A recent benchmark report by Listrak highlights how beauty and fashion brands can leverage SMS and loyalty programs to enhance customer engagement. The study reveals that consumers are increasingly responsive to text-based marketing, with significant conversion rates for various types of messages. Additionally, the report underscores the growing importance of loyalty initiatives and strategies to counteract the rise in online browsing behavior without immediate purchases.

With insights from over 125 billion emails and SMS/MMS messages sent between January 1, 2024, and December 31, 2024, the report offers valuable data on consumer behavior. It emphasizes the role of urgency-driven messaging, discounts, and AI-powered strategies in optimizing marketing campaigns for better results.

The Surge of SMS Marketing in Beauty and Fashion

SMS has emerged as a powerful tool for engaging beauty and fashion shoppers. According to the benchmark report, SMS messages significantly boost conversion rates, especially when notifying customers about abandoned carts or price drops. This trend reflects an increasing comfort level among consumers purchasing directly via their mobile devices.

Detailed analysis shows that SMS clickthrough rates vary across different message types. For instance, fashion brands see higher engagement with browse abandonment (8.2-10.7%) and shopping cart abandonment (7.9-13.7%) notifications compared to beauty brands. Price drop alerts also generate substantial interest, with clickthrough rates ranging from 10.5-11.9% for beauty and 13.1-18.5% for fashion brands. These findings suggest that well-timed SMS campaigns can effectively drive sales by capitalizing on consumer curiosity and decision-making windows.

Revitalizing Loyalty Programs and Tackling Window Shopping

Loyalty programs have gained momentum, offering brands new opportunities to engage and retain customers. The report indicates that beauty brands experienced a 60-fold increase in loyalty sends, resulting in double the engagement compared to standard benchmarks. Similarly, fashion brands boosted loyalty sends by 167%, reflecting a broader industry trend toward revamping these initiatives.

Addressing the challenge of window shopping, where consumers browse extensively without committing to a purchase, brands turned to urgency-driven messaging in 2024. By emphasizing low inventory levels, price drops, and replenishment needs, fashion brands successfully reactivated dormant shoppers at nearly twice the rate year-over-year. This approach not only drove traffic to websites but also encouraged quicker decisions through strategic use of discounts and limited-time offers. Furthermore, integrating AI technologies into marketing strategies allows for personalized product recommendations and channel-specific optimizations, ensuring more effective and targeted campaigns.