10 Essential SMS Marketing Workflows to Implement

From sharing current promotions to sending appointment reminders, your marketing team needs a simple and efficient way to handle routine customer communications. Yet you want to make sure every message your small or medium-sized business sends is both relevant and personal.

With SMS workflows, your team can automate business communication, delivering the right message to the right person at the right time. In this article, we'll cover 10 SMS marketing workflows you can set up today to improve engagement, conversions, and customer service.

Why SMS Workflows Matter in Marketing

SMS workflows empower your business to communicate with customers automatically so your team can create consistent engagement and build better relationships.

For busy marketing teams, SMS marketing automations are crucial. These campaigns make it easy to eliminate unnecessary manual tasks so everyone can work more efficiently.

The result? With the right SMS workflows, your team can reliably promote the business and cultivate customer relationships—while reducing manual workloads and spending resources more effectively.

What Are SMS Marketing Workflows?

SMS workflows are automated campaigns that your business can send to customers based on certain schedules or actions. They can include a single message or a drip campaign over a period of days or weeks.

With automated text message workflows, your business can send targeted messages on a timely basis without ongoing manual effort. After the initial setup and workflow testing, the messages automatically send to contacts.

Here's an example. This SMS campaign promotes a new ecommerce product and invites customers to shop.

Benefits of SMS Workflows for Businesses

Both product- and service-based businesses can benefit from using SMS marketing. With automated workflows, your team can:

• Connect with customers regularly: Want to check in with customers before an appointment or send them details on your current promotions? You can send SMS messages on a set schedule and tailor them to customer behavior.
• Create more consistent messaging: Tired of copying and pasting messages from one customer to another or writing one-off messages from scratch? Send the same message every time, and insert personalization automatically.
• Improve conversions and retention: Need a better way to increase customer engagement and meet revenue-focused goals? Automate messages to your best customers, those at risk of churning, and other key segments.
• Scale communication efforts: Don't have time to connect with customers individually? Send one or two-way SMS messages at scale based on behavioral triggers or promotional calendars.

10 Key SMS Marketing Workflows to Implement

How can SMS campaigns work for your business? Start with these essential workflows.

1. Welcome Workflow

These workflows are best for onboarding new customers and introducing them to your SMS list.

Example of an initial message: "Welcome to SMS updates from [BUSINESS]! You'll be the first to know about our new specials. We'll also remind you if you forget something in your cart."

Example of a follow-up message: "Here's that discount code we mentioned. Use code [CODE] to save 30% off your first purchase."

2. Abandoned Cart Workflow

Send these workflows to customers who have added items to their shopping cart but clicked away before completing the checkout process.

Example of an initial message: "Hi [NAME], it looks like you left something in your shopping cart! Grab it before it's gone: [LINK]."

Example of a follow-up message: "Going, going, gone! Our [PRODUCT] is going fast! Don't forget to check out before it's gone: [LINK]."

3. Post-Purchase Follow-Up Workflow

Follow up with customers after a purchase to make sure they're satisfied and to suggest next steps.

Example of an initial message: "How are you liking your recent [BUSINESS] order, [NAME]? We'd love to hear what you think!"

Example of a follow-up message: "Need to stock up on that [PRODUCT], [NAME]? Save 15% with code [CODE] today only: [LINK]."

4. Re-Engagement Workflow

Reduce customer churn with this automated re-engagement campaign.

Example of an initial message: "Hi [NAME]! [BUSINESS] just opened up a few new time slots next week. We'd love to see you! Do any of them work for you? [LINK]"

Example of a follow-up message: "It's been way too long, [NAME]. Use code [CODE] to save 25% off your next booking: [LINK]."

5. Event Reminder Workflow

Use this workflow to remind customers about an upcoming appointment or event so you can maximize attendance.

Example of an initial message: "It's just a week away! [EVENT] is almost here and we can't wait to see you on [DATE]. Get ready by grabbing venue details here: [LINK]."

Example of a follow-up message: "Today's the day! Doors open at [TIME] for [EVENT]. Get parking details here: [LINK]."

