How Nonprofits Can Use MMS To Improve Their Messages
Learn about how sending MMS messages can help you relay stronger, more appealing content to your nonprofit text subscriber list.
Learn about how sending MMS messages can help you relay stronger, more appealing content to your nonprofit text subscriber list.
Studies show that people remember 20% of what they read, but about 80% of what they see and do. If you need to tell a story, craft an appeal, or inspire people, pictures are over one thousand times more effective.
A text message provides a quick, 160-character moment to capture the hearts and minds of donors, volunteers, and supporters alike. But what if you could expand your messages to create an impact that stays with recipients throughout their day?
With MMS, it’s possible.
Semiotics, or the study of how techniques like photos and videos influence consumers on a subconscious level, is nothing new to nonprofits.
The belief within this social science is that the thoughtful choice of visuals can have a direct impact on behaviors such as increased donations and mood management. We’ll spare you the semantics, but researchers have found a pretty direct correlation between images and donations.
Rich media allows you to show recipients something vs. telling them. And that kind of demonstration results in a deeper, more meaningful bond with the content. The same principle stands in storytelling. We’ll demonstrate.
Which of these descriptions do you feel more connected or emotionally drawn to:
A. The man felt very sad, his dog was sick.
B. And as the man watched his dog limp over to him one last time, he knew Fido was nearing his last breath.
Storyline B gives you a narrative to connect to. These tangible emotions create a kinship between you and the subject which compel you to do things like give, help, donate, volunteer.
Now, picture the impact of storyline B with an accompanying image like this:
Images are just as effective storytelling devices as text, but together they’re unstoppable pathos messaging machines.
This is where MMS comes in. As opposed to its counterpart (SMS) that solely sends text messages, MMS allows you to send rich media such as photos or videos. MMS also extends your character limit from 160 to 1600!
Combine the two and you’ve got a fairly robust new way to communicate with your audience.
You can utilize MMS to send images that help you to show your recipients something with your messages as opposed to just telling them. For example:
2. Demonstrate a need for supplies or donations
3. Show progress on a project that donations/volunteer hours contributed to
4. Encourage people to continue to give by sharing outcome-related pictures
When you include images in your texts, you invite subscribers to catch a glimpse of your world, behind the curtain. That kind of exclusivity is a key ingredient in any recipe for engagement.
In addition to encouraging an emotional connection, MMS has other benefits.
Better engagement, higher open rates, and stronger message retention…can you picture it yet? If so, give us a try (free for 2 weeks) and see what you think!
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