The calendar is filled with commemorative days and traditions, each brimming with commercial potential. Mother’s Day and Children’s Day celebrated worldwide present golden opportunities for retail and ecommerce brands to connect with customers by offering special offers and discounts.
To help your customers make better decisions and find ideal presents for any of the occasions, consider campaigns using Rich Communication Services. Unlike SMS, RCS transforms messaging into a micro shopping experience, offering a number of interactive features, making the gift getting process more exciting and engaging.
What is RCS?
First time hearing about RCS or need a refresher? We got you.
Key features of RCS
Rich Communication Services are gaining traction in the B2C context thanks to a number of their extremely useful features including:
➡️ Rich media: RCS supports multimedia content such as images, videos, and GIFs. This allows you to create visually appealing messages that capture attention, imagination, and convey more information than just plain text.
➡️ Interactive elements: RCS offers interactive features like quick replies, action buttons, and carousels. Each of them makes it easier for recipients to browse offers, respond quickly, and take immediate actions such as making a purchase or learning more.
➡️ Verified sender: Importantly, RCS messages come with verified sender information, which enhances trust and ensures recipients that the messages they’re getting are legitimate and safe to engage with.
➡️ Read receipts: With RCS, you can track when messages are delivered and read, obtaining valuable insights into customer engagement levels and helping you refine your communication strategies moving forward.
Overall, Rich Communication Services transform messaging into a whole new experience, making the channel a powerful tool for engaging customers and driving higher conversion rates on occasions such as Mother’s Day or Children’s Day.
Why not just send SMS? How’s RCS better?
Not feeling convinced just yet?
For years, SMS has been a staple communication channel for businesses, offering a straightforward way to reach customers. However, while this channel allows you to speak to your audience, the opportunities for actual user engagement and achieving the desired conversions are limited. An upgrade to the service was due, and now its worthy successor in the form of Rich Communication Services has arrived.
Google as well as major global tech companies are behind RCS, recognizing and pushing its potential to transform interactions along the brand-buyer line. Unlike SMS, which is restricted to text-only messages and basic links, RCS enhances communication by incorporating rich media and interactive elements. This makes messages more engaging and actionable, significantly improving user experience.
Now, a better UX is what makes RCS truly stand out. It allows recipients to make decisions and even complete transactions directly within the messaging channel – the default texting app on the user’s phone. This comprehensive integration of browsing, deciding, and purchasing, all within one platform, is a game-changer for customer engagement.
So, the main reason why a customer would choose to engage with RCS is because all the tools necessary to move forward with a transaction are right at their fingertips. With features like interactive carousels, quick reply buttons, and secure transaction capabilities, Rich Communication Services transform what used to be a simple message (SMS) into a micro shopping experience (RCS). Customers can view product images, watch videos, explore options, and make purchases, all without leaving the messaging app.
In essence, SMS put the foot in the door and RCS is now opening it wide open. While you’re out here exploring the options, read our comparison of RCS and SMS to better understand the strengths of both channels.
Using RCS for Mother’s Day campaigns
Mother’s Day is an emotionally-packed date with the range of potential gifts extending way beyond just flowers. Here are two compelling examples of how you can effectively use RCS in your campaigns on this occasion.
#1. Interactive gift guides
Create an interactive carousel showcasing various gift options for mothers. Each item can feature high-quality images, brief descriptions, and direct call-to-action buttons such as “Buy now” or “Learn more.” This setup allows your recipients to conveniently browse through multiple gift ideas, making the shopping experience a breeze.
Enhanced engagement: Interactive content captures attention and keeps customers locked in, increasing the chances of eventual conversion.
Easy navigation: A carousel allows customers to browse multiple options quickly.
Direct actions: Action buttons simplify the purchasing process, leading to higher conversion rates.
#2. Exclusive discounts and offers
Send time-sensitive offers with attractive visuals and countdown timers. Highlight exclusive discounts available for Mother’s Day, encouraging customers to act quickly to take advantage of the specials.
