Text Message Marketing Practices 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the recommended best practice for the very first message a brand sends to a new SMS subscriber?
- A welcome message confirming the opt-in and stating message frequency and STOP instructions (Correct answer)
- A coupon with no other information
- A request for their home address
- A long survey
Correct answer: A welcome message confirming the opt-in and stating message frequency and STOP instructions
A welcome message should confirm the opt-in, set frequency expectations, and explain how to opt out.
Question 2: Which sending window is generally considered best practice to avoid annoying subscribers?
- Between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the recipient's local time zone (Correct answer)
- Between midnight and 5 a.m.
- Only on weekends after 11 p.m.
- Any time, 24 hours a day
Correct answer: Between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the recipient's local time zone
Sending during reasonable daytime hours in the recipient's local time zone respects subscribers and complies with quiet-hour expectations.
Question 3: What is a best practice for SMS message length and content?
- Keep messages short, clear, and focused on a single call to action (Correct answer)
- Always use the maximum possible characters
- Write multi-paragraph essays
- Avoid any call to action
Correct answer: Keep messages short, clear, and focused on a single call to action
Concise, single-CTA messages perform better and reduce cost and confusion.
Question 4: Why should a brand always identify itself in SMS marketing messages?
- So recipients know who is texting them and trust the message (Correct answer)
- To increase character count
- Because carriers pay more for branded texts
- To hide the sender's identity
Correct answer: So recipients know who is texting them and trust the message
Identifying the brand builds trust and is expected under messaging guidelines.
Question 5: What is a best practice when including links in marketing texts?
- Use a branded or recognizable shortened link rather than a random shortener (Correct answer)
- Use the longest possible URL
- Never include links of any kind
- Use links that hide the destination domain
Correct answer: Use a branded or recognizable shortened link rather than a random shortener
Branded short links increase trust and click-through while saving characters.
Question 6: How often should most brands send promotional SMS to keep churn low?
- A limited, consistent cadence such as a few times per month (Correct answer)
- Multiple times every day
- Every hour during business hours
- Only once per year
Correct answer: A limited, consistent cadence such as a few times per month
A restrained, consistent cadence reduces opt-outs while staying top of mind.
Question 7: What is a best practice for handling subscriber replies to marketing messages?
- Support two-way conversation or provide a clear path to a response (Correct answer)
- Use a number that cannot receive any replies
- Ignore all inbound replies
- Block subscribers who reply
Correct answer: Support two-way conversation or provide a clear path to a response
Two-way capability improves engagement and customer experience.
Text Message Marketing Practices 2
What is the recommended best practice for the very first message a brand sends to a new SMS subscriber?