by anton | Jul 30, 2014 |
What on earth does Number Scrubbing have to do with Mobile Compliance? Well, if you think about it carefully, it actually makes complete sense. This is why. Mobile Compliance, in a peanut shell, refers to the requirements that a provider has to adhere to in accordance with the law – especially those regulations that have to do with consumer rights. For instance, mobile providers are not allowed to target children or send messages to a consumer’s phone after the consumer chose the “opt out” option. The point of these regulations are to protect consumers. If you are concerned that such compliance rules will keep you from running your marketing campaigns to the fullest, just remember, such regulations benefit you as a business as well because it will keep you from becoming annoying and losing customers. Number Scrubbing is the act of getting rid of phone numbers on your contact list that have become irrelevant to you. It could be because the numbers are outdated (don’t exist anymore), duplicated during your data capturing process, or belong to customers who have opted out of your mobile marketing. See where I am going with this? That is why you can regard number washing/ HLR lookup as part of your commitment to stay within in the bounds of Mobile Compliance. As you can deduce, it is very easy to make mistakes when compiling your customer contact list. Doing it old school (manually) is not always the best idea. For example: Sending the same marketing material twice or to customers who don’t want to be contacted via text, will only serve to make you...
by anton | Jul 28, 2014 |
Think Interactive Voice Response systems are only for big companies? No way! The small business owner can benefit just as much from using inbound and outbound IVR. You don’t have to receive thousands of calls each month to consider using an automated telephony system. Neither do you have to be a corporate giant with hundreds of telesales agents. A great number of small companies are turning towards IVR systems these days, because not only is good customer service their top priority, but they have to keep up with their competitors. Today’s consumer want things done on the spot. And if you don’t deliver fast enough, they will simply move on to a company that will. An IVR system can record calls when you aren’t available (for example after office hours), so instead of customers not having their calls answered, the machine can record and store it until someone can attend to it first thing in the morning. You are probably not planning on staying a small fry forever, so why not get your systems in place now so it can help your business to grow! After all, a telephony system can help you to appear professional and make a good impression on callers. These systems are also capable of recording incoming calls. What does this mean for you? It is always good to have a record of conversations between employees and clients should complaints arise from the interaction – or to have a record of what a client is actually complaining about. From a legal standpoint, you can’t go wrong with it. Another benefit of having calls on record,...
by anton | Jul 25, 2014 |
Premium SMS is an innovative way for consumers to do business with a company without the hassle of credit card payments. But, as with all payment systems, there are providers and people out there who misuse this form of mobile payment and actually trick consumers into losing money. How can you spot such a scam? Always think twice Don’t respond on unsolicited messages – especially those that ask for your personal information. Ask yourself if the message looks legit or not; you will usually find that it has something a bit unrealistic about it. One example of these messages are those claiming that you have won a prize. Unless you have actually entered into a legit competition, delete those message immediately! If an unsolicited message contains a link in the content – don’t click on it! Simple as that. Do you know the provider? Like your parents always told you – don’t trust strangers. Before your sign up to receive anything, always make sure that you know who the provider is. Just because a Premium SMS contains some kind of tempting offer, you should always do some research and find out if the company even exists. Always read the fine print Make sure what you are getting yourself into. Hidden costs and “terms and conditions apply” are often used to solicit extra money from consumers. Don’t assume that a payment is once-off – often times it is not. You might think you are downloading one ringtone for R20, but surprise surprise, next month you are charged R20 again without receiving anything. If a provider isn’t upfront about their fees...
by anton | Jul 23, 2014 |
You are always looking for opportunities to lower business costs, right? Did you know: a SMS Platform to communicate with your clients about their appointments can actually save you money? We all lead very busy lives and it is easy to forget an appointment, especially if it is with someone you don’t visit on a daily basis – like a doctor, broker, attorney etc. As frustrating as it can be for you as a client to realise you have to reschedule, it is even more frustrating for the business owner. What clients don’t realise, is that a business actually loses money due to missed appointments. Quick fact: in the UK, it is estimated that patients forget at least 12 million GP appointments every year. This results in an overall loss of about £162 million. Business owners, do yourself a favour and have look at how many times you are “stood up” by clients. (You might have not even have thought about it before now). How much is it costing you to reschedule every time? So, what is the solution and what does an SMS Platform have to do with it? Simple. Start sending your clients text reminders. In a SMS, you can tell your clients when their appointment is. You will also be able to fit the address of your company in there as well. In fact, why not provide a link in the message that can take them to an online map? Now clients don’t have to waste time (and arrive late as a result) if they aren’t familiar with your location. You can send the text a...
by anton | Jul 21, 2014 |
Mobile Vouchers are creating quite the hype among marketers. Why? Well, for one thing, you can actually keep track of it every step of the way. Talk about insight into consumer behaviour! Measuring the success of a marketing campaign is every marketers’ nightmare. It doesn’t matter if you dream up the greatest plan to come across your boss’s desk since the nineties, if you can’t give him stats and figures when the party is over, he will be less than impressed with your prowess. Or rather, lack thereof. So, by telling you that your Mobile Vouchers are “accountable”, it is easy to understand why it has become the latest buzz word. Depending on the system you are using, the process can look something like this. Send the coupon to the customer in a text message. It will contain a unique number to ensure that the voucher can only be redeemed once. The customer presents the coupon to a cashier at the point of sale. The system will then register it and mark it as “used.” After the process is completed, you should be able to access the following info. Where the voucher was redeemed: if you have more than once branch, or a brick-and-mortar as well as an online shop, this could prove which is more popular with your consumers. You could then do something special or different for your more popular channels, or look at ways to boost your less poplar channels. What item(s) was part of the redemption: want to know which products your customers truly love? Have a look at what they bought when they redeemed...
