{"id":24,"date":"2012-07-17T16:37:00","date_gmt":"2012-07-17T15:37:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.firetext.co.uk\/blog\/?p=24"},"modified":"2023-02-10T15:46:12","modified_gmt":"2023-02-10T15:46:12","slug":"sms-marketing-buyers-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.firetext.co.uk\/blog\/sms-marketing-buyers-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"SMS Marketing: Buyer’s guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

SMS marketing<\/a> can be incredibly effective. But there\u2019s more to it than just sending texts \u2014 from handling responses to personalising messages. So how do you choose the right SMS provider? FireText’s Dan Parker offers some valuable advice.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Businesses are increasingly turning to SMS as a simple and cost-effective marketing tool to boost their awareness, customer service and importantly, revenues. Whether it\u2019s an e-commerce business updating customers on the status of their order, a hotel confirming reservations or even a veterinary clinic reminding customers of their pooch\u2019s annual vaccine, the technology is quite simple and familiar too \u2014 after all we\u2019ve all seen and used text messages for years.<\/p>\n

So choosing a company to assist with this should be easy too. Right? Well, there are a few points to consider when searching for a reliable provider.<\/p>\n

Sending SMS messages via reliable networks<\/h4>\n

The routing of your SMS messages can have a serious impact on your campaign. Sending messages via overseas connections can be unreliable with numerous delays, if received at all (trust us, we tried once. It sucks!). Sending via UK Tier-1 networks means your messages will be sent in the same way as your usual mobile SMS.<\/p>\n

Paying for your SMS campaign<\/h4>\n

Some providers sell blocks of credits rather than blocks of SMS messages. You\u2019ll need to check this, as often messages to the UK can be more than one credit \u2014 therefore the price per message will be more than first thought. The majority of SMS providers will require payment in advance for blocks of messages. Make sure you know the real cost!<\/p>\n

Receiving SMS message replies<\/h4>\n

Marketing campaigns are all about getting responses, that\u2019s the first rule of the marketing club. As such, it astounds us how few providers offer any kind of response handling mechanism. You\u2019ll probably want to receive replies at some stage \u2014 whether this is a call-to-action or to handle un-subscribes (for instance, to opt-out, reply ‘stop’). Look for the additional costs for receiving replies or setting up a number to do so. Some companies bundle this altogether to make it really easy \u2014 other companies will offer you the ability to piece it together yourself. There are plenty of options to suit your requirements.<\/p>\n

Delivery reporting<\/h4>\n

Very few companies now have additional charges to receive delivery receipts. However, it\u2019s worth checking \u2014 you\u2019ll want to know which numbers are no longer in use and those that are.<\/p>\n

Try the messaging service out first!<\/h4>\n

This is all about personal preference. You should have the ability to try out the software beforehand with a handful of messages. You may like to integrate SMS into your website; be able to send the occasional SMS from within your email; schedule messages or even personalise each and every one. Whatever the requirements, it is worth making sure the software behind the system is easy to use and makes your message sending a success.<\/p>\n

Trust your instinct<\/h4>\n

Does the company have a reputable customer base? Do these customers seem happy with the service? These are things we all think about when making any purchase, and it\u2019s no different here. Whether you are a seasoned hand or a SMS newbie, you may require some additional support with message ideas now and then. It\u2019s definitely worth testing this out right at the beginning \u2014 simply ask the question.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SMS marketing can be incredibly effective. But there\u2019s more to it than just sending texts \u2014 from handling responses to personalising messages. So how do you choose the right SMS provider? FireText’s Dan Parker offers some valuable advice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":158,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sms-tips"],"yoast_head":"\nSMS Marketing: Buyer's guide - SMS Marketing Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.firetext.co.uk\/blog\/sms-marketing-buyers-guide\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"SMS Marketing: Buyer's guide - SMS Marketing Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"SMS marketing can be incredibly effective. 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