The year is 2024, and millennials dominate the workforce in a turbulent world.
According to Statista, millennials have officially surpassed Gen Xers as the most prominently represented generation in the modern workforce, with 72.7 million people. In the years to come, more and more of these millennials will be stepping into decision-making positions.
Since 68 percent of millennials admit to texting “a lot” (take that how you may) daily, compared to just 47 percent of Gen Xers, we firmly believe SMS will become a staple of the sales process. If millennials are calling the shots, using their preferred communication channels only makes sense.
Even though millennials spend much of their time texting, they haven’t completely abandoned email. Given that, why bother texting leads when traditional communication methods like email have successfully yielded results for years?
Simple:
SMS creates a personal connection that email cannot.
Since the majority of modern conversations happen through text, people are getting used to building relationships—personal and professional—through their phone's messaging apps.
Prospects are comfortable having real conversations through SMS. Moving the sales conversation from their email to their texting inbox will only deepen the connection you’re building.
Nowadays, the main question isn’t whether you should be using SMS but how you should be using SMS to maximize its potential and avoid sounding like a creepy salesperson. In this post, we’ll highlight six ways you can effectively use text messaging to nurture leads and close more sales.
Let’s get started.
1. Don’t Send a Text the Second They Opt-In
Nobody wants to get an unsolicited text from someone they don’t really know.
A relationship hasn't been established if a lead just gave you their number through an opt-in form. They won’t expect (or want) an immediate text from you.
The best plan of attack is to schedule a call or exchange a few emails before you send a text. The key is to establish a relationship first, then start dabbling in the world of text.
2. Ask for Quick & Simple Answers
One of the best reasons to use SMS messaging to communicate with leads is that you can get answers much more quickly than you would by phone or email.
The 2024 State of SMS report estimates that 7 billion text messages will be sent this year, and 90 percent will be read within three minutes.
Since text messages are short and sweet, they’re a great medium to send along quick questions you’re looking for quick answers to. More often than not, your texts will be read within minutes—if you can keep it concise, you’ll also have an answer within minutes.
3. Use SMS as a Unique Way to Follow up
We firmly believe that follow-up is one of the most important elements of the selling process. After you send an email seeking approval or confirmation, a short text follow-up could be the perfect nudge to get your prospect to take a look.
Remember, since 90 percent of text messages are read within a few minutes, your SMS follow-up will likely be seen right away and prompt your prospect to answer.
Your message shouldn’t be an essay. Something simple like this could work:
Hey, John/Jane - I just want to make sure you saw the email I sent with my schedule.
Since all you’re trying to do is give them a quick nudge, the shorter your text, the more likely they are to act on it. Simplicity is key.
4. Use a Voice & Tone that Fit the Conversation
One thing to remember when using text messaging as a sales tool is the context of the conversation and the voice and tone that fit that context. When we interviewed HouseCall Pro, who increased their close rate by 15 percent using SMS, they shared their approach to finding the right voice and tone:
“It’s important to have a different text voice that matches your use of SMS. If you are doing demo confirmation and ‘transactional’ texts, then keep it professional and to the point. If you are using it for post-demo follow-up, and you’ve built up a rapport with the Customer, then feel free to text more like you would with friends.”
The last thing you want to do is spoil the relationship—and the sale—by appearing unprofessional. Just because texting is the same medium you use to joke around with friends doesn’t mean your conversations with a lead should take the same tone—at least not at first.
5. Understand When it’s Time to Take a Step Back
The most important factor is recognizing when enough is enough. If you’re not getting responses to your texts, that’s not a green light to keep pushing and pushing. In our interview with HouseCall Pro, they emphasized the need to be mindful of signals from your prospect:
“If you send a couple of texts with no reply, stop - it’s a very powerful way to reach out, but with great power comes great responsibility.”
Don’t be the creepy salesperson who won’t stop texting even when a prospect does not want to text back. Some leads may love SMS. Others may hate it. Take the hint, or you’ll risk blowing the deal before it materializes.
6. Manage & Measure Your SMS Efforts in Your CRM
Years ago, when SMS messaging increased, sales teams stopped using it. Some of that reluctance was simply a fear of experimenting with something new, but it was also due to a lack of trackable data. As texting took off, CRMs weren’t built to track interactions through SMS.
Luckily, that’s become a thing of the past.
Our SMS integration in Close is as straightforward as our built-in calling and emailing integrations.
You can send an SMS with one click to any SMS-enabled number within the U.S. or Canada using your existing phone number. Incoming SMS messages show up in your Close Inbox and activity feed, just like new emails, tasks, and missed calls.
Here’s what it looks like when you work with it in the Close Inbox:
Ready to Win Over Millennial Leads? Master SMS Now and Stay Ahead in 2024!
As millennials dominate the workforce, it’s time to shift common sales practices to favor their preferences. If millennials spend much of their time texting, the best bet for salespeople is to take the sales conversation to text messages.
The key is making sure you’re doing it in a way that sets you up for success while avoiding the creepy salesperson label.
Here’s a quick recap of six strategies for using SMS to talk to leads:
- Don’t send a text the second they opt-in
- Ask for quick & simple answers
- Use SMS as a unique way to follow up
- Use a voice & tone that fit the conversation
- Understand when it’s time to take a step back
- Manage & measure your SMS efforts in your CRM
What are your thoughts? Have you already started leveraging the power of text messaging in your lead nurturing processes, or are you still skeptical? Drop a comment below with your thoughts. We’d love to hear from you.
Want even more actionable advice on engaging prospects in the conversation and moving the sale forward? Download your free copy of The Follow-Up Formula today.
