most of its rules only apply to unsolicited messages. An ‘unsolicited’ message is anything you send which is not a direct response to a specific customer request. This means that marketing messages are considered unsolicited even if you have the recipient’s express consent to send them. 

While similar in principle to US regulations, PECR gives more specific guidelines for SMS marketing compliance:

Identification

All marketing messages must include the name of your business, a contact number and a postal address. 

Opting In

When asking people to sign up for SMS marketing, it must be made obvious that they are agreeing to receive marketing messages. This information has to be displayed prominently, including it in your privacy policy or terms and conditions does not count.

To opt in to your marketing, users must make a clear positive action, such as ticking a checkbox in your sign up form. These options cannot be pre-selected or have opted in as the default setting. This is good practice even in countries where it is not a requirement. Pre-ticked opt-ins will only annoy customers and result in a high unsubscribe rate.

Opt-in pages must specifically name the business which will contact recipients — consent to receive marketing from ‘third parties’ or other vague terms is not valid.

Opting Out

People need to have an easy way to opt-out of your marketing messages at any time, ideally via a STOP message.

You cannot ask users to complete complex steps such as filling out forms in order to opt-out, and you are expected to honor any clear indication they want your marketing to stop, regardless of the contact method. Opt-out requests must be handled immediately, with confirmation sent to your recipient.

Record-Keeping

In the event of a dispute, you will need to have records proving your compliance with PECR. This includes keeping records of when your user opted in and what they opted into, as well as records of their opt-out requests.

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Canada

Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) covers email and SMS marketing as well as some uses of social media. In addition to obtaining a consumer’s express consent to send them marketing messages, CASL rules also allow you to message people using implied consent under certain conditions

Implied Consent

You are allowed to send marketing messages to people you have a previous business connection with, for example, someone who made a purchase from your business and provided their contact details. This lasts for two years after your most recent transaction with a customer, after which you will need their express consent to continue sending marketing communications.

Identification

Every marketing message must include your business name, postal address, and an additional contact method. You are allowed to provide this information via a web link.

Opting In

To obtain someone’s express consent for SMS marketing, you must clearly state that they are signing up for marketing messages, and can’t include this permission as part of your privacy policy or other small print.

You also cannot use pre-checked boxes to make opting in the default option. Users need to sign up for marketing via their mobile device and must confirm their subscription after the initial request before you can start sending marketing.

Opting Out

Your SMS marketing must allow recipients to opt-out at any time through a one-step process such as sending a STOP message and also have to honor opt-out requests made through other contact methods.

Record-Keeping

If a recipient disputes giving you permission to message them, you need to have records showing what they agreed to and how you got their permission. A double opt-in system is a great way to ensure you have a record of opt-ins, while also reducing unintentional opt-ins. Similarly, you should also have records of opt-outs.

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Australia

In Australia, SMS marketing is covered by the Spam Act 2003. Like CASL, it allows you to message recipients based on inferred consent, although the definition of this is very different. It also has rules covering the use of address-harvesting software.

Inferred Consent

Under the Spam Act, inferred consent is based on specific existing business relationships. If you have a user’s contact details, you can send them marketing messages which are relevant to their previous purchases or the interests they have expressed to you.

In addition to past purchases, consent can be inferred from subscriptions to your newsletter, signing up for an online service or membership of a loyalty club.

Marketing messages must be relevant to your existing relationship with a customer.

Address-Harvesting Software

Address-harvesting software, or scraping software, is used to collect contact details from online profiles and databases. The Spam Act bans the use of scraping software, and the use of contact details obtained by scraping software. 

Identification

All of your marketing texts must include your business name, contact details, and Australian Business Number (ABN). This information cannot change for at least 30 days after you send out marketing.

Opting In

Getting express consent to send SMS marketing requires your recipient to agree to receive marketing through a deliberate action such as ticking a checkbox.

Opting Out

All messages must also include a clear opt-out option, such as sending a STOP message. You can’t charge for use of an opt-out message and will have up to five working days to stop sending the user messages. You also cannot change your opt-out method for at least 30 days after sending a message.

