Coming up with a  compelling marketing strategy is one of the greatest challenges for any organization. For the best outcomes, which channels should you focus on and how should you leverage them? 

To reach customers and unlock the unique benefits of every marketing channel, the majority of businesses spend money on multichannel marketing. With almost the whole world active on mobile phones, businesses acknowledge that mobile marketing is the way of the future. 

Smarter organizations, on the other hand, take SMS marketing as the way to go. Businesses using Salesforce as their CRM have discovered that Salesforce SMS has proved to be the most successful mobile marketing channel for them offering excellent engagement and conversions. 

These days, multichannel marketing is insufficient because of the pace at which things move on the Internet. This is where SMS-assisted omnichannel marketing comes into play. 

In addition to learning about this idea, you will discover how to integrate SMS into your omnichannel marketing strategy for exceptional marketing outcomes. 

SMS is a Creative Approach for Modern-Day Businesses 

Text messaging has become a top sales and marketing tool for today’s marketers because of its advantages, which go beyond many of the drawbacks of phone calls, emails, and other forms of communication. Let’s examine the main factors that make SMS so effective for your marketing campaigns: 

Higher Open and Response Rates 

When left unopened, even the best marketing messages in the world become outdated. Fortunately, the majority of text messages are read within minutes of being sent, and they have much greater open rates than emails. 

Given that many other channels have trouble producing results, how does SMS manage to maintain this industry-leading performance? Although there are many explanations, preference is usually the deciding factor. Since the majority of people own phones and carry them around all day, reading and responding to text messages is incredibly convenient. Meeting your audience where they are, as opposed to attempting to get them to interact with you through a less convenient route, will always yield better results. 

Higher Deliverability 

Because email providers’ spam filters filter messages before recipients even realize they exist, many marketing messages are blocked before they even arrive at their intended target. In fact, genuine email providers have occasionally been shut down by new bulk email regulations from major email providers. 

Text messages are direct-to-device in nature, and the protocols are less complicated than those of email. Furthermore, in order for carriers to identify them as authentic senders, the majority of SMS senders must be approved by The Campaign Registry (TCR). 

Immediate Delivery 

For marketing campaigns to be successful, timing is critical. Because SMS messages are delivered nearly instantly, they’re the perfect way to respond to events that are happening in your contacts’ life. Timely SMS messages include, for example: 

• Signing up for your newsletter 
• Requesting a product demonstration 
• Finishing a purchase 
• Feedback after a meeting or appointment 
• Registration for events or exhibitions 
• Localized alerts, such as expected inclement weather 

You can communicate in real time using SMS because of its agile transmission and responses. It is therefore perfect for precise communications due to its timeliness and relevancy. When the message comes at the correct time and conveniently, checking in with customers doesn’t feel intrusive. 

Improved Engagement 

User engagement is almost always one of the most important objectives, regardless of how you communicate. 

Because texts are precise and to the point, they are easy to read and respond to, which increases engagement rates. Take a look at these statistics: 

• 98 percent open rate 
• Click-through rate: 18% 
• 50% of receivers say they are more likely to make a purchase, and 90% of recipients reply within 30 minutes. 
• SMS is an essential component of contemporary marketing strategies because of these factors. 

Less Competition 

SMS is still a comparatively underutilized medium, even though the majority of organizations still use the phone and send emails on a daily basis. Unlike our email inboxes, SMS texts are not overloaded with unsolicited messages. 

One of the main marketing goals is to differentiate yourself from the competitors, which is simpler in the more specialized area of SMS. You’ll be in a better position to draw in customers and foster that interaction. 

Mobile-First Approach 

Nowadays, practically everyone has a phone with them. People are more likely to read and reply to your messages when you reach them where they are. You’re giving them more and expecting less in return. 

Integration with Other Channels 

These days, no communication medium can be used in isolation. An omnichannel strategy is always used in successful marketing efforts, reiterating and expanding your message over the various platforms that your target audience likes. 

A unified omnichannel marketing strategy can be achieved by seamlessly integrating SMS messaging with other marketing platforms, including social media, apps, websites, and chatbots. 

