The RIGHT way to do SMS marketing

And how to capture it

Author

Gavin Hewitson
May 13, 2025

Watch the video: click here

Why Most Brands Are Doing SMS Marketing Wrong (And How to Fix It)

SMS is one of the most misunderstood channels in marketing.
Most brands fumble it.

Here’s how to do it right, from SMS capture to campaigns that actually make you money.

First mistake?

Capturing SMS the wrong way.
Most brands ask for SMS alongside email in the same pop-up or immediately after the email step.

Stop doing that.

When you add SMS into the email capture flow, you’ll see a massive drop in conversion rates.

We’ve seen drops as high as 45%.

That’s because the friction of asking for both at once causes people to bail before they even see your offer.

Instead, get the email first.

Then, three days later, show a separate pop-up just for SMS.

Use segments like:

  • Subscribed to email

  • Not subscribed to SMS

  • Subscribed to list more than 3 days ago

This lets you capture SMS without killing your email list growth or hurting onsite conversion rates.

Once you’ve built your SMS list, only send these 3 types of campaigns:

  1. Sales

  2. Product restocks

  3. Product releases

That’s it.

Why?

SMS is expensive (especially outside the US).

You don’t have the space or margin to be sending fluffy educational content via SMS.

Stick to revenue-driving sends only.

Keep them under 160 characters.

Keep them punchy.

Pro tip:

You can also capture SMS at checkout or via email flows (like a dedicated email in your welcome series that drives to an SMS signup page).

But never force it upfront.

Make it easy for customers to give you their number.

Check out the video here.

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