Disclaimer: Please note that this advice is for informational purposes only and is neither intended as nor should be substituted for consultation with appropriate legal counsel and/or your organization’s regulatory compliance team.

It is vital not just for retaining existing customers, but also for attracting new users and increasing brand awareness. Reviews have many benefits. For instance; more than half of all consumers won’t buy from a business unless it has an average review rating of at least four stars. So, if you’re not prioritizing reviews then you could be losing customers.

Customer feedback can also have a big impact on local search rankings, so it pays to take a proactive approach to gather it.

Collecting and responding to customer feedback enables you to improve your business, products, and services, increasing customer satisfaction and your reputation in the process. Not only that, it also lets you identify problems and complaints, and resolve them faster too.

While a high quantity of reputable reviews is important, diversifying those reviews across multiple channels is vital to winning over increasingly skeptical consumers. 

To simplify the process, here are six customer feedback methods (beyond Google My Business) you should prioritize in 2020:

Customer service platforms

Your client’s customer service channels receive important feedback from consumers every day, highlighting common frustrations as well as the things they like about the business.

While collating feedback through your internal customer service platforms (like Zendesk or even just good ol’ email) may not help directly with local rankings, tracking this information allows you to identify areas for improvement, such as particular business policies or products buyers aren’t happy with. 

Tracking customer service feedback can be as simple as ensuring your team accurately records comments and complaints. More advanced tools such as text and voice analytics enable you to categorize and review feedback based on the keywords used by customers and the overall tone of their comments.

Furthermore, listening and responding to feedback coming through customer service channels builds a positive brand impression. So though it may not directly affect your position in local results, it could result in more positive reviews online — which is a key ranking factor. 

When people discuss businesses both online and in-person, their experiences with service are often one of the first things to be mentioned. This is a big deal, with 90% of consumers making purchases based on their friends’ recommendations and 70% buying based on the opinions they read online.

Social media

An active social media presence, including responding quickly to direct messages, makes customers more willing to come forward with issues and feedback. Encourage transparent communication by showing that you or your client are interested in hearing what consumers have to say on more than just your company website.

For many customers, social media is the first and fastest way to provide a business with feedback, in many cases using it to give public feedback while they are still in-store. Almost half of all consumers will use social media as their first means of making a complaint.

This provides invaluable insights into what is impressive or disappointing your customers and gives the opportunity to address any problems quickly. Demonstrating excellent customer care to the potential buyers who may be watching is a major benefit of listening to feedback on social media.

For example, after receiving the following tweet…

Image Source: Buffer

…Tampa-based steakhouse Morton’s decided to go above and beyond for a loyal customer. Not only did they get a server with a full steak meal to the airport in time, but they also did it all for free.

This is an amazing way to show everyone on social media the kind of care Morton’s shows to its loyal customers. I’m not saying you need to be quite that dedicated, but listening to customers and implementing their feedback is a surefire way to build brand loyalty.

Besides the posts made directly to your profile, you can also track mentions of your client’s business across social media sites, either manually or using a tool like Sprout Social, making it easier for your client to know what people are saying about them.

Email

Email is a great way to receive detailed, open-ended feedback about the experiences of individual customers, giving you a better idea of the needs and interests of your key demographics. 

Since most people receive dozens of unsolicited emails every day, you’re much more likely to get a response to email feedback requests after a previous interaction. For example, emailing customers after their first purchase from the business or finding out how a customer service interaction could have gone better. 

Try to make your feedback questions as straightforward as possible. Here are a few examples:

• How can we improve our service?
• How has our product helped you?
• Why do you use our business?

It also helps to explain why you are asking for feedback by stating what you are hoping to improve, or what you are hoping to learn about customers. Having a say in how your business grows and improves makes your customers feel important.

SMS

If you are trying to assess the impact of a specific change to your business, short feedback requests via text allow you to get responses from a large number of customers quickly. This can be particularly useful when a business makes big changes, in order to keep track of how customers feel about the new direction.

