Although texting got its start around 1992, B2B industries are still slow to adopt it as part of their integrated marketing strategy. In reality, SMS can skyrocket your results in earning more leads, raising brand engagement, and closing the sale.  

Ready to try it for yourself? Skip the marketing emails that consumers can take hours or days to get a response. Instead, launch your next B2B marketing campaign with best practices and methods in mind. Here's how to get started.

What is SMS Marketing for B2B?

Just like other marketing tactics, SMS and text messaging for B2B focuses on selling products and services to companies instead of consumers. 

In most situations, businesses send SMS and text messages to promote flash sales and other offers. After all, consumers are more likely to make impulse purchases and are driven by limited-time sales. These texts also require a sense of urgency to buy, with conversations focused on promotional language.

B2B text message marketing works a little differently. Your messaging requires a more personalized and conversational approach to nurture relationships with prospective clients. Your texts are also more likely to focus on professional-grade services, sales cycles, and lead generation.

Capture More Leads

Text message marketing is a convenient way to capture more leads with B2B clients. Try adding a widget on your site to capture phone numbers in exchange for a freebie or consultation. The same method also works on social media and other platforms. 

Your business leads are more likely to give up their phone number if they're engaged and genuinely interested in your products or services. These clients are not consumers looking for a quick coupon code. B2B clients want specific products and services that bring value to their own business.

Engage Prospective B2B Clients

One of the most powerful ways to apply SMS text message marketing for B2B is for lead nurturing and engagement. Once you capture a B2B lead, you need time to nurture those relationships through your sales pipeline. Engagement could be as simple as an invitation to a VIP event or webinar. However, you can also offer help and send quick industry-specific tips.

As you engage your clients, you establish a know, like, and trust factor that helps convert them into the next sale. Text messaging also makes it easy to lower the bar for entry. You get to know prospective clients quickly and have a deeper understanding of what they’re looking for. 

Use B2B Texting to Manage Orders

Whether you’re selling products or services to B2B clients, managing your operations with the help of SMS reduces time and resources. Send your clients texts about their products, any changes in production or fulfillment, and updates on when they can expect their items. If your products require installation and tech help, allow your clients to manage their orders and schedule appointments directly through text by including a calendar app link.

B2B industries that sell services also benefit from SMS text messaging. Check up on your service calls, prompt clients for feedback, and prompt follow-up appointments through texting. The process is more convenient for both you and your clients.

Send Service and Business Updates

Your B2B clients are running their own businesses and aren't necessarily focused on the services they're receiving from your company. The exception is when their service is about to expire, you've upgraded or made some changes, or you need to communicate new policies. 

Relying on B2B text messaging keeps your clients updated and informed. Instead of waiting for them to weed through hundreds of emails or voicemails, your text is immediate and convenient for clients to receive, read, and take action.

Test Short Sales Pitches

Marketing relies on A/B testing and experimentation to see which pitches and campaigns work the best. SMS text messaging for B2B is ideal for sending short, pithy sales pitches and ideas to gauge the response. But when you're competing for attention in your client's email inbox, it's difficult to stand-out. 

Just make sure the sales pitch is short and sweet. For example, asking a client if they want to book your last monthly time slot for a consultation is one place to start. Another idea is to ask if they need seasonal products that are currently in stock and what to expect regarding fulfillment and turn-around time.

Shorten Your Sales Cycle

Instead of trying to schedule calls and meetings, SMS marketing for B2B industries offers flexibility and convenience to talk sales anytime and anywhere. When you text in real-time, you can customize responses and pick and choose which products and services make the most sense for your client’s situation. The more personalized conversations you have with leads, the more likely you are to nail down the sale.

Close More Deals

Closing more deals is the goal of most business owners and just one of the many perks of B2B text message marketing. We already talked about how shortening the sales cycle is a powerful benefit of texting clients. But that doesn't always mean you'll close more sales.

Instead, SMS text message marketing provides opportunities for more volume of personalized communication. Yes, you can use email marketing to take a similar approach, but you're also going to end up in someone's inbox that averages 120 emails a day!

SMS marketing makes it possible to reach a large volume of leads. With the power to segment your list by demographics and sales history, you also have the ability to target an eager audience.

Send Event-Triggered Messaging

Just like with consumer SMS campaigns, event-triggered text messaging also works with B2B industries. For example, when a lead signs up for a webinar, you can start nurturing them through a sales process that funnels to a paid conference or premium business resource. 

Event-triggered text messaging is also valuable when a client takes action and engages with your business. Set your triggers to deploy helpful information when a client types "help" or "more info" back to you. Now that you know what types of prompts trigger interest, the kind of action clients are willing to take, and what resources they need to move further into your sales pipeline. 

Do Something Unexpected

SMS and text message marketing is a no-brainer. Consumer and B2B clients want to receive texts, but few companies actually embrace it. Despite how integrated text messaging is in our society, only 39% of businesses actually use it. 

You’ll stand out from your competition by relying on text message marketing to secure leads, engage, and close the deal in a fraction of the time. Remember, text messaging isn't the time for spamming and long blocks of text to get your clients' attention. The key is to make sure all your messaging is valuable, relevant, and to the point. 

Keep Your Team and Candidates Happy

Beyond its marketing power, SMS and text messaging is also a convenient way to stay productive and keep team members happy. When communication is in constant flux, it's essential to have immediate and quick access to your team members to discuss issues, pass on new leads, and juggle information. Start by creating a workplace policy of when and how to use text messaging internally. 

Beyond internal communication, rising talent and new candidates also benefit from text messaging. Keep them informed about upcoming decisions for an open position, send resources about your company, and schedule follow-up interviews as needed.

Final Thoughts

SMS text message marketing isn't just for B2C industries. Take your marketing to new levels and get the results you’re looking for with SMS and text messaging. Are you ready to get started with SMS and text message marketing for your business? Contact us today.