Essential Steps to SMS Marketing

Summary:

Theaters across the NAB Show floor offer a great opportunity to share your expertise on a particular topic or technology — and they can be a valuable tool for lead generation too.

Cindy Zuelsdorf of Kokoro Marketing explains how to fold  SMS marketing into your live presentation to learn more about your audience, capture more leads, and offer greater value to attendees. Read her recent blog post, titled “Essential Steps to SMS Marketing,” to find out how to leverage SMS marketing during your next live speaking engagement.

Essential Steps to SMS Marketing

If you’ve ever presented at a trade show or another speaking engagement, you know how much work it can be to get everything ready! Your outline, diagrams, photos, and more — doing it right takes time.

And that’s why I find it so painful to see a friend, colleague, or customer give a great presentation and then walk away without any lead in hand. No new connections, no feedback, no way to follow up! It doesn’t have to be that way.

When you’re presenting, you’re in front of an audience with the opportunity to share your message. You’ve put in the time and effort to offer information of value. Don’t stop there! It’s the perfect time to ask your audience to engage. They’ve already chosen to attend your presentation. Now make it easy for them to continue the conversation with you. That’s where SMS marketing can be a super useful tool.

Text kework biz to me at 15302035703 to get my free marketing plan

During a recent presentation on marketing automation, I put one of my favorite SMS marketing tools to work. I just took a minute out of my presentation to offer a free resource, available to anyone who texted a specific keyword to me. “Pull out your phone quick and text me to get your free download of my Marketing Master Plan.” It’s that simple! All you need is a piece of content — a diagram, case study, white paper, guide, checklist, etc. — that helps to educate the reader.

Provide your phone number and a keyword that wouldn’t be used in any other text message. (You’ll be using it to trigger an automated response delivering a download link.) Everyone wins! People in the audience get information they can use, and you get the details you need to follow up and see if you can offer any other useful information or services. (I always like to build an open-ended question into the automated sequence to help keep the conversation going.)

One great thing about this SMS marketing tool is that it works so well in so many different situations — for both live events and recorded events. Whether you’re doing a podcast, webinar, or other speaking engagement, just drop in your keyword mention. You can use the same keyword every time, pick a keyword related to the speaking event, or choose different keywords if you are offering multiple downloads. (Use this technique to segment your audiences by interest area!)

Next Steps:

✅ Ask yourself, “What do my potential customers want or need?” And what kind of content do you have already that might satisfy that need? You may be surprised what you find when you start digging or asking around. Even a simple guide or checklist can be a valuable resource that will benefit members of your audience.

✅Carry on the conversation! SMS isn’t the only way to connect with your trade show audience. Once you’ve started the conversation, offer them opportunities to connect on other platforms. Maybe they prefer social media, email communications, or a good old phone call. Reaching out to customers 3 different ways is key these days. Some options include:

  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • WhatsApp
  • Facebook messenger/chatbot
  • Evaluation or consult
  • Zoom/GoToMeeting
  • YouTube
  • Phone call
  • Online meeting
  • Webinar
  • Demo
  • Facebook Live
  • What did I miss? (LMK!)

✅Is your NAB Amplify listing and booth listing filled out and are you using your guest pass code? When someone uses your code, you get their contact info and can start a conversation with them. So easy!

Using SMS marketing is a simple way to get the most out of your next speaking engagement. Don’t let your hard work go to waste. You’ve set up the perfect situation, and all you need to do is take an extra minute to offer bonus content and invite engagement. If you’d like to talk tactics further, feel free to get in touch! I love helping businesses get the most out of every opportunity — and trade show presentations are a no-brainer!

Related Posts:

NAB Show Webinar – Lead Follow-up After the Show

Trade Shows: Single Most Important Way to Win. Cindy Z with special guest Jefferson Davis.

Trade Shows: Single Most Important Way to Win

7 Marketing Basics Course Learn the tactics and systems we use with clients every day. [Including Trade Show Promo, Meeting/Demo Campaign, and Trade Show Follow-up]

7 Marketing Basics course