Texts tend to be opened almost immediately, and have a high response rate, making it easy to collect feedback from lots of people at once. Due to the simple nature of the answers you’ll receive, focusing questions on specific aspects of the business will produce more actionable information.

You’re more likely to get a response, for example, by asking simple questions that won’t take long for customers to respond to, such as asking recipients to reply just ‘yes’ or ‘no’  or offering multiple-choice questions.

Here are some examples:

• Was our ordering process simple and straightforward? Please reply YES or NO
• On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our business to a friend?
• How often do you use our services? Please reply NEVER, SOMETIMES, OFTEN, or ALL THE TIME

While SMS doesn’t provide detailed feedback from individual customers, it is a great way to collect easily quantifiable data from a wide audience.

Additionally, SMS can be a big help in supporting your other feedback channels. Text messaging is a great way to contact customers and request reviews on other sites — which, in turn, will help your local ranking efforts.

By including a link to your preferred review site, you can also only remind customers to give you feedback in their free time, instead of in-store or during another interaction. Any brick-and-mortar business will have seen many happy in-store customers ask about your online review sites and promise to leave feedback, but they often forget to do it. A quick text later that day can avoid this common problem.

Requesting reviews by SMS also lets you direct customers to the site you most need new reviews on. Some review sites forbid you from actively requesting reviews though, so make sure to check the rules to avoid your profile getting penalized.

Surveys

Surveys, polls, and questionnaires allow you to gather a wide variety of feedback from customers and potential leads. Make sure you use the most suitable type of survey for the information you need. 

Entry and exit surveys are perfect ways to discover what draws customers to your client’s business in the first place, and what caused them to leave. 91% of unhappy customers will just leave without complaining, so making the effort to get their feedback can provide valuable insights on how you can improve. 

Here are some examples of entry and exit survey questions:

• Why did you decide to join us?
• Why are you leaving our business?
• What would convince you to return to our business?

Polls on your website and social media are great ways to gather feedback about customer preferences and what they would like to see from your client in the future. For example:

• Votes for customers’ favorite menu item
• Polls for the next feature to add to your client’s business
• Voting on the biggest advantage of your client’s services

These can also be a great way to learn more about customers’ interests and how or why they use your client’s business.

Review sites

Reviews are not only an obvious source of customer feedback but also an important factor in local SEO. Google detects searches for local businesses such as ‘Indian restaurants in Chicago’ and chooses businesses for the local pack based on customer reviews, along with many other factors.

In fact, thanks to location tracking, people don’t even need to include their location in the search to receive local results.

Getting your business into the local pack for these searches puts them at the top of the page with their aggregate GMB review score and address visible from the search page.

Users get everything they need to visit the business without having to open a search result or even scroll down. Having great review scores across multiple sites can help to increase your chances of appearing in the local pack, as well as potentially boosting your client’s CTR.

So, while you should make sure you have sufficient Google reviews, it’s important to go beyond GMB and source reviews on other sites, too.

Importantly, all reviews, positive and negative, should receive a reply to show you are listening to feedback and care what customers think. Consumers take note of whether, and if at all, a business replies to reviews, and are more likely to provide feedback if they expect a response. Making a habit of regularly checking your reviews also enables you to pick the best reviews to use on landing pages and testimonials sections.

Staying on top of your reviews on every site can be a major time-sink. A reputation management tool that tracks all your reviews in one place can save time. By adopting Reputation Manager, healthcare agency Vortala enabled their clients to respond immediately to incoming reviews from every site, and analyze monthly reports to improve service.

Wrapping up

Using a wide range of feedback methods and varying the types of questions you ask can help to improve your overall reputation tenfold, as well as benefiting other aspects of your business, such as customer service and brand loyalty.

By gaining authentic customer feedback, you will be equipped with the information required to meet, and even exceed, customer expectations. Something that’s vital to the growth of any local business.

Finally, remember to focus your requests on specific features and tasks to ensure detailed responses, and remember that customer feedback can have a significant impact on your business beyond local rankings.