Short Answer: Yes, SMS marketing is still incredibly effective in 2024, achieving 98% open rates and 45% response rates—far outperforming email and social media. Despite the rise of newer platforms, SMS provides unmatched immediacy, personal reach, and ROI when done right. The key is using it strategically with opt-in consent, personalization, and timing that respects your customers.
The Hard Truth About Your Marketing Reach
When was the last time you actually opened every email in your inbox? Or saw every social media post from businesses you follow?
Your marketing messages are drowning in a sea of content. Your carefully crafted emails might be sitting unopened in your customers’ promotion tabs. Your social media posts might be buried under an algorithm that shows your content to only 5% of your followers.
But what about those text messages on your phone? You probably read every single one.
This is why SMS marketing still doesn’t just work—it thrives.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
Let’s cut through the noise with some hard facts:
- 98% open rate for SMS messages (compared to 20% for emails)
- 90% of SMS messages are read within 3 minutes of delivery
- 45% average response rate (compared to 6% for emails)
- Six-second average response time for text messages
“The most effective marketing reaches people where they already are, not where you wish they would be.”
These aren’t just impressive statistics—they represent real opportunities to connect with your customers in a way that actually reaches them.
Why Your Competitors Might Be Outperforming You
Have you noticed some businesses in your industry growing faster, despite having similar products or services? SMS marketing might be their secret weapon.
SMS creates a direct line to your customers that bypasses the noise of other channels. While your competitors might be fighting for attention in crowded inboxes and social feeds, smart businesses are sending perfectly timed text messages that get read immediately.
What Makes SMS Different in 2024?
Text messaging isn’t new technology—so why is it still so effective? The answer lies in human psychology and behavior:
- Interruption by design – Unlike emails or social posts that can be easily ignored, text messages interrupt what we’re doing with a notification we rarely disable
- Perceived urgency – People associate texts with time-sensitive information from people they know
- Mobile-first world – The average person checks their phone 96 times per day (that’s once every 10 minutes)
- Short and focused – In an age of shrinking attention spans, SMS forces brevity that actually gets consumed
Let’s explore these advantages in more practical terms.
5 Ways SMS Marketing Beats Other Channels
1. Unmatched Immediacy
Need to fill last-minute appointments? Want to alert customers about a flash sale? Text messaging gives you instant reach.
2. Higher Engagement Rates
Bold truth: Your customers might ignore your emails, but they read your texts.
SMS messages have 8X the response rate of email. This means real conversations with customers, not just one-way broadcasting.
3. Better ROI
With SMS campaigns typically costing just cents per message and conversion rates averaging 29%, the return on investment often exceeds traditional digital marketing.
4. Less Competition
Your email is competing with dozens or hundreds of others. Your social posts compete with thousands. But the average person receives just 16 text messages per day, giving your message much less competition.
When SMS Marketing Falls Flat (And How To Fix It)
Have you tried SMS marketing before with disappointing results? The problem likely wasn’t the channel—it was the execution.
Here are the most common mistakes:
- Sending without proper consent – This damages trust and may violate regulations
- Over-messaging – Bombarding customers with too many texts leads to opt-outs
- Lack of personalization – Generic messages feel spammy and irrelevant
- Poor timing – Sending at inconvenient hours frustrates recipients
- No clear call-to-action – Messages without a specific next step waste opportunity
Let’s turn these mistakes into a winning strategy.
Creating an SMS Strategy That Actually Works
Start With Permission
Always begin with explicit opt-in consent. This isn’t just about legal compliance—it’s about respecting your customers.
Use incentives like “Text JOIN to 12345 for 10% off your first order” to build your list ethically.
Master the Timing
When was the last time a 2 AM text message made you happy? Exactly.
Schedule messages during business hours, ideally between 10 AM and 8 PM. Test different times to see when your audience is most responsive.
Personalize Every Message
“Hi there” feels robotic. “Hi John” feels better. But “Hi John, ready for your appointment tomorrow?” feels personal.
Use customer data to make each message relevant to the recipient’s specific situation.
Keep It Brief But Complete
With a 160-character limit for standard SMS, clarity and brevity are essential. Get straight to the point with a clear value proposition and call-to-action.
Track and Measure Everything
The businesses seeing the best results from SMS marketing are obsessively tracking:
- Delivery rates
- Open rates
- Response rates
- Conversion rates
- Opt-out rates
This data tells you what’s working and what needs adjustment.
Is SMS Right For Your Business?
Are your customers mobile users? Do you sometimes need to reach them quickly? Could your business benefit from higher engagement rates?
If you answered yes to these questions, SMS marketing deserves a place in your strategy.
Nearly every business can benefit from SMS—but the implementation varies by industry.
Retailers use it for promotions and flash sales. Service businesses use it for appointment reminders. Restaurants use it for special offers and loyalty programs.
Getting Started With SMS Marketing
The barrier to entry for SMS marketing is surprisingly low. SMS Platforms like 160.com.au offer user-friendly interfaces that let you start sending campaigns within minutes.
- Choose a reliable SMS provider with strong deliverability
- Build your opt-in list through website forms, in-store signups, and other channels
- Segment your audience for targeted messaging
- Craft concise, action-oriented messages
- Test, measure, and refine your approach
The Future of SMS Marketing
As other marketing channels become more crowded, SMS maintains its edge in direct, immediate communication. New developments like RCS (Rich Communication Services) are expanding what’s possible with mobile messaging.
The businesses that start building their SMS strategy now will have a significant advantage as these technologies evolve.
Are you ready to cut through the noise and connect with your customers where they’re actually paying attention?
The 98% open rate of SMS isn’t just a statistic—it’s an opportunity to transform your customer engagement.