SMS boosts sales amidst lockdown
A BulkSMS.com Case Study

Since the onset of the global pandemic, countless small to medium sized businesses have been rocked with various lock down restrictions, no matter where in the world they are. Many have had to pivot to digital or face the threat of closing their doors for good. But for some, SMS has quite literally saved the day. Particularly for one of our customers, Cafféluxe, who used SMS to not only boost the orders coming in, but also help other small businesses do the same. Here is their story.

Who is Cafféluxe?

Cafféluxe is one of the oldest coffee capsule manufacturers in Africa with branches in South Africa and the United Kingdom. They source the finest premium-grade beans from countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Guatemala and Colombia, which are then roasted and ground to perfection. Thanks to their already established e-commerce platform and reliable logistics, they were able to lend a helping hand to smaller brands during lockdown. They increased their online offering to include items from these smaller brands, helping these SMEs stay afloat by giving them access to Cafféluxe’s existing customer base. They then turned to SMS to help get the word out.

How do they use SMS?

As the lockdown hit, many companies were not prepared for the working-from-home scenario. “Email was our primary source of communication with our customers, and suddenly we couldn’t reach them because many weren’t checking their inboxes as often. This is where SMS saved the day,” says Tamlyn Beaumont-Thomas (Head of Sales and Marketing at Cafféluxe). Using SMS, the team at Cafféluxe were able to communicate with their customers and offer them their favourite coffee and other grocery items during the pandemic.

Why SMS?

“SMS gave us the ability to send promotional and marketing messages straight into the hands of our customers, and it had a major impact on sales.” Their first SMS campaign brought in 38% more revenue than email, and an impressive 10 times more in sales than their flyer drop campaign - making it the most successful medium. And while SMS is not their only form of marketing, it offers the most effective call to action compared to other digital marketing tools, like AdWords and social media. “Because the SMS campaigns are instant, the ROI is almost instant, too,” says Tamlyn.

If you’d like to find out more about SMS, and how it can help your online business, check out our SMS in E-commerce ebook or click here to email sales.