5 easy ways retailers can use texting services to bring in customers

Posted On 20 February 2017 By Joe Butler In Articles /  1

Retail history is full of people focusing on small details while having big dreams. For instance, Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton used to fly his own tiny plane to stake out possible future store locations, or drive boxes of clothing over back roads himself to avoid highway tolls.

J.C. Penney founder James Cash Penney was said to go out of his way to pick up any dropped spare change, especially pennies, saying that it all adds up fast.

But as thrifty as both men were, they also felt that customer satisfaction was equally important, and that most shoppers want a good deal as much as the store does.

Today many retail owners, managers and marketing teams continue this philosophy. There is more competition, including online marketplaces, but there also more opportunities, especially where mobile devices are considered.

They make it easy for shoppers to enjoy browsing a store’s site from anywhere they please, and also to place an order if your shop offers secure online purchasing. But to really communicate to customers and drive them to keep on shopping you need to incorporate texting into your marketing plan.

Since a growing number of people are texting more frequently, a text from a favorite store isn’t a novelty anymore, but may even be expected.

Try these examples of how a retailer of any size can get the word out directly and effectively to their audience.

·         Coupons. Since everyone still loves a deal, they also likely won’t mind when they get a text with a link to a nice discount. Even better, it will always be easy to get to and redeem, unlike a hard copy coupon that’s easy to lose or leave at home.

·         Special sales. While a coupon could be used for one product, a text notifying subscribers about an upcoming sale can include deals in several departments or on several products. Photos also can help get people excited. People can also shop the sale online or at an actual location.

·         VIP area. A texting service can allow retailers to create different databases based on customer preferences. There could be a general one that anyone can subscribe to, and even a more elite one for ‘better’ customers – you decide the eligibility. A certain level of spending? A certain number of years of being an active customer? Or the fact that they subscribed for extra texts and promotions makes them VIPs. This area can include deeper or more frequent discounts, different sales, or more familiar-sounding texts.

·         Personal contact. If your customer base in the hundreds or thousands, it’s no longer easy to communicate with them unless they come into the store and say hello. But with texting, you can contact people directly on occasion as a special treat. Or use your database and texting program to automatically put the person’s first name in the text.  This automated personal touch will come across like a direct invitation. How can you say no?

·         Try geofencing. Your online team may already know how to deliver specific ads to your phone when you’re in a certain geographic area. (It has to do with the WiFi signal and specific geographic coordinates.) But the same principle can be used for texting:  how about an automated  text when a shopper is physically near your retail location? This will get a shopper’s attention even faster than seeing it on their email browser and could nudge them to visit.

For more suggestions on useful ways to use text and texting services to benefit your retail business, visit smseagle.eu/blog.

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Why texting can benefit patients & health care providers.

Posted On 27 January 2017 By Joe Butler In Articles /  3

Texting is becoming a prime method of communicating, so it’s natural the practice is moving into health care.

Patients like how texting a nurse or doctor can bypass the receptionist, answering service or voice mail and not require scheduling or waiting for an appointment. It’s also discrete to text a provider to discuss problem, and not have anyone overhear.

Medical office staff may find that texting can help their organization as well, including assisting with scheduling and even reduce call volume if more patients text questions.

In fact, about the only people who haven’t been sure about the appropriateness of texts in health cares are providers themselves. Their reasons seem generally less about the potential for improving quality of care, and more about the complex legal challenges that could arise when doctors start texting.

First, the modern physician is busy seeing patients and with paperwork, so taking time to text may cut into a crowded schedule or take time away from patient visits. Being able to directly contact a doctor anytime also changes the dynamic of the modern medical system where most doctors have plenty of gatekeepers/staff between him/her and the patient.

There are also questions if a text from a doctor constitutes actual medical advice or just a conversation. Then there are the potential violations of HIPPAA, the medical privacy law designed to prevent unauthorized disclosure of patient information.

Physician groups have been wrestling with texting for years, but in 2016, The Joint Commission voted to permit them, provided physicians take steps to keep their phones secure and encrypted.  The organization felt there could be greater benefits for patient care, such as physicians being able to quickly send texts to consult with colleagues, nurses or pharmacists.

