by Textmaxx Pro | Aug 14, 2019
You should know the importance of texting for your business. Whether it’s marketing, advertising, sales, post-sale follow-up, or customer service, the first go-to for the customer has become the handheld smartphone.
When you text in response to an inquiry, you can rest assured the prospect or existing customer has received the text, because more than 99 percent of text recipients receive the message, and 90 percent see and read the text within three minutes.
But who and where should they text back? Your existing clients can text a team member on their cell, but most will have your landline number saved in their phone. Your business has likely had a landline number associated with it for many years, and that number is shared on your website and marketing materials and ads. So why not text enable your landline?
Textmaxx Pro’s powerful platform does just that. It’s the perfect way to communicate with clients and prospects. Consider a few facts. 89 percent of customers today prefer text communications with businesses, and those communications result in a 40 percent higher conversion rate.
Check out a quick video to learn more!
by Textmaxx Pro | Aug 2, 2019
Here’s Why:
- Deals, Promos, Upcoming Events
- 99% are Opened
- 90% Read in 3 minutes
- 40% Respond within 15 minutes
- High Conversion Rates
- 89% Prefer to Text with Businesses
- 40% higher conversion rate over those not texted
- 300-800% prefer texting to face-to-face communications (all generations)
To take advantage of text message advertising and marketing, selecting the right SMS Platform, like Textmaxx Pro, is critical. You can use a toll-free number, a simple short code with five numerical characters. You should text-enable your existing landline, VoIP, or toll-free number, so your sales team members can communicate via text from their computers or smart phones.
You’ll want a fully TCPA compliant platform, such as Textmaxx Pro as well. You have the ability to text everyone with smartphone, but you must have permission from them before you may.
Text or call us today at (866) 367-6889.
by Textmaxx Pro | Jul 23, 2019
Synopsis: Automotive retailers must adopt a text message strategy to communicate with their sales and service customers and prospects, and even their employees, or face losing marketshare to competitors that have one.
SARASOTA, Fla.(June 19, 2019)— Automotive retailers who do not adopt a text message strategy to communicate with current and prospective clients will be at a serious disadvantage against retailers who utilize SMS messages in their advertising, marketing, and as a top means of communication.
Chris Leedom, CEO of the Leedom Group, which includes Textmaxx Pro, a web-based text messaging solution for businesses to reach their clients and prospects via text, said recent studies showing the breadth and power of text messaging are stunning, and point to the absolute need for automotive retailers to adopt a strategy.
“Think about it,” Leedom said. “If you leave the office for an hour for lunch, you’re likely to have four or five text message sessions, perhaps using text messaging to order your meal, before you return to the office.”
Today, 292 million people in North America, about 80 percent of all residents, use text messaging daily. Despite having a phone in their hand or pocket, people will respond more quickly to a text message than a phone call or voicemail.
“Ninety-three percent of those receiving a text message will see it within 10 minutes, where a phone call results in a leaving a voice mail 87 percent of the time,” Leedom said. “Obviously, it’s vital when setting appointments, marketing specials, and asking for reviews, that the customer actually receives the message. Think about the telephone solicitations, mailers, and spam emails you receive and what happens to them. When you send an employee a text message, you can be certain, he didn’t “miss the call.”
Over the next five years, there will be unprecedented growth in the availability of 4G and 5G telecommunications. Globally, two-thirds of mobile connections will be on high-speed networks, and researchers predict 6 billion people will send and receive SMS text messages by 2025. In the U.S., 92 percent of adults carry text-enabled phones, and of those, 98 percent text daily.
“Even though the data shows that texting results in far greater engagement and is utilized by nearly everyone, only 14 percent of companies employ texting to communicate with consumers,” Leedom said. “Dealers who have a text marketing and communications strategy in place definitely have an edge over their competitors.”
Appointment setting is one key area where texting shows its strength. Both sales and service can not only set the appointment via text, they can send a calendar appointment, with a phone number hot link, and set reminders for the customer.
Leedom said the award-winning Textmaxx Pro’s data and analytics show that some dealership service departments set and confirm 70 percent of their appointments via text. Dealers, he said, who have marketed their phone numbers for years should consider a text-enabled landline, so that service advisors, sales people, and managers can reply and engage the consumer from their desktop computers or mobile devices.
“When choosing a text platform to partner with,” Leedom said, “you should be sure the provider can text enable a land line. It’s important, the texts are directed to the right person so messages can be replied to quickly.”
Other tips to consider when selecting a texting platform partner include: Telephone Consumer Protection Act compliance; easy-to-use dashboard with web access; warehousing of all communications; automation for appointment reminders and broadcast messaging for marketing; and an app for both iPhone and Android devices.
