How to Use B2B SMS Marketing For Effective Lead Generation

Every day, businesses negotiate deals, establish partnerships, and share important updates. Therefore, being able to communicate quickly is a must for smooth operations and successful outcomes.

With SMS, businesses can send a brief text that their partners and clients read almost immediately. Whether it’s an urgent product update or a simple check-in, SMS ensures each message gets the attention it needs right away.

However, the effectiveness of SMS marketing largely depends on the SMS texting solution being used. The best texting solution should integrate seamlessly with other business systems.

In this guide, we will explore how to effectively carry out B2B SMS marketing and help your business communicate more efficiently through text messaging.

What is B2B SMS Marketing?

B2B (Business to Business) SMS marketing refers to the use of Short Message Service (SMS) to promote products or services directly from one business to another. 

Unlike B2C SMS marketing, which targets consumers, B2B focuses on business clients and partners. Keep in mind that you will need cell phone numbers for your clients in order to send text messages to them which in today’s business environment is increasingly common. 

For marketing messages, it is also important to also make sure you have consent to send these messages in order to comply with the current regulatory framework.

B2B SMS campaigns can vary widely:

• Promotional messages: Announce new products or services
• Transactional messages: Confirm orders or appointments
• Reminders: Notify clients about meetings or deadlines
• Feedback requests: Gather insights through customer surveys

How Do Businesses Use B2B Text Messaging

B2B text messaging has become an essential tool for businesses, offering a direct and immediate way to communicate. Here’s how businesses use SMS messaging to improve their daily operations:

Communication with Clients and Partners

Businesses use text messaging to maintain and strengthen relationships with their clients and partners. Many companies send appointment reminders to ensure attendance and punctuality for scheduled meetings or calls. 

Additionally, order confirmations through SMS marketing messages provide clients with timely updates on their transactions. Follow-ups after meetings or services are another common use that allows businesses to gather feedback or continue the conversation.

Internal Communication

Text messaging is also valuable for internal business communication and team coordination, especially among remote or field teams. 

Critical updates, such as system outages or urgent project changes, are often communicated via text messages to ensure immediate attention. Event reminders for company events, deadlines, or important meetings are also commonly sent through SMS.

Marketing and Promotions

Promotional messages about new products or services can be sent directly to clients, ensuring they receive the information promptly. 

Text messages are also used to notify clients about product updates, delivery changes or special offers  to provide a more personal connection and encourage immediate engagement. 

Transactional messages, such as confirming orders or appointments or invoice reminderscan also provide customers with real-time updates.

Customer Support

Text messaging serves as a reliable channel for customer support in B2B interactions. Businesses can handle support requests quickly and efficiently via SMS, providing timely resolutions to issues. 

Companies can also send status updates on ongoing support cases, keeping clients informed throughout the sales process.

Event Management

Businesses use SMS to manage events such as conferences, webinars, or training sessions. Text messages can be used to send invitations, reminders, and updates about the event schedule. 

Attendees appreciate the convenience of receiving real-time information on their mobile devices.

Benefits of SMS Marketing for B2B

SMS marketing is quickly becoming a go-to tool for B2B companies. More people use mobile phones, and it offers a quick and efficient way to communicate. 

The main advantage of SMS for business is that it has an incredibly high open rate of 98%. This ensures your message gets read almost instantly, which leads to higher engagement from your clients and partners.

Aside from this, text message marketing also has other key benefits for B2B businesses, including:

• Timely updates and confirmations
• Faster than phone calls and emails
• Clients respond quicker to texts than emails
• Tailored messages for better relevance and impact
• Easily combines with email and CRM systems
• Suitable for various communication needs
• Track and analyze campaign performance

B2B SMS Marketing Use Cases

B2B SMS marketing can be applied in various scenarios to improve business operations and communications. Here are some detailed use cases where it proves to be highly effective:

Generating Leads

B2B SMS marketing can generate leads by encouraging potential clients to opt in for more information. Businesses can run campaigns where interested prospects text a keyword to a short code or a regular phone number to receive additional details about products or services. 

