Holiday SMS Marketing Strategies and Examples

For retailers, the holiday season is a crucial opportunity to attract customers and drive sales. But if you're relying on the same old social media and email marketing channels, your holiday campaigns may fall flat.

With its high open and engagement rates, SMS makes it easy for retailers to communicate instantly with customers throughout the busy shopping season. In this guide to SMS marketing holiday season campaigns, we'll cover how to use text messages to maximize revenue and build your customer base.

Why SMS Marketing Works During the Holiday Season

Email marketing campaigns tend to get lost in customers' crowded inboxes—or worse, land in spam. Social media posts can easily get lost in followers' feeds or never see the light of day due to the algorithm. Customers may see messages from these marketing channels hours or days later, when it's too late to take action.

In contrast, SMS marketing messages pop up on subscribers' mobile devices, alerting them instantly. Text messages have an average 98% open rate, which means customers won't just see your notification. They'll almost always tap to read your message, too.

Since 90% of SMS messages are opened within 3 minutes, they reach subscribers quickly. That means text marketing is ideal for communicating time-sensitive sales, limited-time offers, and any last-minute specials you share during the holiday season.

Plus, text messages are tailored to mobile devices, which generate over 50% of holiday ecommerce revenue. Their mobile-friendly messaging captures attention right away and gets messages across quickly. They make it easy for customers to browse, buy, and ultimately pick out the perfect holiday gift.

Start Planning Early

One of the biggest perks of text marketing is the ability to send messages instantly at any time. But that doesn't mean you should wait until the last moment to plan your SMS marketing strategy.

Instead, map out your strategy and build SMS campaigns well in advance—ideally at the beginning of Q4. That way, you can time messages to capture sales during key moments of the shopping season.

Personalize Your Messages

Mass texting doesn't have to be generic, especially during the holidays. Send targeted offers by adding customer names or referencing purchase history to texts.

You don't have to include this information manually. Instead, use a text marketing platform like Sakari to add personalization automatically.

Include a Clear Call to Action

So you shared an irresistible deal or a limited-time holiday item. What next? Don't leave customers wondering how to take advantage of the offer.

End each text message with a clear call to action (CTA). Use CTAs like "Shop Now" or "Claim Your Offer" and add links to make the conversion easier.

Create a Sense of Urgency

When customers think they have tons of time to decide on a holiday gift, they may never choose. To encourage them to act faster, create a sense of urgency.

Using phrases like "Limited Time Offer" or "Only a Few Hours Left" in text messages is great for driving action. Just make sure those time or quantity limits really apply.

Offer Exclusive Deals

Want to grow your SMS subscriber list quickly? Incentivize subscribers with exclusive holiday deals.

For example, offer discount codes for their first purchases. Text special promotions to loyal customers.

Types of SMS Campaigns to Run During the Holidays

What kind of messages should you send during the holiday shopping season? Here are a few campaign ideas to consider.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday Deals

Start the holiday season strong and grab customers' attention with a big sale. While Cyber Monday deals generally work for ecommerce only, Black Friday offers work well for both in-store retail and ecommerce.

Don't wait until the day of to announce the special offer. Instead, tease it in advance to generate buzz. Then, text subscribers a reminder before the deal expires so they don't miss out.

Last-Minute Gift Promotions

As popular as the post-Thanksgiving shopping period tends to be, many shoppers wait until much later to complete their Christmas lists. In 2023, almost 142 million people planned to shop on Super Saturday, the final Saturday before Christmas. Text last-minute promos to help customers find the perfect gift.

Holiday Flash Sales

Want to drive sales of a specific item? Text holiday flash sales to create a sense of urgency and inspire customers to shop. Create a series of daily flash sales to build anticipation and get customers excited.

Abandoned Cart Recovery Messages

Set up automated cart abandonment texts to remind customers to finish checking out. Offer an incentive like a discount code to encourage them to return and complete their purchase.

