Twilio has published the results of a survey on messaging channels, which shows the preference of the French for the SMS/MMS channel. Faced with the rapid evolution of uses and technologies, the latter is tough, especially in relations with brands.
Who said that the SMS (or Short Message Service) and MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) were dead? Cloud communications software platform Twilio unveiled the results of its annual global messaging channels report a few days ago, following a survey of 5,000 people in France, Germany, Brazil, in Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. It shows that the French are somewhat against the current, 21% of them declaring that they prefer the SMS/MMS channel. France is even the only country in which this use still dominates e-mail. But for how much longer? In Germany, for example, only 14% of respondents highlight SMS.
SMS, a privileged channel for the French, especially those from the oldest generations
If we take a little height, it is true that e-mail remains the preferred method of consumers, especially to communicate with brands. 18% of respondents globally cited email as one of the top three most used channels. Checking your mailbox has indeed become a daily reflex, with nearly 8 out of 10 consumers (77%) even claiming to refresh it at least once a day, or even more. 31% of respondents say they check their email inbox between 3 and 5 times a day, whether for personal, professional or business needs.
But in France, SMS/MMS is still popular, even if the competition is fierce: the battle is being played out to the nearest percent, 21% of consumers favoring SMS and MMS, 20% e- mail. However, the French have a high degree of requirement for this channel: if they are bothered, they want the promotional SMS/MMS to be perfectly personalized, according to their interests.
More specifically, texting is more popular among older generations. Commitment to texting has declined over the years, and it’s still one of the top three communication channels among baby boomers (26%). This share decreases with Generation X (21%) and then even more with Millennials (19%) and Generation Z (17%).
The French ready to give up more data to better communicate with brands
Regarding e-mail, the French appreciate it when it is simple, concise and easy to understand. 56% of French respondents say that the subject of the email influences their decision to open it to some extent, which can make the work of hackers easier. ” French recipients want subject lines to give an idea of what’s in the body of the email, so they can figure out if it’s worth their time and interest (or not) adds Twilio.
But all the same, 25% of French people say they are frustrated to receive messages from unknown senders, 21% being even annoyed by the volume of messages, and 17% attesting that it is too difficult to unsubscribe, within the framework commercial communications. In the end, this is not much, because 28% of French people questioned say they are open to the idea of sharing more personal information, if and only if this sharing improves the personalization of e-mails. Once again, this share declines among the youngest.
When it comes to promotional emails, which abound in our boxes, recipients generally want brands to appeal to their emotions more, through subtle humor, images or colors. Videos, animated GIFs, and emojis can also be a good way to strike a chord.
Source: Twilio
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