How to Send a Text Blast

With 97% of Americans owning a cellphone, sending text blasts is a quick, effective way to reach your audience. Thankfully, sending a text blast is easy and ensures your message reaches everyone on your list simultaneously.

Introduction to text blasting

A text blast is a message you send to a large list of contacts, including your customers, prospects, and subscribers. This kind of communication is ideal for delivering important information to the people you do business with. It’s also an effective way to spread the word about promotions, events, and more.

Keep in mind that sending a text blast to everyone may not always be the right decision. For some small businesses, texting all your contacts at once will make sense in certain situations. As your business and the list of people subscribed to your text messages grows, consider segmenting those contacts into different lists. This helps you make your text blasts more targeted and relevant to the recipients.

Transactional text messages, such as order confirmations, appointment reminders, and welcome texts to new subscribers, are not text blasts. These automated messages are triggered by an action or event. Rather than a text blast to a large list, they’re sent to individuals at the perfect time.

Your communication strategy can and should include both types of texting. So, let’s take a closer look at what it takes to send a text blast.

How to send a text blast: Step-by-step guide

Ready to harness the power of text blasting but not sure how to get started? Follow our step-by-step guide:

1. Plan your text blast: Start by clearly defining your goals—what do you want to achieve with this campaign? Having a clear objective will guide your messaging. Then, segment your contact list to select your target audience and ensure your message reaches the right people.
2. Choose the right text blasting service: Compare pricing plans to find a provider that fits your budget while offering the features you need, like message scheduling, contact management, and analytics. Evaluate the service’s ease of use to ensure you can smoothly integrate it into your operations.
3. Build your recipient list: Start building your recipient list by importing your contacts into your text blasting service. Ensure your list is well-organized and segmented. During this step, be sure to comply with legal requirements, such as obtaining explicit consent from recipients before adding them to your list and including an easy opt-out option in every message.
4. Set up your text blast: Start by writing concise and compelling messages that grabs attention quickly. Use clear language, include a strong call to action, and personalize where possible to make your texts more relevant. Once your messages are ready, schedule your texts to go out when your audience is most likely to engage.

What are the benefits of a text blast?

A text blast is a method of sending a single text message or promotional campaign to a large group of recipients at once. You may also hear it referred to as mass texting. Text blasts are typically sent using specialized software that allows you to manage your contact lists, compose messages, and schedule delivery times. They leverage SMS technology to deliver your message directly to your recipients’ mobile phones. 

In business communication, text blasts are invaluable for disseminating information quickly to a wide audience. Businesses use text blasts for promotions, announcements, reminders and updates, feedback solicitation, and more. Let’s explore some of the key benefits of using text blasts for your business:

• Immediate reach: Text messages are typically opened within minutes, making text blasts perfect for sending time-sensitive information to a large audience.
• High open rates: SMS boasts a significantly higher open rate than emails, ensuring your message gets the attention it deserves.
• Cost-effective: Sending a text blast is often more affordable than other marketing channels, offering great ROI for businesses of all sizes.
• Easy to use: With the right tools, sending a text blast can be done in just a few steps.

Understanding text blasting: Best practices, and legal considerations

Text blasts are only effective when done properly. That includes complying with legal requirements and following best practices. We’ve outlined both for you below.

Legal compliance

When sending text blasts, it’s crucial to comply with legal regulations to protect your business and your recipients. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) requires you to obtain proper consent from recipients before sending any texts. This means you must have explicit, documented permission from individuals to include them in your text campaigns. 

You must also ensure your messages include an easy opt-out option to allow recipients to unsubscribe at any time. Staying compliant with these regulations not only protects you from legal issues but also shows respect for your audience’s preferences and fosters a positive relationship.

While there are other rules and regulations surrounding text blasts, obtaining proper consent and honoring requests to opt out of your messages should always be top of mind. If you send a text blast to recipients who haven’t opted in, you are spamming them. This could land you in legal trouble and result in significant fines.

Texting people who haven’t asked to hear from your business is never a good idea. But it’s smart to encourage people to sign up for text blasts. Get our tips on how to build your text list while remaining compliant with the law. 

