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Introduction
As any marketing professional will tell you, it's better to have 500 active contacts than 5,000 you don't know much about! This rule applies just as perfectly to SMS. To avoid spending energy and money on phantom recipients, it's best practice to optimize your database. smsmode© gives you the keys to getting your SMS campaigns off on the right foot and keeping your database active over time.
What makes a good database SMS ?
For SMS marketing as with all channels, the #1 attribute of your contacts is responsiveness. You want your customers and/or prospects to convert. To do this, they need to be interested in your communications and ready to listen. The foundations of a good file can be summed up in two words:
- Opt-in
- Updated
For total optimization, you can then segment your recipients according to the products they are interested in, their reactivity to your previous campaigns, and so on. campaigns SMS or how far along they are in the sales cycle. But to go into this level of detail, you first need sound support.
Why is a healthy database crucial?
To run effective SMS campaigns, you need to use a reliable opt-in database. Every number that is invalid, poorly formatted or has changed hands since it was collected will cost you performance and... money. With an unreliable file, you'll continue to send your messages to numbers that are no longer in use, and your results will be biased and poorer.
As you can see, keeping your list up to date and accurate can save you much more than just a few SMS on your next mailings. It's a virtuous circle that pays off in the long term.
Identifying inactive leads can be complex. But smsmode© gives you the trick to quickly identify and automatically delete invalid numbers from your base.
The 17 points to check before sending your campaign SMS.
Why smsmode© does not offer database rentals?
Opt-in databases can be purchased or rented from mobile messaging service providers. These operations can be used to add new contacts to your existing databases. In principle, these files are constantly updated to ensure they remain valid. It is imperative to ensure that these lists are declared to the CNIL.
Database leasing: a risky bet
- Strict regulations
- Risk of sanctions
- Data quality and reliability (accuracy of information, relevance of recipients)
- Sender's reputation
- High costs
- Low recipient engagement (high churn rate)
- Technical problems (e.g. integration, duplicate management)
We recommend that you view this opportunity with cautionKeep in mind, however, that the performance achieved will always be much lower than when using a database that you have collected yourself. Relying on the points of vigilance mentioned above, smsmode© has decided not to offer this service.
How do you keep your base healthy over the course of campaigns?
Once your file has been cleaned, you still need to maintain it over time. Some databases are several years old, and it's not uncommon for your customers to change their number or cancel their package.
To keep it as active as possible, you can clean it up by analyzing the DLRs.
What is a DLR?
A DLR SMS (Short Message Service Delivery Receipt) is the equivalent of an acknowledgement of receipt in SMS marketing. It's a report on the deliverability of the message, provided by the end-user, to confirm that it has been delivered.
There are 4 types of DLR SMS. Each DLR includes one of the following four indicators:
- Successful or delivered: successfully handed over to the recipient.
- Waiting or scheduled: scheduled for delivery, but still awaiting distribution.
- Temporary error: the delivery process is blocked for some reason. This could mean that the phone is turned off, is not receiving, or that the inbox is full.
- Failure or permanent error: not delivered. This means that the telephone number is no longer active, the subscription may have been suspended or cancelled, the message may have been blocked by the operator's anti-spam filters... In all cases, the permanent error indicates that the recipient will no longer receive your SMS.
Basic cleaning with DLR
Cleaning by DLR analysis is similar to maintaining any database. To optimize your mailings, you frequently need to clean up your contacts to eliminate those who are inactive. This improves your open rate and deliverability, and reduces the number of mailings and therefore the cost of your campaigns.
In concrete terms, numbers returning a permanent error DLR will no longer be of use to you. You can therefore delete them permanently.
How do I clean my base before sending SMS ?
With smsmode©you can clean up your contact book even before you send out your first mailings. HLR API (Home Location Register) LOOKUP.
THE API Lookup API enables express verification to eliminate duplicates and invalid entries. Via an API request, you can run your entire listing through our test environment and retrieve a large amount of data associated with each contact:
- Duplicates and invalid formats (for a readable and economical database)
- Number validity (to delete unassigned numbers)
- Telephone operator history (to find out your prospect's/customer's portability history and current operator)
- Mobile Network Code and Mobile Country Code (to know the country of origin of your contacts and the network to which they are attached, in case of international database)
- Location and roaming report (to find out if your customers are currently on another national network)
If you can't or don't want to use the API, you can still benefit from a Lookup by sending an Excel file to your account manager.
You can then filter (from a CSV or Excel file) duplicates or invalids to eliminate them.
The most smsmode© automatic cleaning
smsmode© provides you with a validation system for active numbers. Cleaning your database is automatic and at no extra cost. For each campaign, all numbers returning a DLR in permanent error are automatically placed in your invalid list, which can be consulted from your customer area In your address book.
Conclusion
As you can see, the success of your future operations depends on the health of your databases. To sum up, there are several elements to consider, such as database cleansing, whether manual or automated. This functionality is offered by our platform. Indeed, DLR management or automatic deletion of invalid numbers will enable you to send your SMS without fear. You won't waste time cleaning your database, and you can be sure that you're not paying for messages for nothing. When it comes to renting databases, you need to proceed with caution, bearing in mind that such use will bring you much lower results than a database you've acquired yourself.
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