Setting Appointments

Scheduling appointments via SMS is quick and efficient. Businesses send SMS invites to potential clients or partners so they can confirm or reschedule appointments easily. This reduces the back-and-forth often associated with appointment setting.

Sending Reminders

Sending SMS appointment confirmations and reminders is highly effective for ensuring that clients and partners do not miss important meetings, deadlines, or events. Reminders sent a day or a few hours before an appointment or event help increase attendance and punctuality.

Sharing Content

Valuable content through SMS keeps clients and partners informed and engaged. Businesses can send relevant images or links to whitepapers, case studies, webinars, or product updates directly to their audience. 

Running Drip Campaigns

Drip marketing campaigns involve sending a series of pre-scheduled messages to nurture leads over time. SMS serves as an effective medium for drip campaigns, which allows businesses to send relevant messages that guide prospects through the sales funnel. When prospects respond, the drip messages can stop. 

This can include educational content, product information, and special offers designed to move the lead closer to a purchase decision.

Engaging in Two-Way Conversations

Two-way messaging allows for real-time conversations with clients and partners. This can be used for customer support, answering queries, or discussing deals and partnerships. 

SMS’s immediacy makes it an excellent tool for resolving issues quickly and maintaining open lines of communication.

Following Up

SMS follow-ups can be used to thank clients for their time, provide additional information, or schedule the next steps. Immediate and personal connection keeps the relationship warm and shows the business’s commitment to client engagement.

Collecting Customer Feedback

Businesses can send short customer satisfaction surveys to clients and partners via SMS to ask for opinions on products or services. SMS’s high open rate ensures that these surveys are seen and increases the likelihood of receiving responses.

How to Craft Effective B2B SMS Campaigns

Crafting effective B2B SMS campaigns involves more than just sending out messages—it requires strategy, timing, and personalization. Here’s how you can ensure your SMS campaigns are impactful and engaging:

Understand Your Audience

Before you launch any SMS campaign, you should know who you’re communicating with. Understanding the needs, preferences, and behaviors of your B2B audience ensures your messages meet their specific interests and increase the relevance of your communication.

Set Clear Objectives

Start by identifying the main goal of your campaign. Are you trying to increase sales of a particular product? Maybe you want to improve customer engagement or gather feedback on a new service.

Whatever your goal, you must be specific. For instance, instead of just increasing sales, set a target to improve sales of Product X by 10% within the next quarter through SMS promotions.

Once you have your main goal, break it down into smaller, manageable objectives. These could include growing your SMS marketing list or improving the click-through rates. Each of these smaller objectives should directly support your main goal.

Personalize Your Messages

You can incorporate details such as their first name, company name, or recent interactions with your business into the messages. This simple step can optimize communication that feels more direct and personal than generic broadcast messaging.

For example, a message that starts with “Hi [First Name], here’s a special offer just for [Company Name]!” immediately grabs attention and shows that the message is tailored specifically for the recipient.

Beyond using names and company details, personalization can also be about timing and relevance. Send messages based on where each client is in the business cycle or according to their past purchasing behavior.

If a client recently purchased a software license from you, a follow-up SMS asking about their experience or offering help with setup could be very timely and appreciated.

Keep Messages Concise and Clear

Although modern SMS platforms aren’t strictly limited to 160 characters, it’s still important to keep messages short and to the point.

You should avoid using complex industry jargon or overly technical terms unless your audience commonly understands them. Instead, use simple language that directly communicates what you want the recipient to know. 

Remember that including images with your messages can help you provide more details while keeping messages concise. 

For example, instead of saying, “We’re reaching out to remind you of the opportunity to engage with our latest suite of enhancements and improvements,” simplify it to “Check out our new product features!”

