An ignored phone call. A forgotten email. A never-listened-to voicemail.

We all experience these communication frustrations. Now that we all seem to prefer, and require, instant communication, phone calls and email no longer cut it.

Especially when it comes to business communication, both businesses and consumers alike want responses and they want them now. Yet so many businesses still rely on calls and email to get in touch.

If your business doesn’t already understand the importance of quick response times and texting, especially when it comes to nurturing leads, use these 3 stats to back up your case for making a change.

Increased Conversion

Lead conversions are 391 percent higher if you call within a minute of an online inquiry. If you wait an additional minute, that conversion rate drops to 120 percent. If you wait an hour, it drops to 36 percent (Velocify).

Now, depending on why someone reaches out to your business in the first place, contacting them within a minute might be overkill, especially if you do start the lead nurturing process via phone call. But you’d better contact as many leads as possible as soon as possible. The general principle stands that the quicker you contact a lead, the more likely you’ll convert them.

Is it better to call or text leads? Let’s be honest, very few people want to be called. Emailing someone won’t deliver results either. (That email likely will be read well after you send it, if it’s read at all.) What does that leave you with? Texting of course.

90% of all text messages are read in under 3 minutes. When you use texting to execute your lead nurturing strategy, you give yourself the best possible chance of immediately contacting leads and ensuring they actually see the message.

Once you start a conversation, following up and getting a lead to book an appointment suddenly becomes that much easier as well.

Sure Sales

Obviously email and phone calls won’t cut it here either. Even if prospective customers just provided their information and they know a business will reach out, they likely won’t pick up a call from an unknown number. If they emailed, sure, they know to check their email at some point in the near future. Unless it’s a time-sensitive issue, they probably won’t be waiting around for an email.

So do yourself — and everyone else — a favor by embracing texting. Prospects and customers get a simple and efficient way to contact you and your team. And you get the ability to reply just as quickly.

Even without a potential sale on the line, you probably already feel an inclination to respond quickly to messages. More than 50% of professionals say they can’t stand 10 minutes without responding to a text.

To take full advantage of SMS marketing, you need a dedicated person (or people) ready to reach out to leads and handle the nurturing process. Even better, automate the process, or at least portions of it, to send your lead nurturing messages immediately, even if it’s after hours. Plus, a little automation means you never miss a follow-up.

Better Qualified Leads

Companies that prioritize and properly plan their lead nurturing strategy generate 50% more sales-ready leads at 33% lower cost (Forrester).

The better your lead nurturing process, the better qualified leads you get, the more leads you convert into customers. Prioritizing and properly planning this process includes creating carefully thought out messages and implementing a way to deliver those messages so people actually see them.

Figuring out the exact content and timing of text messages takes some trial and error when first starting out, no matter the method of communication. However, lead nurturing done through texting still means quicker outreach.

Once you optimize your lead nurturing, you then take all of your same leads and convert more of them into customers. You’ll have shortened the sales cycle, saved time, and made more money to boot.

Texting transforms business communication with leads and customers alike. And what person doesn’t want quicker replies from a business? It’s a win-win situation you can’t afford to miss out on.

Get the Best Lead Nurturing on the Market Today

Skipio helps you close more sales, respond faster, and meet with better qualified leads. How?

Because it allows you to immediately reach out to all leads, set appointments with automated confirmations and reminders, and follow up personally.