Maybe your organization has used texting since we were playing Snake on our phones. Or maybe you’re just now struggling with how to start an SMS program and integrate it with your website, social media, and app strategy. This session with Sam McKelvie will help nonprofits at any level think about innovative ways that SMS can advance their organization’s mission and how to overcome common obstacles to growing a mobile program. We’ll launch in to the best use cases for engaging supporters/donors and review tactics for using SMS to better reach the populations that your organization serves. This interactive session will also give you a chance to develop new ideas for acquiring subscribers and expanding their interaction with your nonprofit.

1. OMG SMS
FTW!
Building bigger, better text
messaging campaigns
Sam McKelvie
Director of Customer Success
Mobile Commons by Upland
@sam_mckelvie

2. And These Questions/Common ObstaclesAre…
• Should I be texting? How do I get
buy-in?
• How do I get started? How do I list
build? (That sounds hard!)
• How do I engage subscribers?
What’s my long-term strategy?

3. SHOULD MY
ORGANIZATION BE
TEXTING?
HOW DO I GET BUY-IN
ACROSS MY
ORGANIZATION?

4. Yes, Duh.
• If you want people to
see your message
• If you want to reach
harder to reach
populations
• If you want to people to
respond or take some
kind of action.

5. Get Your Message Seen
• 97% of mobile phones are text enabled
• 99% of text messages are read
• 99% of text messages are read.
• The average is read in 90
seconds.
• SMS app is the most utilized
application on phones.

6. Harder to Reach Populations
• People that identify as Latino or
African American text 1.5-2.5X
more that people that identify
as White
• Households under $30,000
send 58 texts per day and 2X
and many as households over
$75,000

7. • Action Rate always outperforms email and social (somewhere
between 5-80%)
• 6.64% click through rate for texts
• Add 5x as many people to your list with an SMS call to action

8. Action
In an A/B test, supporters
that received an SMS
reminder were 77%
more likely to donate
online.

9. Action
The action rate of Brady’s SMS list
is 25X higher than email.

10. Action
Supporters who are mobile
subscribers are 250% more likely
to donate, compared to supporters
who are email-only subscribers.

11. HOW DO I GET STARTED?
HOW DO I BUILD A BIG
LIST OF DEDICATED
SUBSCRIBERS?

12. Just Start.
• Even if you don’t have the
software yet start collecting
numbers.
• Use every available form of
media. More promotion =
more subscribers = more
action.
• Integrate SMS in to your
existing communication plans.
• Start thinking about supporter
engagement, programmatic
texts, and where they overlap.

13. Start collecting.
• Start getting mobile number from webforms and paper sign-ups
immediately.
• Your SMS provider will help you with all the legal stuff.

14. Build Your List Everywhere.

15. Build Your List Everywhere.

16. Integrate Mobile InAlready Existing Campaigns/Strategies.

17. Think About Your Programs and Your Supporters

18. Think About Your Programs and Your Supporters

19. Let’s Try it!!
Text PDF
to 662266
Text
SOCIAL
to 662266
Reply STOP to quit. Message&Data rates apply

20. Text PDF
to 662266

21. HOW DO I ENGAGE
SUBSCRIBERS?
WHAT DOES MY LONG
TERM STRATEGY LOOK
LIKE?

22. Sam’s Mantra.
• The most successful
mobile campaigns grow
your list and engage
your current
subscribers.
• Action comes from
regular, varied
communication with
your SMS subscribers.

23. Grow Your List AND Engage Existing Members

24. Grow Your List AND Engage Existing Members

25. And Remember

26. Incorporate SMS in to your Programs
• Giving people educational
information and tips
• Helping people find resources
close to them
• Getting people the right
message at the right time (Time
Dependent Messages)
• Helping people get the right
answers (One-on-One Chat)

27. Engage Supporters With Text
• Event Invitations & RSVPs
• Updates & Awareness
• Donation Asks
• Polls, Quizzes & Contests
• Share Experiences
• Ask to make Phone Calls
• Collect Petition Signatures
• Share Content with Friends
• MMS – Picture & Video messages

28. Overcoming Common Obstacles:Aconclusion slide with too many words
• Should I be texting? How do I get buy-in?
• YES! Get critical messages seen by everyone and get more action
• How do I get started? How do I list build? (That sounds hard!)
• Just start collecting number, then use every available medium to promote SMS in to your already
existing engagement and programmatic campaigns.
• How do I engage subscribers? What’s my long-term strategy?
• The best campaigns grow your list and engage your current subscribers.
• For both programs and supporter engagement, action comes from regular, varied conversations
with your subscribers.

29. FLY MY PRETTIES!!!
5 Things that your NPO could do
with SMS today…
1. Get people somewhere – Location
finder or RSVP for event
2. Give you content – Text in messages of
support, pictures, tell their stories or
other crowdsourcing
3. Test their knowledge – Send out a quiz
or poll about your issue
4. List build and say ‘thank you’ – add
mobile number field to form and send
thank you text to all who submit
5. Give (exclusive) content on mobile web

30. QUESTIONS?
Sam McKelvie
sam@mobilecommons.com
@sam_mckelvie