Time Your Messages Appropriately

Timing is crucial in B2B SMS marketing. Schedule messages for optimal times and avoid early mornings or late nights. This ensures your messages are seen and acted upon during typical business hours, depending on your audience’s schedule.

The ideal time often varies by industry and the specific routines of your target audience. If you’re targeting professionals who begin their day with a planning session, a mid-morning SMS might reach them at an ideal time.

For reminders about an upcoming webinar, send them a day or two before and perhaps another a few hours before it starts. For promotions of limited-time offers, send your message early enough to allow recipients time to decide and act.

Include a Call-to-Action (CTA)

Every SMS should include a clear call-to-action that is easy to understand and concise. If you want clients to check out a new product, your CTA could be, “Click here to explore our latest product features!”

Also, position your CTA prominently within your message. It should be impossible to miss and should ideally be placed at the end of the message to emphasize its importance after the recipient has read the information.

Moreover, limit your SMS to one CTA. Having multiple calls to action can confuse your recipients and dilute the effectiveness of your message. If you need to convey multiple actions, consider sending them in separate messages spaced over time.

Automate SMS Campaigns With A Business Texting Solution

Consider using an SMS texting solution like Textellent to automate various aspects of your B2B communications.

Textellent provides automation capabilities that allow you to schedule and send a series of SMS messages through drip campaigns. This is particularly useful for setting up appointment reminders, promotional announcements, or regular updates.

Additionally, this texting platform can integrate seamlessly with your existing CRM system to personalize messages based on specific details of your clients. You could customize messages with the client’s name, last purchase, or any relevant information that makes the SMS feel tailored and direct.

Finally, automation with Textellent allows for detailed tracking and analysis of your SMS campaign’s effectiveness. You can see which messages are engaging and converting well and adjust your strategy as needed. This data-driven approach helps refine your messaging to meet your audience’s needs better.

Ensure Compliance

Staying compliant not only protects your business legally but also builds trust with your clients. Adhering to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) in the United States is essential to avoid potential penalties and negative impacts on your brand reputation. 

You need to ensure that all marketing type messages are only being sent to those who have specifically opted in to receive such messages or you could risk being fined.

You should also provide an easy way for recipients to opt out of receiving messages at any time. This is usually done by including a simple “text STOP to unsubscribe” message in your SMS.

Additionally, keep your data practices transparent. You must inform your clients about what data you collect and how it will be used.

Test and Optimize

Monitor the performance of your SMS campaigns and make adjustments as needed.

Track the performance of each variation using key metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates. This data will tell you which versions of your messages are more effective at engaging your audience and driving actions.

It’s ideal to use a robust SMS platform like Textellent that provides detailed analytics to make tracking these metrics easier.

Advance Your B2B Strategies with Textellent’s SMS Solutions

Optimize your outreach and improve response rates with Textellent’s SMS marketing tools.

With Textellent, you can send out tailored messages, schedule reminders, or even track how well your campaigns are doing—all from one platform. Our SMS platform is user-friendly and tailored to simplify your interactions with business clients.

It’s time to break away from traditional methods and use SMS to boost your business communications. Sign up for a free trial or book a demo today!

FAQs About B2B SMS Marketing

How do I collect phone numbers ethically for B2B SMS campaigns?

Phone numbers for B2B SMS marketing should always be collected with clear consent. This can be achieved by having businesses opt-in through online forms, during meetings or trade shows, or via direct requests during sales calls.

You must ensure transparency by informing them about how often they might receive messages and the types of content you’ll send.

Are there any limitations to using SMS in B2B marketing?

While SMS is a powerful tool, limitations include the brevity of messages, which may not be ideal for conveying complex business proposals or detailed product information. 

Additionally, depending on the industry, some businesses may prefer more formal communication channels for certain types of discussions.

How should businesses handle the segmentation of their SMS audience?

Segment your SMS audience based on factors like industry type, role in the company, previous interactions, and purchase history to tailor messages that address specific needs and interests. Effective segmentation leads to higher engagement and conversion rates.