Magento SMS Notification & SMS Marketing

Disclaimer: Magenticians does not necessarily agree with the views expressed in this guest post. They are presented to bring to light all diverse views in the Magento and general ecommerce community.

Have you given much thought to how you can contact your customers once they have ordered from your online store? For many merchants, email is of course the first option. It is cheap and almost free. Businesses in the ecommerce industry use this strategy because everyone has an email address. But that is exactly the problem! Everyone else uses email as well, so your communications with your customers get buried. SMS, or texting as we usually call it, can give you a winning advantage in today’s most competitive ecommerce industry. Modern buyers are more demanding than ever. The customer wants a shopping experience that is smooth, fast, hassle free & provides quick responses to the problems. Mobile text messages also help you to meet your planned expectations and deliver outstanding experiences that keep customers coming back to your store. Online merchants should use SMS service in the same way that they use email services. 90% of world’s population owns a mobile phone and can receive a text message in a very short time. People also like read and to respond to text messages more than any other form of communication system. The FireText Team wrote in their SMS Marketing Guide:

“SMS gives you a greater ability to keep customers informed in a way that’s personal and relevant to them, enabling you to engage with them throughout the order process. This not only leads to increased satisfaction – but also increased sales.”

With an advancement in the usage of smartphones nowadays, online store owners should seriously consider adding SMS service into the digital experience they provide to clients/users. And if your online store uses Magento as your ecommerce platform, there are quite a few modules available. One of the most robust modules for sending SMS via the Magento platform, Mage SMS provides an extensive list of controls and customizations from medium to large level Magento stores. This free Magento module is available in multiple languages & it is currently very familiar with Magento users and store owners. Mage SMS is a powerful Magento module that helps you to notify your buyers and admins via SMS during several events in your Magento store. It also contributes to target your various SMS campaigns. The module is entirely free; it has no integration cost and no monthly or weekly charges. You only have to pay for outgoing SMS charges. You can send SMS worldwide using Mage SMS module. Their prices are among the lowest in the market.

Module Installation:

To install Mage SMS Magento module, follow the steps below:

1. 1. In your Magento Admin Panel, tap on System > Magento Connect > Magento Connect Manager.

1. 1. Log into the Magento Connect Manager using your Magento Admin Credentials.

1. 1. Now go to Mage SMS module page and click Install Now button.

1. 1. Agree on the extension license agreement and tap Get Extension Key button.

1. 1. Now select the key, copy and paste it in the Magento Connect Manager and hit Install button.

1. 1. After a few seconds, Magento Connect Manager will show you the Extension dependencies. Without any further delay, click Proceed button to install Mage SMS module.

1. 1. Magento Connect Manager will now display a screen with installation progress. Once the installation is completed, tap on Refresh button to see Mage SMS module in the list of installed modules.

1. 1. Click on Return to Admin to return to Magento Admin Panel.

1. 1. Go to System > Cache Management and flush both Magento Cache & Cache Storage.

1. 1. After a cache flush, a new tab called SMS will be added to the top menu of Magento Admin Panel.

Note: For the proper functionalities and other requirements, Mage SMS module requires a PHP – CURL extension. So, you must have enabled this PHP extension in your hosting. For further information about how to enable PHP – CURL extension, please contact your hosting provider.

Module Activation:

After a successful installation of Mage SMS module, move the cursor over the SMS tab in your Magento Admin Panel’s top menu and go to Settings > Edit user account. If you are using it for the first time, create a new account and enter the required information:

1. Email (required field).
2. Select Registration type.
3. First & Last name, Address including City and Country.
4. Carefully read and agree to the license terms.
5. Once everything is done, click on Register button.

Finally, you will receive an email with a confirmation link. Once you will confirm the email address and activate the account, you will also receive 5 SMS credits for free. If you already have registered to Mage SMS before, enter a username & password in login form on the right side of the screen.

Conclusion

CONGRATULATIONS! You can now start using Mage SMS Magento module. It will improve your customer service and establish a greater level of trust. It will deepen your relationship with the users and will build a stronger customer loyalty with the help of Magento SMS Notification. You can also market your new sales or hot products with SMS marketing as well which will help you earn loyal customers who buy more & more regularly. And they will also recommend your Magento ecommerce store to others. If you want to read more about Mage SMS Magento module, its SMS pricing, and other features, visit this link. Feel free to ask if you have any question for me.