SMS Marketing for Local Pizza Restaurant - Help a Noob!

You should probably bed down the mobile website first and get some mobile ordering going on before you progress to adding text messaging.

If you are wanting to use a text message auto responder type set up then Instant Customer has an integrated SMS and email auto responder type system.

There are several email to sms type options out there also so if you want to use a standard auto-responder you could send an email to a sms conversion provider.

You may want to look at what twillio.com has to offer.

You can get a paid subscription for texting if you want. However, using twitter is probably your best bet.

Set up a "TomsPizzaDeals" on Twitter. Create table and cashier signs that tell the customers that they can get discounts and VIP deals by texting "Follow TomsPizzaDeals" to the number 40404. Then every time you tweet something from the account, the followers will get a text message. Keep ownership of the list and use it as leverage.

Talk with the owner and create deals and discounts. You should be able to come up with some good ones.

Come up with a fair price for setup and monthly fee depending on their size.
$199 setup and $199/month for a smaller restaurant
$399 setup and $399/month for a larger restaurant

Why would you want to keep leverage? I don't understand....while I like to make money, I don't like to hold people hostage, or do shady crap


Yes, you might hold on to that pizza restaurant - but others will shy away from you

I have quite a few restaurant clients and the subject of SMS marketing comes up from time to time. We've found that although it's appealing to business owners, it's a huge turn-off for consumers, generally-speaking. There are a few services out there that offer SMS notifications if your table is ready but it really should end there. Customers tend to feel violated when they receive a text message, even if they did agree to it at some point. Hope this helps. Best of luck!

"I have quite a few restaurant clients and the subject of SMS marketing comes up from time to time. We've found that although it's appealing to business owners, it's a huge turn-off for consumers, generally-speaking. There are a few services out there that offer SMS notifications if your table is ready but it really should end there. Customers tend to feel violated when they receive a text message, even if they did agree to it at some point. Hope this helps"

No it didnt help....

You had no clue as to how to properly implament a mobile messaging stratgey for your clients so you simply told them that it wouldnt work. Please let me know who they are so that I can contact them and save them from your lack of vision or expertise. You are costing them allot of revenue right now.

"generally-speaking" you took a poll of three people you know on facebook and came up with this scientific based result-conclusion?

"Text messaging was really "hot" a few years ago, but now many people are annoyed by them"

umm the internet is a fad that will go away too

SMS and mobile marketing in general continues to be highly effective for businesses.
The main difference between today's mobile marketing versus 3 years ago is that the tools are much more sophisticated.

With marketing automation, you can target clients who are either more frequent or haven't visited in the past 30 days.

Really any type of marketing because ineffective and annoying if you're aimlessly sending the same mass message over and over again. With marketing automation + SMS, you can eliminate this and send more targeted and relevant messages to the right set of customers.

I've had a pizza restaurant/bar client for a few years and the sms system I set up for them worked like a charm.

The "hook" was a free pizza giveaway once per week. People could call in, text in keyword, or simply enter a phone number on a form on their website. Double opt-in confirmed they wanted to join the list.

Now with MMS you can send pictures of the physical coupon along with some text. We had very few people opt out when offers were sent, and last time I checked the list was over 1300 subscribers.

If you've never had a client use an SMS system successfully, please don't advise others that it doesn't work and customers feel "violated" when getting a text. If its done correctly, that shouldn't be the case at all.

I love it when the advice given is repeated in the sig line


the guy who suggests ads sells...ads
gal who touts videos sells....videos
People who sell text messaging - praise text messaging
People who sell mobile website guides push mobile website
and so it goes


well here is my suggestion - give out free rolls of toilet paper with every pizza


<<< My sig Line - selling toilet paper wholesale - great promo item>>>

You've gotta love the WF community. Don't listen to any of the negative ninnies, that's my advice.
Text message marketing is not a fad in is hear to stay hence the reason why pizza hut and dominoes are still hard at it.
This is what I currently do and it's working.

1/ Design a flyer using photoshop elements (10 x less than photoshop) or get someone to do it on fiverr. The leaflet needs to have a compelling offer ie "For an instant 10% off text PIZZA to 12345"

2/ The customer then texts the keyword to receive an offer. (Lets face it 8 out 10 people will do it for the instant discount)

3/Set up an auto response via your text platform thanking them for joining the club and stating that they should "Show this text to redeem your discount"

4/Customer is now added to the pizza shops database which you have full access too allowing you to send texts on behalf of the pizza shop to entice customer back into the establishment. Once you have a customers mobile you have their business which enables you to market to them until they buy, die or opt out.

Be careful not to inundate the customer with texts as this will soon be seen as spam, and remember text has a 98% open rate compared to email (Whens the last time you ignored a text)

For this service I charge a set up fee and £1 per month per subscriber per month and send out 4 texts per month.

Once I set an appointment I mock up a design with their logo and have the campaign set up in my text platform and get the owner to text in using their own mobile. I also have the autoresponder send a link to a mobile website using the customers details.

To seal the deal I sit down with the owner and do the math.

100 subscribers X 4 text messages per month X 12% redemption rate (average is between 15-30%) X the price of a pizza £20 = £960

Do the £ to $ conversion which still equals profit and value to the business owner.

SMS is a no brainer