Best practices for sending a text blast

Optimizing your text blast campaigns ensures that your messages reach your audience, resonate, and drive action. Followi these best practices to enhance engagement and achieve your communication goals:

• Personalize your messages: Address recipients by name and tailor content to their preferences.
• Keep it concise: SMS tends to have character limits—ensure your messages are clear and to the point.
• Use strong calls-to-Action (CTAs): Encourage immediate responses with compelling CTAs that guide your audience on what to do next.
• Timing is key: Schedule your texts to be sent at optimal times when your audience is most likely to engage.
• Segment your audience: Group your contacts based on demographics, purchase behavior, or interests to send more relevant messages.
• Test and analyze: Continuously test different message formats and analyze the results to understand what works best for your audience.
• Stay compliant: Ensure you have proper consent from recipients and include an easy opt-out option in every message to comply with regulations.
• Provide value: Make sure your messages offer something of value to your audience, whether it’s a special offer, important update, or useful information.

For more detailed advice on how to send a text blast, check out our complete guide on SMS marketing for explanations on these best practices and more.

Essential features of SimpleTexting for effective text blasting

SimpleTexting is a powerful SMS marketing platform that enhances text blasting campaigns using innovative features like:

Automated opt-In/out

SimpleTexting’s automated opt-in/out features simplify and secure your text blast campaigns, helping you confirm every new contact’s intent to subscribe. It streamlines the process by managing consent records and updating your contact lists in real-time. That includes a free compliance message SimpleTexting sends on your behalf whenever someone opts in through a feature like text-to-join keywords.

When subscribers text “STOP” to opt out, we’ll automatically remove them from your list. Plus, our contact lists are self cleaning. That means SimpleTexting removes invalid contacts, landline numbers, and “dead” phone numbers so you won’t waste a dime on them. All of this keeps you compliant with regulations and enhances user experience by allowing your audience to control their subscriptions effortlessly.

List-building features

There are also a few features that help SimpleTexting users grow a list of text subscribers. That includes a mobile sign-up widget, which helps you build forms to attract new subscribers and automatically add them to your list on the platform. Just embed your form on any web page where you’d like to collect contacts.

Data collection features from SimpleTexting help you make use of the information collected on those sign-up forms as well as other zero- and first-party data you have about your customers and prospects. That data you collect can be used to segment contacts and personalize your text blasts.

Message scheduling

Our message scheduling feature is designed to maximize the impact of your text blasts by allowing you to schedule texts in advance, ensuring they reach your audience when they’re most likely to engage. Whether you’re sending reminders, promotional offers, or important updates, you can set specific dates and times for delivery, eliminating the need for manual sending and freeing up your time for other tasks. With message scheduling, you can maintain consistent communication, boost engagement, and streamline your text marketing efforts.

Tracking engagement

We provide robust tools for helping you measure the effectiveness of your text blast campaigns. You can monitor key metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and response rates to gain insights into how your audience interacts with your messages. These text messaging analytics allow you to see which campaigns resonate most, refine your strategies, and make data-driven decisions. By leveraging these tracking tools, you can continuously optimize your text marketing efforts, ensuring you connect with your audience in meaningful and impactful ways

Tips and tricks for optimizing your text blasts

In addition to following best practices, there are a few tips and tricks for text blast campaigns we’ve learned over the years that you can implement to make your messages as effective as possible.

Timing and message content

Sending texts at the right time and creating compelling content can significantly boost engagement and response rates. Here are some insights and tips to help you optimize your text marketing efforts:

• Know your audience’s schedule: The best times to send texts are typically during mid-morning and early afternoon when people are more likely to check their phones. Avoid early mornings, late nights, and meal times to prevent your messages from being ignored.
• Consider time zones: If your audience is spread across different time zones, segment your list accordingly to ensure everyone receives your message at an appropriate time.
• Create a sense of urgency: Craft messages that encourage immediate action, such as limited-time offers or exclusive deals, to motivate your audience to respond quickly.
• Include a strong call-to-action (CTA): Clearly state what you want your audience to do next, whether it’s visiting your website, redeeming an offer, or responding to the message.
• Test and optimize: Experiment with different sending times and message formats to see what resonates best with your audience. Use the insights from your analytics to refine your strategy continuously.

