What are text message templates and why do they matter?

As a business, you know that sending text messages is a crucial part of communicating with clients. After all, 60% of millennials say that they want the option to text businesses, and 77% of consumers feel positive about companies that use texting. Not only do customers want the option to text, but it is good for your business. Keep in mind that 98% of text messages get read, and sending a text increases the response rate by 209% compared to email, phone, or Facebook.

But it can be overwhelming to figure out how to craft the perfect text message. You want to sound professional yet personable. You want to offer enough information but not too much.

Using SMS text message templates is a great way to overcome this issue. You don’t have to worry about phrasing and can just fill in the blanks with your company’s relevant information. You can also use templates for inspiration and make other minor changes as needed.

To get you started, we have gathered SMS templates for every industry across various situations. We also included a few tips to keep in mind as you craft your own text templates.

What is an SMS template – What are text message templates?

An SMS template is exactly what it sounds like. It is a template that you copy and paste and then fill in the blanks and send as a text message to customers. Think of templates as generic pre-made messages that you can then customize in seconds.

Templates are incredibly useful in their ability to save time. They can also help ensure consistency and prevent human errors, such as typos.

How do I create a text template? Major trends influencing text message templates

As you create a text template, you will need to think about your target audience and your needs. You want the template to appeal to them. It should be professional but not feel too automated. In terms of tone, you want to strike a balance between professional and personable. The degree to which you focus on each end of that spectrum will depend on your industry and audience.

How to create a template.

When you are ready to create your texting template, you want to make something that lets you fill in the blanks. Include a spot in the template to fill in a level of personalization, such as a person’s name.

The following is a brief example:

Hi [first name]. Your package is on its way. Track it here [insert link].

To make life even easier for you, we’ve provided some great templates of real-life examples for various use cases across industries.

How do you write a good text message? The individual pieces of text message templates.

Around 39% of businesses use text messaging for at least some functions. The following are some examples of when you can use a text message:

•   Sending birthday messages to customers
•   Sending coupons
•   Connecting in direct marketing or sales
•   Sending a call to action
•   Responding to a missed call
•   Tracking packages
•   Scheduling appointments or making reservations
•   Confirming appointments
•   And more

No matter the industry you are in or the reason you are sending a text, there are a few best practices to keep in mind.

•   Be clear and concise
•   Introduce yourself or your company  
•   Choose a tone that matches the client and industry
•   Add links or attachments
•   Invite responses
•   Have customers opt-in
•   Avoid abbreviations
•   Avoid emoticons
•   Always check spelling and grammar
•   Only send one message and then give the customer enough time to respond

Sending a payment text.

One of the many uses of business texting is to ask for payment from a client. Keep the following best practices in mind as you do so, in addition to the others already mentioned.

Healthcare

In healthcare, HIPAA should be at the forefront of your mind during all texting. Make confidentiality and privacy priorities, so avoid including any identifying or restricted information in the text.

The healthcare industry also has to place a higher priority on data security than other industries, largely due to HIPAA.

Home Services

Some home services can be very expensive, especially in the case of major repairs. If you have a payment plan option, consider mentioning it in the text.

Professional Services

For professional services, you should always make it a priority to only text during office hours. This is a good practice for any industry, but it is particularly important in professional services.

Retail

Collecting payment for retail is typically done before you ship the product. Because of this, you may want to use phrases, such as “As soon as we receive payment, we’ll ship out your product!” This would not make sense for the other verticals mentioned, as those rely on payment for services.

Sending a Promotion Text

Next, look at the following examples for those times that you want to pitch promotions via text messages. Our promotional text examples are different across industries largely because of the differences in why your customers visit you. In healthcare, for example, they likely make an appointment because of a medical need. By contrast, retail purchases can be wants or needs.

Healthcare

As mentioned, most patients in healthcare need to see someone. It just doesn’t necessarily need to be your company. As such, your promotional texts should indicate why you are the best option for necessary care. 

You may also want to consider including a mention of how the promotion is good for the customer’s overall health.

Home Services

Home services are typically things that homeowners have to do but may put off or not know how to go about scheduling. As such, you can frame your promotions as a way to finally take care of the home maintenance they’ve been putting off.

Another option is to frame the service as a way to boost or preserve the property’s value.

Professional Services

Always ensure that your text message templates include a clear call to action. This should encourage clients to act on your services.

Keep in mind that professional services are slower to adopt texting as the primary means of communication than other industries. As such, it is crucial to keep promotional texts short and sweet. Include a line inviting the recipient to contact you via their preferred method, so they have the choice.

Retail

Personalization is crucial for retail marketing. If you can personalize the text to include a person’s name, you will get better results. You can also try other methods of personalization, such as geo-tags or mentioning products they’ve previously bought or shown an interest in.

Sending a review-related text.

All industries rely on reviews to help get more customers, clients, or patients. Once again, each industry has unique considerations. One reason for that is the varying aspects you want customers to focus on in reviews or how important reviews are to the decision-making process of clients.

Healthcare

With reviews in healthcare, you may want to encourage patients to comment on specific things. These can include the scheduling process, scheduling speed, the friendliness of the treatment, the speed and accuracy of the treatment, and insurance-related matters. 

Home Services

Because of the importance of referrals in the home services industries, consider encouraging clients to tell their friends and family about your services in addition to leaving a review.

Professional Services

Do not be overly pushy when asking for reviews for professional services. Ideally, you should only ask one or two times and have at least several days between requests.

Retail

You want to ask for a review for a retail product while it is still fresh in the customer’s mind. At the same time, you want to make sure they have had enough time to use the product and form an opinion. The sweet spot is usually a few days after the purchase arrives.

Sending a feedback-related text.

Asking for customer feedback can overlap somewhat with asking for reviews, but feedback is usually internal and not shared outside of your company. It gives you an idea of what you need to improve on but doesn’t announce any potential flaws in a public setting like reviews would. There are differences in text messaging templates for feedback based on the types of services you offer and what you can change about the customer experience.

Healthcare

The already-mentioned HIPAA concerns also play a role when sending feedback-related texts. You want to make it clear that any feedback patients provide will remain private. Let them know that you prioritize their privacy.

Home Services

As you ask for feedback, keep in mind whether the type of service you offer is likely to be repeated soon. Roof replacements, for example, are typically done once every few decades. In this case, you would frame it as what the customer wishes went differently. For more frequent services, like cleaning or sealing a driveway, frame it as what they hope is different next time.

Professional Services

Throughout all of the texts for professional services, keep the tone further on the professional end of the scale than personal. Include an element of personalization but stick to more formal language.

Retail

Feedback in retail sometimes focuses on the products themselves, but it more commonly focuses on the customer service element.

Using text message templates vs. not using them.

You don’t have to use text message templates for your business, but doing so will add a great deal of convenience. You will save time and energy when sending messages. You will also avoid the risk of typos or other human errors, as you just follow the template.

Conclusion: Why you should care about text message templates.

Text message templates streamline your business marketing, offering a high level of convenience. You will want to choose several templates based on your clients, industry, and the situation. The above templates should be more than enough to get you started.

Make your text message templates even easier to use with Podium. Podium lets you streamline your templates, helping you achieve success all for free.