Is MMS messaging an Under-Utilized Marketing Channel? Stats show Otherwise

MMS i.e. Multimedia Messaging Service is a communication technology that allows the transmission of multimedia content via messaging.  3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) developed it. Through MMS you can send messages in the form of images, audio, and video clips in addition to text. Unlike SMSs which have a word limit of only 160 characters, MMS has a word limit of up to 1,600 characters. It can store images of about 410KB. This makes it the best option for promotional messages where you have to send promo codes, QR codes, tickets, etc. 

The price of MMS is more than that of SMS because multimedia requires much more data than simple text messages. MMS costs approximately two to three times more than SMS. But since MMS has more response rates and also people buy more. Therefore it will always be more cost-effective and give better ROIs. 

Types of Files that can be sent via MMS Messaging

• Animated GIFs
• PNG, JPG, or JPEG image files 
• Audio MP3s
• MP4 video files

Success Stories of MMS Marketing

• Tweets with images have received 150% more retweets than tweets without images. This has led to an increase in images in social media campaigns.
• BMW company got a boost of 758% in their ROI using MMS marketing. 

MMS marketing is a type of marketing where the promotion of goods and services of a company is done through MMS. You can include text messages, images, videos, GIFs, and even audio files.

8 Benefits Of MMS Marketing

• Pictures are impactful than words 

With pictures, customers have more clarity about your goods and services. With only textual description it becomes difficult for customers to comprehend what exactly your products and services are and whether it will solve their purpose of what they are looking for or not. Video and audio files take customer experience to another level.

• Have higher click-through rates

Businesses using MMS marketing have encountered 52% higher click-through rates. 

• The setup is the same as that of the SMS

The set up, settings, and everything are same as that of SMS so you don’t have to face many difficulties.

• MMSs are shared more in comparison to SMSs

Since MMS contains pictures and videos people understand the message more and hence share it with their close ones. MMSs are shared 8 times more than SMSs.

• Upto 1600 characters can be written

With MMS you can write up to 1600 characters which makes it very easy for businesses to explain their products and services better and don’t miss up on relevant points. This makes it ideal for promotional purposes.

• More engagement of audiences

People prefer images and videos more than just normal texts. People learn about the products and services through images and videos. This way the audiences get more engaged with the messages.

• According to surveys 

69% of people prefer to learn about a product or service by watching a video.

MMS has 300% more engagement rates than SMSs.

Multi-media messages have an open rate of 98%.

MMS has 52% more click-through rates than SMSs.

• More lead generation and lead to customer conversion rates

Since the engagement rates are more and also response rates. More and more people become interested in your products and services and become leads. Many leads through engagement turn into customers.

Recommeded: Best SMS Marketing Software 2023 – Features and Pricing Comparison

Applications of MMS Messaging

• When launching a new product

In order to make the audience enthusiastic about your new products or services introducing them through sound and visuals effect is the best way. Because it gives the audience more clarity. Through MMS you can introduce through images, videos, gifs, etc along with some texts of course.

• Promotion of sales

MMS is the best way to showcase the offers and discounts you have. All the promotional sales i.e. Holi sales or Diwali sales everything is sent through MMSs. And since MMS has huge response and call-to-action rates companies earn a lot of ROIs through these MMS marketing campaigns. 

• Abandoned Cart MMS Campaigns

Abandoned carts are one of the major problems of businesses today as these carts contain a lot of revenue within themselves. Hence companies need to motivate their customers and leads by giving them offers and discounts on their abandoned carts. People use their mobile phones most of the time and generally use their mobile phones only for placing orders. Therefore MMS messaging is the best way to remind people of their abandoned carts. 

Essential Features of MMS Messaging Software

• Image optimization- The software should be capable of handling all file size restrictions and intelligently optimizing your images. Better the quality of your image more the customer’s engagement rate would be. Hence the images should be intelligently optimized to give a better quality to it.

• Auto SMS fallback- While most applications support multimedia there are still a few which don’t so in that case this feature will auto convert those messages into SMS and provide a link for the media. 
• Good Delivery Rates- Many MMS marketing services are available in the market cost cheap but won’t deliver your messages ultimately a lot of your messages will remain undelivered. So it’s better to spend your money wisely on the software you are using. There is no point in saving money and not getting your messages delivered. Your software should deliver your messages through the best possible carrier routes. 

MMS Messaging vs SMS Marketing

Let’s have a look at the brief comparison of both types of marketing in terms of usage. Here, you’ll find how MMS marketing is different from SMS marketing.

When to Use SMS Marketing

SMS marketing is best recommended when you have to send transactional messages like order confirmations and delivery tracking, appointment reminders and updates, password resets and two-factor authentication (2FA), etc. It can be also used for marketing and promotions, generating new sales, and improving engagement with coupons and other offers when short messages are required.

When to Use MMS Marketing

For promotional purposes, MMS messaging performs better than SMS marketing as photos, GIFs, and videos. Visual messages add more impact than just words. 

Most promotional text messages benefit from photos, GIFs, or videos. 

Promotions can include showcasing your product, invitations for contacts to an event, offers on customers’ or leads birthdays and anniversaries, mobile coupons, running a campaign, etc.

Conclusion

SMS which has emerged as the most popular mode of cloud communication and marketing had certain limitations abstaining it from becoming the best option for marketing and promotions. MMS developed overcoming the limitations of SMS like the word limit and image and video capacity plus the additional features and advantages it has. Due to this, it has become the preferred mode for marketing and promotional purposes. Also, it has better response and engagement rates.