MARKETING

MARKETING matters

To text or not to text: Mobile marketing

BY DAVID R. PETERS, CPA

Mobile technology is everywhere. How

many times have you stepped into an elevator, coffee shop or restaurant and seen seemingly everyone scrolling through smartphone apps to get the weather or check a game score? A recent article in Digital Marketing magazine on the use of mobile phones said that of the 6.8 billion people on earth, 5.1 billion people own a mobile phone. To put this in perspective, only 4.2 billion own a toothbrush! No wonder people say that they feel naked when they forget their cell phone on the kitchen counter when they leave for work in the morning.

However, while the ownership of cell phones has increased, it is still questionable as to whether the quality of our interactions with others has improved. While I have many friends and colleagues who answer text messages and emails on their phones at all hours of the day, these are often the same people who barely ever take an actual call. From a marketing perspective, this phenomenon creates an interesting dilemma. Mobile marketing seems to present huge opportunities. If everyone has a phone, I have the opportunity to connect with anyone, no matter where they are. However, if my clients or prospects won’t pick up the phone, is it even worth calling them? Do I just give up and send a text or email?

While a phone call is a higher-quality way to interact with clients and prospects, people are screening their calls more than ever. According to the Telenet and Ovation Sales Group, it only took 3.68 attempts to reach a prospect in 2007. Now, it takes almost eight attempts. Similarly, according to Sirius Decisions, it takes today’s teleprospector between 100 and 500 calls to get one lead. While these statistics may appear bleak, the future of marketing by phone may not be all lost. According to Vorsight, “you are 70 percent more likely to get an appointment with someone on an ‘unexpected sales call’ if you are in a common LinkedIn group than if you aren’t.” So people still answer calls — but only from people they know. Perhaps this should come as no surprise with the continued rise in smartphone use. A picture or name of the caller pops up when you get a call from someone in your contact list. People don’t want to take time away from their busy schedules for a no-name caller.

What about texting? A good open rate for email marketing is about 20 percent. This means that four out of five emails you send to prospects or clients will go directly into the trash folder. However, the open rate on text messages is 98 percent, according to the Tatango website. And the EZ Texting site says that of those text messages, between 95 and 98 percent are actually read within minutes of receipt! While it’s possible these statistics show that people don’t know how to delete a text message from their phones without opening it first (I know that I don’t!), it’s more likely an indication that we view text messaging as a more personal form of communication. Emails and phone calls could be from anyone, but only the people who we are close to would bother with sending us a text message.

Text messaging becomes a double-edged sword for financial services firms in this way. On the one hand, if you send a client or prospect a text, it is far more likely to be opened. On the other hand, the receiver still needs to be comfortable with this form of communication. If he or she is not, you are more likely to be perceived as crossing a line with a text message than with a phone call or email.

This is not to say that one should never text a prospect, but rather that financial services professionals should take a step back and consider what is most comfortable to the person they are contacting. If the prospect gave you a phone number to contact them, then clearly a phone call is best. If they circled the email address on their business card, then this is a hint as well! Finally, text messages are fine sometimes, but not if you noticed the prospect talking on a flip phone the first time you met. The secret to success seems to be the ability to gauge where your clients are comfortable. This requires us to be perceptive —and it takes effort. People want to do what comes naturally to them. Our job as marketers is to simply figure out where people feel most at home and connect with them in that way. n

DAVID PETERS, CPA, is the strategic relationship manager and financial advisor for Carroll Financial Inc., in Charlotte, N.C. He is also an adjunct professor in accounting, insurance and ethics, a doctoral student in financial planning and sits on the Disclosures Editorial Task Force.

dpeters@carrollfinancial.com connect.vscpa.com/DavidPeters carrollfinancial.com

The information discussed herein is general in nature and provided for informational purposes only. There is no guarantee as to its accuracy or completeness. Nothing in this article constitutes an offer to sell or a solicitation of any offer to buy any type of securities. Registered Representative of and securities offered through Cetera Advisors Network, LLC, Member SIPC/FINRA. Advisory services offered through Carroll Financial Associates, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisor. Carroll Financial and Cetera Advisors Network, LLC are not affiliated.