You can’t do any SMS marketing if you don’t have any cell phone numbers to send them to, so if you haven’t already built up your database, now’s the time to start. And since there is a strict opt-in policy for US businesses, it’s important for your team to make sure your customers are explicitly making the choice to receive SMS from your brand.

One of the most effective ways to collect numbers is to offer a “can’t miss” discount and display it everywhere you can. An ad like the one above can stand in your physical stores, or show up on social media channels, display ads, in newsletters, and more.

The value of an opt-in number can often be enough that retailers will promote loss-leaders just to collect phone numbers. Your business may not have to go quite that far, but the better the promotion, the more digits you’ll collect.

If you are specifically looking for new customer numbers, making that clear can help entice new visitors to your website. A popup like the one above caters to new customers and makes them feel like they would be missing out on a one-time-only offer.

Of course, if you read the fine print you’ll see that the promo also includes existing customers as well; a great way to have them opt into SMS marketing if they haven’t already.

For both existing loyalty program members as well as new sign-ups, make sure they are being awarded a big bonus for opting into SMS communications. Brands with good loyalty programs already have a strong relationship with their customers, so it’s usually a small ask to have them opt-in if they already haven’t - and a great incentive for newcomers to join as well.

Especially for smaller retailers, sometimes there is nothing more powerful than asking your customer to join your SMS list when they are checking out at your store. The best way to do this is for your sales associates to treat this as a value-add:

“Thank you for shopping with us, Claire! Also, I can let you know by text when we have that red dress you liked back in stock in your size, so you’re the first to know before we even stock it in-store. Want to opt-in so I can message you?”

This is how Jenette Bras provides the best service to their customers that keeps them coming back, and a perfect use-case for why SMS can be a value-add for them. Of course, make sure there is a quick, simple way for your customers or your rep to collect the phone number as well.

A holiday-themed raffle can be an irresistible way for you to collect phone numbers from new and old customers, especially since the bar is so low to enter. Put together a great bundle of products and run raffles every week to keep new numbers coming in.

Take advantage of the 12 days of Christmas trope by launching a campaign that spans two weeks leading up to Black Friday. At the same time each day, your team should send out two text messages with a new exploding promotion that’s only good until the next day’s deal.

The two messages each day should be the deal itself, and a reminder of the exploding offer as well. Because your customers are primed by the very idea of “12 days of deals,” they won’t be bothered by the additional texts, and the conversion rates on deals can be great especially if you take the time to personalize and target each SMS deal to each customer.

Gift guides can be a time saver, if not a life saver, for busy shoppers who need creative ideas to wow their friends and family. Your team can put together weekly guides and send them out as targeted campaigns to entice shoppers.

This is where your CRM data can really make the difference. Knowing which of your customers are married, has an anniversary coming up, has children, their age range, previous shopping history, etc can help curate a holiday guide that’s specific to their needs.

For example, you can segment your audience by grouping anyone who has purchased outdoorsy products in the last 6 months and sending out a gift guide for the outdoor adventurers in their lives. And not just a text message with a few static pictures either, but a gift guide that really shows off these products:

Shoppable Stories are a visually dynamic curated lookbook that helps increase conversions. Sending out a weekly gift guide in this format is a great way to not just showcase your products, but help your shoppers find the right items for the special people in their lives.

If your store puts a lot of thought and care into your holiday decorations and curations, it would be a shame if your customers only made online orders. And studies show that people tend to spend more when shopping in-store than online. Incentivize coming in with an SMS campaign that promotes your in-store-only deals.

Again, your team can leverage your CRM data to send a personalized offer that is much more likely to get customers into your stores, compared to a generic promotion that may only cater to a few recipients. Tailoring this promotion to each person’s shopping history is a great way to increase this campaign’s success rate.