As restaurant industry marketers continue searching for new ways to connect with diners and capture their attention (not to mention their business), SMS has become an increasingly popular channel of choice.

Whether it’s digital coupons, time- or location-based promotions, or interactive deal offers, SMS offers a powerful tool for updates and conversions. Just consider the stats:

• Exceptional Performance: SMS open rates often exceed 80 percent, far exceeding any other channel.
• Immediate Reactions: Brand-delivered text messages are typically opened within three minutes of being received, delivering an immediacy not typically found with other channels.
• Constant Coverage: A customer’s phone is rarely out of reach, and doesn’t require an internet connection.

Taken together, we can see why, when utilized correctly, SMS is a win for brands and consumers alike. If used properly, that is.

If not given proper attention, SMS is just a medium…a channel for sending and receiving messages… a channel for sending and receiving messages. The key to its success wholly depends on the messages sent. More specifically, the strategy behind deciding what message to send, and to which customers, is what makes or breaks a mobile marketing campaign.

Simply put, marketers can’t craft a single broadcast message, push it to their entire subscriber base, and expect dividends each time. For example, as we all know, food choices are highly personal. If sending a fried chicken promotion to a customer with a history of ordering only vegetarian items doesn’t convert, it’s not the fault of the SMS platform.

Customers today have made it clear that brands must work hard to reach them at a personal level to keep their attention. The brand must listen to responses given and signals made by each consumer as an individual, and respond accordingly. In other words, customers now more than ever are saying, “Show me that you know me.”

According to the recently released Global Consumer Trend Index from Marigold, nine in 10 consumers say their favorite brands treat them like individuals. And the way that brands do this is through personalization and contextual messages. Personalization has been a popular buzzword for some time, and it’s no surprise why.

According to the same Consumer Trends report, nearly 80 percent of consumers said that they’re likely to engage with a personalized offer or message that’s tailored to them.

If the consumer is willing to take time to voluntarily offer their individual preferences and purchase intentions, don’t owe it to them to respond in kind? After all, they’re voluntarily giving you all the information you need to craft personalized messages that show you’re paying attention and that you care.

And the “willing” part is key here. Over 60 percent of consumers find it creepy if the content you send them is based on information gained from tracking cookies, according to Marigold’s Consumer Trend Index.

What’s more, customers will give you even more useful information beyond purchase history or location if you just ask. The trick is to provide something useful to them in return (like a coupon) and promise to only use that information that benefits your efforts to provide personalized experiences. That’s called a value exchange, and it’s a powerful long-term lever.

Obtaining this zero-party data is important, as it allows for longevity. Personalizing a brand message shouldn’t be treated as something that’s just checked off a to-do list. Mentioning the customer’s first name is barely table stakes in 2024. 

Rather, personalization is driven by a deeper understanding of the wants, needs and intent behind consumers as individuals. For example, a restaurant might need to know a customer’s dietary preferences, or whether that customer typically orders lunch at work or for the family dinner at home, to make relevant recommendations and offers. 

A fine-dining restaurant may want to know whether a customer is married, and even important dates, to make actionable offers on or around anniversaries, birthdays, and more.

Once registered, these companies will now know more about their customers’ unique interests and desires to personalize follow-up content and referring links accordingly. (It doesn’t hurt to ask for their budget range, either!).

Finally, context is critical to any SMS campaign. The more you can tailor the right message content at a given stage in the lifecycle journey (I’m “just looking” vs “ready to eat now,” for example), the more the consumer will engage today and in the future.

Similarly, getting that appropriate contextual SMS sent—a temporary shortage alert or dinner special update—the more they’ll feel connected to the brand.

Once you achieve this, you’ve proved you’re listening. You’ve delivered what your customers want, both on their plates and on their phones. That’s more than marketing. That’s relationship marketing. And establishing real relationships with customers is just as important as your food to keep them coming back for more.

Nate Frick serves as Enterprise Strategy Director at Marigold, and is a seasoned digital business leader as well as zero party data innovator. Today he consults for many of Marigold’s global roster of clients, providing strategic, omnichannel marketing recommendations and best practices.