Shipping and Delivery Updates

Don't leave customers wondering when their ecommerce orders will ship or arrive. Automate this element of customer service by setting up personalized shipping and delivery update texts.

Thank You Messages

Cultivate customer loyalty by letting shoppers know how much you appreciate their business. Use SMS to send heartfelt thank you messages to customers.

Post-Purchase Messages

The relationship doesn't have to be over once the transaction is complete. Send post-purchase texts to request reviews and generate more social proof.

Examples of Holiday SMS Campaigns

Looking for a little inspiration? Use these SMS marketing campaigns to spark ideas for your own text messages.

Offer Early Access to a Holiday Sale

Create excitement by inviting SMS subscribers to shop before anyone else. Use early access as an incentive to encourage more customers to sign up for your list.

Example: "Get a sneak peek at our Black Friday sale and grab the best deals before anyone else! Early access starts now: [LINK]"

Announce Daily Flash Sales

Plan a 12 Days of Christmas campaign with daily flash sales. Include a mix of special discounts, holiday bundles, and exclusive items.

Example: "It's the first (of 12) days of Christmas! Day #1: Holiday Bundles for Him 🎁 Shop the collection today and get 25% off your purchase! [LINK]"

Share Gift Guides

Help customers choose the perfect gift for family and friends who aren't easy to shop for. Send gift guides with different themes to offer plenty of helpful ideas.

Example: "Can't decide what to get for the mom who has everything? From cozy sweaters to dazzling jewelry, shop gifts she'll love finding under the tree 🎄 [LINK]"

Remind About Order Deadlines

Don't let customers miss out on their chance to purchase gifts before the holidays. Send reminders about order and shipping deadlines to help customers plan.

Example: "Need to pick up a few last-minute gifts? We've got you! Place your order by 12/22 for delivery before Christmas! [LINK]"

SMS Marketing Compliance Tips for the Holiday Season

Because the holiday often brings a spike in promotional messages, it's even more important to create compliant SMS campaigns. Use the guidelines below to avoid getting flagged for spam.

Obtain Customer Consent

Before you begin sending holiday messages to customers, get permission to text them. You need an opt-in from every subscriber on your SMS list.

There are a couple of ways to obtain customer consent. For example, you can require subscribers to check a box on the landing page where they sign up for your list. Or you can ask them to confirm permission via text.

Honor Opt-Outs

Ideally, you want as many customers as possible to sign up for your SMS list. But that doesn't mean you should make it difficult for subscribers to unsubscribe from your list.

Include opt-out language in promotional texts, allowing customers to unsubscribe via a keyword. Then, remove this customer data from your list immediately to prevent spam reports.

Avoid Excessive Messaging

Technically, there's no limit to the number of text messages you can send to subscribers. However, if you overdo it and annoy customers, you might get a lot of unsubscribes or spam reports.

To avoid excessive messaging, plan campaigns in advance to get the timing right. Make every message count and provide value with relevant specials, holiday items, and gift ideas.

How to Measure the Success of Your Holiday SMS Campaigns

Are your SMS marketing campaigns generating the results you want? Monitor these metrics to measure the success of your holiday campaigns:

• Delivery Rate reflects how often the text messages you sent were successfully delivered.
• Open Rate indicates how often subscribers read your holiday text messages.
• Click-Through Rate (CTR) shows how often subscribers tapped a link in your text.
• Conversion Rate reflects how often subscribers completed a conversion, like using a promo code or making a purchase after receiving your text.
• Return on Investment (ROI) compares the amount you spent on the campaign to the amount you earned from it.

With Sakari's real-time analytics, you can measure these metrics in the moment. Then, you can use the insights to adjust future campaigns and optimize the outcomes.

Get Started with Holiday SMS Marketing Today

Don't wait to start planning your holiday SMS marketing campaigns. Get started early to tease special offers, launch flash sales, and maximize holiday revenue.

Ready to boost your holiday sales with SMS marketing? Start your free trial with Sakari today and set up your first text messaging campaign in minutes.

FAQs on Holiday SMS Marketing