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Over the summer, Apple unveiled its next-generation mobile operating system, iOS 16. And with it came some new features and changes that affect the way marketers can interact with consumers. Apple is emphasizing increased security and the ability for iPhone users to personalize their mobile experience. Noteworthy for brands are the updates to iPhone’s lock screen, new services for Apple Pay, additional privacy restrictions, and modifications to video stream advertising breaks.
First, the Impact of iOS 16 on SMS
At the top of iOS 16’s features are enhancements to the lock screen that enable users to create a more personalized look and customize their notification display settings. For brands that rely on SMS to connect with customers, it’s imperative to understand how these changes impact your SMS strategies and tactics. Regardless of how people choose to personalize their lock screen, there’s a higher potential to miss, ignore, or report marketing SMS messages. Marketers will need to adjust even for customers who have opted-in.
- Apple’s iOS 16 allows people to filter their text messages by saved contacts vs. unknown contacts and display incoming SMS messages separately. The feature is available to anyone with an iPhone 8 or newer.
- With new message filtering settings, people can control which communications they see regularly and immediately. That will decrease the likelihood that people will see an SMS update from your brand even if they’ve opted in. People who turn on message filtering won’t receive notifications from unknown numbers. To see those, the person has to navigate to the unknown sender portion of messages.
- iOS 16 will also give users the ability to organize and sort SMS messages similar to Gmail’s “Promotions” tab concept. Messages can be categorized and subcategorized with content filtering that includes Transactions, Promotions, and Junk. The caveat is that users (outside of India and Brazil) have to download a third-party app to access this particular feature. Apple has not yet shared a firm date as to when SMS message filtering would be a built-in iOS feature.
The Impacts of iOS 16 on CRM and Loyalty Marketing
Lockscreen customization: iPhone users have more control over the way notifications appear on their home screens by leveraging different display options (stacked notifications vs. list notifications).
“Do Not Disturb” customization options: users can filter out different notifications (ex. Work notifications, all notifications off, etc.).
Sub-categories for the spam filter: Users can get more specific information about the kinds of messages they receive. This includes marketing messages like an offer, coupon or rewards points update. Note: This feature is only available in Brazil and India as of the time this is written.
“Report Junk” option: Users will see a “report junk” button next to any message that they receive from an unknown number. They can report a message even if they genuinely opted into receiving your SMS messages.
Consequently, time-sensitive campaigns or messages from brands may not be viewed when they’re relevant and appropriate. This can hurt the effectiveness of promotional and informational communications as well. And, if your message is out of sync with wherever your customers are in their journey, or if the message feels poorly timed, there’s a greater chance your message will be reported as spam.
How to Mitigate iOS 16’s Impacts on Your Communications
To ensure your SMS marketing campaigns are received in a timely manner, encourage subscribers to save your brand as a contact so your messages don’t get filtered out. Including a contact card in your SMS messages is the best way to do this.
Adding your contact card to your welcome series is a great way to ensure new subscribers can quickly save the brand’s information. This is especially helpful in addressing the “report junk” feature. For current subscribers, insert a contact card call-out message into existing or upcoming campaigns.
Follow these best practices when creating your contact card:
- Use your company name for the contact name.
- Use your brand’s logo (icon or logomark) as the contact image.
- Send your contact card to subscribers as part of the planned campaign.
- Send your contact card to all new users as part of the welcome series.
Response Labs Can Help With Solutions to iOS 16
Having a solid SMS strategy that incorporates best practices, targeted messaging, and thoughtful communication is more important than ever with the iOS 16 release. You don’t want your customers to disregard your messages or mark them as spam. Having a strong strategy and tactical approach to SMS is essential to delivering the right message at the right time.
That’s where Response Labs excels. We are the CRM (customer relationship management) and loyalty marketing agency. Our team of innovative digital marketing experts delivers data-informed, personalized messaging at scale—not just SMS, but push, email, digital advertising, and everything in between—to increase engagement and fuel revenue growth. We don’t shy away from the complex intersection of data science, media, technology, and creativity. In fact, that’s where we thrive. We help brands find opportunities to connect with customers meaningfully. Our purpose is to Make Every Message Matter™.