Increased urgency: A countdown timer creates a sense of urgency, prompting immediate action – the opportunity to complete the task of buying a gift is here and now for the recipient.
Higher conversion rates: Attractive visuals and time-sensitive offers boost conversion rates by appealing to customers’ desire for limited-time deals.
Using RCS for Children’s Day campaigns
Children’s Day is a wonderful opportunity for brands to engage parents and create memorable experiences for children. RCS allows you to deliver rich content that will delight them both. Here are two scenarios for you to consider, involving the use of RCS for Children’s Day campaigns.
#1: Personalized video messages
Send branded video messages wishing kids a happy Children’s Day. Personalize these messages with the child’s name and other details if possible, creating a unique and memorable experience. These videos can include engaging animations or fun graphics, making the occasion special for both parents and children.
Stronger brand loyalty: Personalized messages foster a deeper connection with your brand, as they show customers you care about their individual experiences.
Memorable experiences:Videos create lasting memories that customers will cherish, enhancing the emotional bond with your brand.
#2: Interactive storybooks and games
Offer engaging content such as interactive storybooks, quizzes, or educational games that parents can share with their children, making the campaign both entertaining and informative.
Enhanced engagement: Again, interactive content keeps children entertained and engaged, making your brand more appealing.
Brand recall: Fun and memorable experiences increase brand recall, ensuring you stay top-of-mind for parents.
Customer satisfaction: Providing valuable and enjoyable content enhances customer satisfaction, encouraging repeat interactions with your brand.
The power of RCS for retail and ecommerce companies
In order to properly understand RCS and how it fits into retail and ecommerce marketing strategies, you need to realize how much more engaging it is than SMS. Rich Communication Services offer businesses a suite of tools to create more meaningful interactions with users and prompt more specific, sales-oriented actions. Here’s a closer look at the key benefits of RCS for retail and ecommerce brands.
Enhanced customer engagement
RCS turns simple texts into elegant, multimedia experiences. With its ability to include images, videos, and GIFs, RCS messages are simply far more engaging than traditional SMS. This richer content gets customer attention more effectively and keeps them browsing longer.
Higher conversion rates
RCS provides interactive elements such as quick replies, action buttons, and carousels. These features make it easy for customers to look through offers and take immediate actions such as making a purchase or learning more about a product. By optimizing the decision-making and purchasing processes via RCS you drive higher conversion rates.
Improved brand trust
With a verified sender profile, RCS messages are perfect for leveling up brand trust and security. Your customers are more likely to engage with messages they know are from a legitimate and trusted source, reducing the risk of spam and phishing attempts.
Real-time customer insights
RCS offers read receipts and delivery notifications, providing you with valuable insights into how engaged the customers are. This essential data helps you track the performance of campaigns and refine strategies based on real-time information.
Seamless integration and enhanced interactivity
RCS Business Messaging (RBM) has been developed specifically with B2C communication in mind to help companies connect more effectively with their customers. Contrary to SMS, which is powerful but limited, RBM offers an upgraded communication experience. Your business can integrate rich media and interactive elements easily, creating a more immersive event for customers.
SMS in ecommerce summed up
Historically, we’ve seen many technologies, like 5G wireless, electric vehicles, and wearable tech, start slow and then quickly gain widespread popularity. The same trend applies to RCS – you may want to act quickly to adopt this channel or risk being left behind.
With multiple celebrations throughout the year, brands have ample opportunities to drive sales using engaging messaging. While SMS has been a historically popular channel, RCS builds on it, offering advanced options to create a rich, interactive experience that builds loyalty and adds value. The channel goes beyond merely conveying information too. Its main strength is its interactivity, which leads to greater conversions through engagement.
Launching your first RCS campaign for Mother’s Day or Children’s Day
MessageFlow provides an advanced platform for brands to run efficient and secure cross-channel communication, including RCS, as discussed in this article. With our direct operator connections, a robust RESTful API, and a slew of tight security measures, the solution creates conditions for delivering a truly conversational experience, offering an innovative way for you to interact with buyers during various occasional holidays and beyond.
