Many independent travel agents have a successful marketing formula built around brochures, websites and online booking, social media, email marketing and online display ads. But what if I told you there is an even more effective marketing channel available – at low cost?

That medium is mobile text messaging (SMS).

While the average email marketing campaign achieves an open rate of 22%, Facebook 12% and online display banners a paltry 0.01%, text messages average a whopping 98% open rate. They hit the mark each and every time.

Moreover, nearly all text messages are read within five seconds. This motivates instant, impulse action. That’s why text offers are 10 times more likely to be redeemed and shared than mail or newspaper coupons.

Better still, text messaging is cheap. A text message broadcast to a few thousand customers is negligible in terms of actual SMS costs. At 3p per individual text, it would cost just £60 in mobile carrier charges.

Text messages average a whopping 98% open rate

Text messaging is the ideal way to drive more bookings, as well as target new and existing customers with updates, news and special travel offers. For ITAs, the possibilities are endless and include:

• Promoting last-minute offers

Text your customer base to make them aware of last-minute holiday offers.

• Encouraging repeat bookings

Allow customers to text a special word or phrase to a short code number so they receive a unique mobile discount voucher with money off their next booking.

• Promoting other services

Use mobile vouchers with unique codes to offer discounts on other services such as holiday insurance, currency exchange or car parking.

• Sending your latest brochure or information as a text attachment

Attach your PDFs, word documents, small brochures, images and so on to a text message.

• Customer satisfaction surveys

Send a mobile survey to your customers so that you gain valuable feedback about their booking and holiday experiences with you.

• Rewarding loyalty

Create mobile vouchers that can be scanned multiple times, enabling you to reward your most loyal customers.

• Growing an opted-in customer database

If you promote a keyword and short code number in your travel shop, website, brochures or social media, people who text it will automatically be added to your contact database.

Text offers are 10 times more likely to be redeemed and shared than mail or newspaper coupons

The downsides? There aren’t many. However, because of their power, texts have to be used with great care. Messages need to be carefully scripted and scheduled. A family holiday promotion sent at 6pm dinner-time on a weekday, or during the morning school run, would be better off being sent at a more thoughtful time. It’s more a matter of common sense than anything else.

Texts are also illegal if the recipient hasn’t opted in to receive them. That’s when they become annoying, troublesome and often infuriating. However, text campaigns are completely legal if a person has opted in to receive them. They have given their consent. Even then, we recommend a measured approach – occasional texts are welcomed, but too many may become a nuisance.