“Employees can use the app on their personal mobile devices to communicate with the customer which saves dealers thousands,” Leedom said, “but when they leave your employ, you can simply disable their credentials. You still have retained the history of all texting activity. This is important for a variety of reasons, but most importantly, it’s great for future marketing activity as well as keeping all records stored per the TCPA.”
Research shows that text message communication isn’t just vital because it’s popular, it’s necessary because it’s more effective. Leedom noted that studies have shown that by next year, 2020, 85 percent of interactions between brands and customers will be managed without speaking. Already, 97 percent of companies found they communicated with consumers more efficiently after launching texting initiatives.
“Early adopters, such as insurance agents, especially claims adjusters, use text messaging to send quotes and gather information for claims,” Leedom said. “When there is urgency, as with a vehicle accident claim, agents report consumers respond to text in a matter of a few minutes. Texting simply makes communication faster, more efficient, and more effective.
About Textmaxx Pro
Textmaxx Pro is a national firm based in Sarasota, Fla, and provides businesses with an automated, compliant, easy-to-use, web-based, text messaging solution that enables them to reach their clients and prospects via text. It provides a full-service platform that is easily integrated into any CRM, and fully compliant with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
Contact
Chris Leedom
CEO, Leedom Group
Phone: 941.371.7999
Email chris@leedomgroup.com
Text: “CHRIS” to 95000
by Textmaxx Pro | Jul 23, 2019
Cover Story Used Car Dealer Magazine July 2019
High Text Service
There’s no question – the communication cycle and interaction with a dealership’s customers is always important. And it’s especially important in the service department. Customers want ease of use and convenience in everything from appointment scheduling to repair approval, all the way to ultimately knowing when and where they can pick up their car.
Click here to see full article.
by Textmaxx Pro | Apr 29, 2019
ORLANDO, Fla. — The fact that 88 percent of all business calls go unanswered on the first try was well understood by the Tech Tank competition audience members during the 2019 Digital Dealer 26 Conference and Expo,who voted the Sarasota, Fla.-based national technology firm, Textmaxx Pro, the winner of the fun and informative contest.
Digital Dealer 26’s Tech Tank held April 10 challenged five leading automotive retail technology firms to detail their technology and its value proposition to business owners in a fast-paced competition. Each contestant had just three minutes to introduce their new product, and then answer questions from three industry experts for an additional three minutes. When the presentations were over, several hundred audience members and the experts voted using a text message application to decide the winner.
Chris Leedom, CEO of Textmaxx Pro, used just two visual slides and one visual aid, a cell phone, to detail the power of texting to effectively communicate with customers and prospects.
“My guess is that nearly everyone in this room has texted several people since the lunch break,” Leedom said to the audience members that nodded in agreement.
Leedom told the audience he called upon his decades of experience as an entrepreneur and CEO of a nationally recognized consultancy practice to develop Textmaxx Pro. The cutting-edge, technology platform allows businesses, including auto dealers, to communicate directly with customers and prospects in one-on-one conversations as well as the ability to market their business using SMS (texting) technology using broadcast texts.
Textmaxx Pro’s Tech Tank competitors included a digital F&I platform, a new website development solution, and two digital marketing platforms.
Leedom told the audience Textmaxx Pro’s main value proposition was the ability to communicate effectively in near real time with customers. While 88 percent of business calls go unanswered, the opposite is true of text messaging. About 93 percent of SMS messages are read within 10 minutes and a return text is usually sent within 20 minutes.
“It’s the preferred method of communication for most people across virtually every demographic,” Leedom said. “Setting appointments, gathering information, marketing, and much more can be accomplished with lightening efficiency. Quick and effective communication with your customers dramatically improves customer service and profitability.”
Two of the main points Leedom addressed were likely what won the audience over. The first was legal and regulatory compliance. Using a texting platform to text clients is regulated by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and carries with it hefty fines for violations. Textmaxx Pro’s platform text enables any business landline or other designated phone line, Leedom said, and that is the number that appears on the customer’s phone. The platform archives the entire body of texts for 5 years to protect all parties and comply with necessary statutes. If a customer opts out of the service, no one but the customer can get back on the platform. “We designed this product to help businesses harness the power of texting while ensuring compliance.”
The second value that intrigued the audience was the pricing structure. Leedom said the pricing varies by the number of texts sent out and is scalable to any size business, so monthly fees for any size operation are refreshingly low, typically between $100 and $300 per month.
One of the industry experts asked about integrating the system with the dealers DMS and CRM platforms.
Leedom said Textmaxx Pro is integrated with several very large DMS platforms and the API can be integrated easily with any existing software program. “We are working with software platforms all the time on full integrations. Our API can integrate with virtually any software product.”
“It was a great format and a lot of fun,” said Leedom of Tech Tank. The three industry experts asked great questions that were certainly of interest to the dealers and managers in the audience. “There were strong competitors with great presentations, and we were pleased to come out on top.”