Other areas where texting has been in use or has shown potential in health care include:

  • Office assistance. Patients can send in texts requesting appointments, or offices can use automated texting software to confirm and remind them about upcoming visits.
  • Unscheduled appointments. Some emergency rooms and urgent care centers are now accepting texts. This can alert the staff that a patient is coming in so they can begin the paperwork process, rather than waiting for the patient to arrive to start registration. Some facilities also can return a text from a potential patient to advise how long the wait time is, and confirm that the patient has a place on the list. This has the potential to reduce wait times at both of these types of providers.
  • Regular health information. A medical office can ‘push’ information out to its patients and other text subscribers such as invitations to come in on a regular basis for procedures like flu shots in the fall or sun screening in the spring. Texts can drive people to health info on the practice’s site, an e-newsletter other useful health and wellness resources, such as links from local public health officials. Some texting programs also can be synced to a database so someone’s name can appear.
  • General questions. While providers may be wary of sending patient information by text, such as test results, they may consider asking one member of their staff to take on this duty. This option can be announced to patients to assure them that it’s OK to text as long as they follow certain rules.  Along with directly answering and assisting, they can text useful links to help answer someone’s question. This can provide legitimate medical information, rather than encouraging the patient to do their information online, which can be risky at times with so many inaccuracies.
  • Health alerts. As a service to the local patient community, texts can be sent out with information about epidemics and general medical emergencies like epidemics or disasters.

Because physicians are just beginning to explore the potential of texting, there are plenty of possible ways to improve efficiency and delivery of care in the future.

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5 reasons why schools should add texting to safety plans

Posted On 19 December 2016 By Joe Butler In Articles /  1

Today’s college officials face challenges that that previous generations of education professionals never had to deal with, starting with the Internet.

Though advances in digital technology have generally been a good thing as far as program delivery and creating more interactive multimedia classroom experiences, they have also created more potential for harm, or at least new distractions for instructors and students.

At the same time, interest in school security has also risen, partly due to increases in violence at secondary schools and colleges. Though shootings get headlines and cause high levels of fear, other crimes can take place too, including assaults with other weapons.

Because of a push to keep students safer, educators and security staff continue to search for new methods to alert students during a crisis – it doesn’t have to be violence, but any occasion when information needs to be delivered in a hurry. Perhaps it could be a natural disaster or even a serious traffic accident or weather situation that could impact traffic in and out of campus.

One solution that has gained popularity is texting, when school officials can send instructions to students and faculty in the event of a safety situation.

Here’s why it should be added to a college’s security plan.

  • Students are more likely to see a text first.

Emergency warnings in the past have included mass emails or automated phone calls. But these may not be able to be seen as quickly as a text – sometimes emails or voice messages aren’t checked for hours or days while a text can be seen in minutes. Since more students are using mobile devices, especially for texting, it’s likely that they will hear and see an immediate message, or at least someone near them will.

  • It’s a faster delivery method.

Depending on your particular texting service, thousands of one-to-many texts can be sent a matter of minutes. In comparison, thousands of mass emails must be sent in small bursts over hours to avoid spam detectors. Texts are also universal – the same message can be seen on everyone’s phone.

  • Brief is better.

In emergency situations, school officials may just send out short details and quick instructions, with the expectation that more info will be shared later. “Active shooter on campus, seek shelter.” “Tornado coming, stay indoors, will text all-clear later.”

  • No reply needed.

Sending one-to-one texts can create opportunities for a conversation, but one-to-many texts aren’t intended for interaction, only instructions. Officials sending texts may not have time or interest to answer the same question multiple times, so it’s easier just to send an identical message out to everyone.

  • Different databases can be managed easily.

A college may have multiple ‘text’ lists, such as students on different campuses, or even local media. Plus it may have an ‘everyone’ list.  Most texting programs make it easy to specify which database when creating a message. This can make sure the correct students and staff receive the message.

Secondary schools like middle schools and elementary schools will likely require different texting policies than colleges. Younger students may not even own mobile phones, or if they do have them, they may not be permitted in the classroom.

In this case, school alerts should be sent to faculty/staff and perhaps a separate database for parents. These also can give quick, direct information with the promise of more details to come. “School in lockdown. Keep students calm and in classrooms.” “Fire in gym, please evacuate to field.”

Leaders also should keep in mind that every school’s texting plan should be customized based on local resources and the local community.

Overall, it’s critical that a school gets the word out as much as possible prior to launching a texting service to make sure many as many people sign up. Schools also should consider sending out several types of warnings, not just texts, in case a student may not have their phone on or even with them on any given day.

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