6. Feedback and Review Workflow

After an appointment or purchase, request customer feedback by prompting them to leave a review.

Example of an initial message: "Hi [NAME], thanks for visiting [BUSINESS] yesterday. We'd love to hear about your experience. You can leave us a review here: [LINK]."

Example of a follow-up message: "Hi [NAME], we'd love to hear your feedback – and so would our customers. It only takes 60 seconds to leave us a review: [LINK]."

7. Promotional Campaign Workflow

Send your best deals and discounts to customers with this promotional campaign workflow. Consider adding images to the format to grab attention.

Example of an initial message: "Get a sneak peek at our Black Friday deals and make your shopping list! Save big on select items. Browse here before the deals go live: [LINK]."

Example of a follow-up message: "Our Black Friday deals are live! Get up to 50% off select items, plus free shipping on Friday only. Shop here: [LINK]."

8. Birthday or Anniversary Workflow

Celebrate customers' birthdays or anniversaries with this simple automated workflow.

Example of an initial message: "Happy Birthday month, [NAME]! We can't wait to celebrate with you. Enjoy 25% off your purchase this month with code [CODE]: [LINK]."

Example of a follow-up message: We hope you had the best birthday month, [NAME]! Don't miss your chance to save 25% before the month ends. Use birthday code [CODE]: [LINK]."

9. Loyalty Program Workflow

Share special pricing with VIP customers using this loyalty program workflow.

Example of an initial message: "Thanks for joining [BUSINESS]'s VIP program, [NAME]! We can't wait to share exclusive perks with you."

Example of a follow-up message: "For VIPs only: save 25% off on any purchase through [DATE]. Use code [CODE] to shop: [LINK]."

10. Cross-Sell or Upsell Workflow

Encourage customers to consider a larger purchase with this cross-sell workflow.

Example of an initial message: "Thanks for scheduling your [SERVICE] on [DATE], [NAME]! Upgrade to [PREMIUM SERVICE] for just $50 more: [LINK]."

Example of a follow-up message: "We'll see you tomorrow for [SERVICE], [NAME]! Want to treat a friend too? Grab a time here: [LINK]."

How to Create SMS Workflows

Now that you have an idea of which messages to send when, let's dive into the setup process. Follow these steps to configure your first SMS workflow with Sakari.

From your Sakari dashboard, create a new workflow. Then, choose an enrollment trigger from one of the available options. Sakari currently supports these triggers:

• Message Received, which means your business has received a message from the contact
• Link Clicked, which means the contact clicked a specific link your business sent them
• Message Status Changed, which means a message has a status changed to sent or failed
• Contact Added to List, which means the contact is added to a list in Sakari
• Contact Updated, which means the contact is updated to fit certain criteria
• Contact Created, which means the contact has been newly created
• Missed Call, which means a call from the contact has been missed

To customize the automation, use Sakari's workflow actions. Sakari offers SMS actions like filtering contacts by one or more criteria, using if/then logic, and adding or removing contacts from lists automatically.

Sakari also supports inline triggers, which affect when the workflow triggers. For example, you can add time delays or opt to trigger the automation when the contact receives an SMS message or opens a link.

After you've built the workflow comes the most important part: writing the message. Use the workflow templates above to guide you. Once you're finished, save and test the automation.

Test Your SMS Workflows

Before you turn on any automation, SMS workflow testing is essential. After all, a setup error can lead to issues with personalization or prompt the SMS platform to send messages at the wrong time.

To test Sakari Workflows, create a separate list that includes only you or members of your team. Enroll the list in the workflow and run it to check functionality. Confirm that you receive the right messages at the right time.

Consider A/B testing your SMS workflows, too. Also known as split tests, A/B tests involve creating multiple versions of a workflow and then sending each version to a different audience segment.

By default, Sakari splits your contact list 50/50 and sends each version to half of the list. You can adjust this split in increments of 5% as necessary.

After sending an A/B test, use Sakari's real-time analytics to monitor the results for each version. Check metrics like deliverability rates, engagement rates, conversion rates, and click-through rates to see which workflow performed best. Then, designate the best one as your new standard version for the workflow.