Text Message Campaigns for Health Advocates SMS 101

Text Message Campaigns for Health AdvocatesSMS 101

Agenda

•What are text message campaigns?

•Why use them as an ACA outreach tool?

•7 tips for running a successful text message campaign

The Situation

Open enrollment began October 1, and consumer outreach and education

must start NOW

51% of Americans ages 18-29 are unaware

that the ACA is the law of the land and going into effect this

year

“Now it is crunch time for health insurance exchanges. The Obama administration and state governments must have a robust plan to reach Americans — especially young people — through every media available”

- Wall Street Journal, May 9, 2013

*KFF.org Health Tracking Poll, April 2013

CDC Health Communicator Social Media Toolkit 2011

• SMS stands for short message service

• SMS are a way to communicate via text messages from cell phone/computer to cell phone

• Limited to 160 characters, numbers, or symbols

Short Message Services (SMS) or Text Messages

Picture source: Erin Hemlin

How to Create a Text Campaign• Step 1: Contact an outside

vendor

• Step 2: Lease a 5-6 digit code from mobile service provider or Neustar

▫ You can create a “vanity code,” a code that ties in directly with your campaign

• Step 3: Use keywords to create a short text that will motivate potential subscribers to sign up

Planned Parenthood NY Text Campaign

How a Text Campaign Works

• When someone subscribes, you can send texts through a the subscriber’s mobile carrier

• Messages then go through a mobile aggregator, which means:

▫ You can go to one place to connect to all of the wireless carriers.

▫ The mobile carriers then distribute the message to your subscribers.

Picture Source: http://www.mobilesmsmarketing.com

7 tips that lead to a successful campaign

1. Customize your message to fit your audience

• Decide which demographic you’re targeting. Ways to choose: ▫ Who will benefit the

most from your campaign

▫ Which groups are targets for your organization

• Craft messages that your audience will relate and respond to

Picture source: http://www.textually.org/textually/archives/2010/02/025418.htm

7 tips to make your text campaign successful

2. Think about your target subscribers and what’s in it for them

• Make sure it’s worth their while to open and read your messages

• Make the content engaging and beneficial to catch their attention

• If you want a response, there must be something for the subscribers to respond to Texas Department of State Health Services,

HIV and STD ProgramText CampaignPicture Source: http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/hivstd/

Source: http://mashable.com/2011/07/19/mobile-campaign-non-profits/

7 tips to make your text campaign successful 3. Don’t forget to include

your contact information

• A marketing campaign won’t be effective if the consumer doesn’t know who is sending them the message, so be sure to include your contact information in the message!

• Contact info could include your phone number, website address, but most importantly, include your ORGANIZATION NAME


7 tips to make your text campaign successful4. Consider your ask.

What do you want people to do?

• Getting your subscriber to respond to your message is essential, which includes a strong call to action

• Make it clear what you want subscribers to do, and give them a reason and a way to do it!

Picture Source: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/178103360233799878/



5. Be mindful of mobile carriers’ compatibility

• Before you hit send, make sure your message can be accepted by different types of mobile devices

▫ Otherwise you could be wasting both time and money, and miss out on reaching a percentage of your subscribers

Picture Source: http://gizmaestro.com/24/08/2011/technology/u-s-phone-carriers-buckles-after-earthquake/


7 tips to make your text campaign successful6. Don’t over do it!

• Do not flood your subscribers with messages

• Subscribers can become annoyed and remove themselves from your list

▫ Remember, 85% of text messages are read within 15 minutes of being received

Picture Source: http://thespiritseekers.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/unsubscribe-button1.png



7. Track and trace your campaign

• Once your message is out there, the work has only just begun! To make sure it’s effective, you need to track your responses. By measuring your results you can adapt and improve future campaigns to make them more effective.

• Outreach is much more powerful when you have the numbers to refine your methods

Picture Source: http://www.tatango.com/tour/sms-delivery-reports


What to remember!

• Contact an outside vendor to lease a 5-6 digit code

• Use keywords to create a short text that will motivate potential subscribers to sign up

• Pick your target audience and customize a message that will appeal to them

• Be mindful of mobile carriers’ compatibility

• Track your results and learn

Documents

Text Message Campaigns for Health Advocates SMS 101