What is a special character?

A special character is any symbol, punctuation mark, or icon that goes beyond the standard letters and numbers of the alphabet. These characters may include emojis, letters, and other symbols used for specific purposes in your SMS marketing initiatives.

When it comes to SMS marketing messages, the special characters they most commonly contain are emojis.

How to test special characters

Using special characters, especially emojis, in SMS messages can boost engagement and click rates. Still, not all subscribers will react the same way to messages that include them. Run tests and see how your audience responds.

Follow the steps below to determine the optimal use of special characters in your SMS marketing efforts:

  1. Define your testing goals: Clearly outline what you want to achieve with your test and identify specific metrics you will track. For example, your goal might be to increase click rates by 10% through optimised emoji usage.
  2. Create test variations: Create different SMS messages with varying levels of special character usage. For example, you could focus on testing emoji frequency in your SMS messages or create emojis vs. no emojis variations for comparison.
  3. Check for deliverability and display issues: Not all mobile devices and carriers consistently support special characters. For example, older phone models or certain network providers might not display emojis correctly. When you use a special character, make sure that your SMS messages will be displayed as intended on all mobile devices.
  4. Segment your audience: Divide your audience into different segments based on demographics, behaviour, or preferences. Test different special character combinations with each segment to identify optimal usage. For example, you could test different emoji combinations with younger and older audiences.
  5. Analyse and optimise: Carefully analyse the results of your test to identify trends and patterns. Determine which special character combinations and frequencies drive the best results. Refine your SMS initiatives based on the insights gained from tests.

A marketing automation platform like Klaviyo can help you test the use of special characters in your SMS marketing initiatives. With its A/B testing capabilities, you can easily create and manage different message variations.

Use Klaviyo’s advanced segmentation to target specific audience segments with tailored messages. Klaviyo also offers valuable insights and analytics to help you understand your initiative’s performance and make data-driven decisions.

Ready to refine your SMS marketing strategy, increase engagement, and drive better results? Sign up for Klaviyo today.

Additional resources