Cost Effective 

When you consider engagement rates for each dollar invested, SMS is one of the most ‘value for money’ marketing platforms. 

What is Omnichannel Marketing? 

Multichannel marketing is the practice of using the same marketing content across all of your marketing channels to engage your audience. However, omnichannel marketing is defined as using the same multiple marketing platforms to give your audience a unique and diverse experience. 

You see the difference? 

The objective of multichannel marketing is to increase brand awareness while expanding the customer base. On the other hand, omnichannel marketing aims to convert leads, prospects, and customers by delivering an engaging and compelling  experience for those who are already familiar with your brand or are using your products or services. 

AI’s Role in Omnichannel Marketing 

AI is used in omnichannel marketing to optimize and personalize the overall customer experience across several channels. In order to predict which channels customers are most likely to convert on, automate repetitive tasks and flows, and inform marketing campaigns, it aggregates and analyzes data about audience behavior and your products and services.  

Because the marketer instructs the AI on what to focus on as they refine tests and test concepts, the interaction between the two can be seen as somewhat symbiotic. In the meantime, AI uses that data to do tests, picks up knowledge from marketing user interaction, and eventually ascertains what a consumer wants. 

Let’s examine some of the most frequently used use cases in AI-powered omnichannel marketing that are now being used, along with effective implementation strategies. 

The main advantages AI offers omnichannel marketing are as follows: 

Increased Conversion with Tailored Communications 

AI can spot trends in purchasing behavior by tracking customer actions in real time. Businesses can use this data to provide customers with tailored marketing campaigns, offers, and product suggestions. Because customers are only shown offers that are relevant to their individual needs and interests, personalization raises the likelihood that they will convert. 

Deeper Understanding of Cross-Platform Behavior 

AI analytics provide a more realistic picture of how customers move between channels before making a purchase. With the capacity to monitor the journeys, businesses can hone their strategy such that every touchpoint leads customers to a purchase. AI eliminates guesswork, and better marketing comes from data-driven decision-making. 

Benefits of GirikSMS for AI SMS marketing 

AI and data integration for increased personalization 

The integrated customer data platform from GirikSMS centralizes all of your customer insights, including past purchases and browsing patterns, and powers AI that enables you to target with accuracy. This enables you to send highly customized SMS messages from Salesforce according to behavior in real time and anticipated needs. 

Two GirikSMS AI features that facilitate data collection and the creation of tailored SMS experiences are: 
Predictive analytics: Send more intelligent, timely SMS messages by anticipating key actions, such as the date of the next order or disengagement. 
Segments AI: Create comprehensive audience segments instantly with a simple prompt, accelerating and simplifying personalization. 

AI-powered campaigns 

With AI tools that do the heavy lifting, from creating automatic flows to composing message content, GirikSMS makes it simple to launch automated SMS campaigns. Without complicated setup or scripting, even small teams can produce high-quality marketing content quickly. 

Two GirikSMS AI features that facilitate quick and simple content and campaign generation are as follows: 

• SMS assistant: Produce content for your SMS campaigns instantly and evaluate data in real time to enhance effectiveness. 

• AI-flow builder: You can design a ready-to-launch, multi-step SMS flow after describing your objective; no human setup is required. 

Continuous optimization through AI 

GirikSMS lets you develop your campaigns over time, not just launch them. Your SMS strategy improves with each outbound message thanks to integrated testing and on-the-go optimization, which eliminates the need for continuous monitoring. 

Two GirikSMS AI features that assist marketing teams in campaign optimization are as follows: 

• A/B testing: Test the content of messages and let AI determine and use the one that works best for each audience segment. 
• Tailored marketing campaigns: Provide each recipient with the most efficient SMS message, making sure they all receive the message that has the highest conversion rate. 

AI in Omnichannel Marketing : The Future 

Using AI-powered solutions to elevate SMS is revolutionizing business communications in this day and age. Businesses can overcome the usual challenges, including stricter email laws, call-blocking smartphone capabilities, and the imminent death of cold calling, by using SMS messaging as their main marketing channel. This change makes it possible for marketers to adjust to shifting consumer tastes and technology environments, ensuring that their messages will continue to connect with and be understood by their target market.