Personalization and segmentation

By tailoring your communication to specific groups, you can increase engagement and make your audience feel valued. Personalize messages and segment your audience by:

• Gathering detailed information: Collect relevant data about your contacts, such as their names, interests, purchase history, and demographics. 
• Using personalization tags: Implement tags in your text messages that automatically insert the recipient’s name or other personalized details.
• Segmenting by demographics: Divide your contact list based on demographic information like age, gender, and location. This allows you to send more relevant messages to each group.
• Segmenting by behavior: Group your audience based on their past behaviors, such as purchase history, website visits, or engagement with previous campaigns. his helps you target them with messages that match their interests.
• Segmenting by interest: Divide your contacts by the products and services they’re interested in. This enables you to send targeted promotions and updates that are likely to resonate.
• Segmenting by engagement level: Identify and segment your audience by their level of engagement, such as frequent buyers or those who haven’t interacted in a while. Tailor your messages to re-engage inactive users or reward loyal customers.

Use cases for text blasts

Text blasts are a versatile tool that can be used across various industries and scenarios to achieve different goals, such as:

• Promotional offers
• Event reminders
• Emergency alerts
• Product launches
• Surveys and feedback
• Internal communication
• Re-engagement campaigns
• And more!

Troubleshooting common issues in text blasting

While text blasts are a powerful communication tool, businesses often encounter challenges like:

• High unsubscribe rates: If many recipients opt out of your messages, it could be a sign that your texts are too frequent or not relevant. To fix this, segment your audience to send more targeted messages and limit the frequency to avoid overwhelming your contacts.
• Low engagement: Messages that fail to engage recipients may lack compelling content or clear calls-to-action (CTAs). Craft concise, personalized messages with strong CTAs and ensure the content is relevant to the recipient’s interests.
• Deliverability issues: Texts not reaching recipients can be due to invalid numbers or carrier restrictions. Regularly clean and update your contact list to remove invalid numbers, and use a reputable text blasting service to improve deliverability.
• Overlooking analytics: Ignoring campaign analytics can prevent you from optimizing your strategy. Regularly review engagement metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and response rates to understand what works best and make data-driven improvements.

Success stories: How businesses are thriving with SimpleTexting

Let’s take a look at a few businesses that have benefited from SimpleTexting’s platform.

Case studies

Toby Prussman, a Missouri real estate agent, had a large client email list for sending listing notifications. After a few customers contacted him, he realized many of his emails were getting caught by spam filters rather than landing in inboxes. To avoid this, he began using SimpleTexting to send his contacts immediate listing notifications. 

The YMCA of South Hampton Roads was having trouble finding an SMS tool that sounded human, was easy to use, and integrated with their existing reservation system. After some research, they landed on SimpleTexting. Now, they send text blast reminders for virtual fitness classes, facility closures, and information about childcare programs to ensure all members stay informed. 

The National HealthCare Corporation (NHC) has about 75 senior healthcare centers across 10 states. With such a widespread workforce, they needed an efficient way to communicate with their employees. When searching for a solution, NHC came across SimpleTexting. They use our platform to send immediate company-wide notifications and information to their employees without burying them in emails.

Testimonials

“I feel like what we’ve gotten from SimpleTexting in terms of the ability to stay connected to our clients, especially those who are geographically isolated, is wonderful. That’s because everyone has a phone and can receive a text message. It’s a great way of pushing our messages out to our clients and making sure they stay engaged.”

– Scott Powell, Executive Director of the Alabama Head Injury Foundation

“If someone was considering SimpleTexting for business purposes, I would absolutely recommend it…It’s just really great and convenient, and you can get really granular with who you’re going to text and what type of campaigns you’re going to send.”

– Kellsie Wells, Nuclear Care Partners

“This platform will work no matter what stage you are. It’s been awesome to see the analytics that SimpleTexting offers to give you an idea of which campaigns are more successful than others and to see how you can nurture your audience in a different way.”

– Jackelyn Dacanay, Marketing Director of Bella Santé

Start sending text blasts today

Text blasts are an incredibly effective way to reach your audience instantly and drive engagement. With SimpleTexting’s intuitive platform and comprehensive features, you can confidently start sending impactful messages that elevate your communication strategy and connect with your audience like never before.

Ready to take your text marketing and customer communications to the next level? Sign up with SimpleTexting today and start creating text blast campaigns that engage.