SMS 2 Way: Today, text messaging is still one of, if not the top, uses for cell phones. It works well for customer interaction and customer relationship management.
For this reason, a lot of companies and brands are quickly implementing SMS to communicate with their clients via one-way and SMS 2 Way messages.
Viber and WhatsApp are two messaging apps with a bright future, however, they have now fragmented platforms with certain business limits.
On the other side, SMS provides businesses with an almost guaranteed method of contacting their clients, despite how straightforward the technology is.
Businesses that wish to communicate one-way transactional information to consumers must have access to an SMS API.
Transactional messages might include alerts, reminders, confirmations, and PIN numbers. However, using SMS 2 Way has a lot of promise outside of transactional texting.
How does SMS 2 Way operate and what is it?
SMS 2 Way is a kind of programme or service that enables text message sending and receiving.
SMS 2 Way may be used in the business world to text clients and get replies back from them. It works well for increasing engagement and for getting your consumers to do something particular.
Customers can get messages (automated answers) from the business SMS service that are intended to improve customer experiences by using a conversational SMS service.
Traditional texting and this type of SMS Blaster communication differ slightly from one another. The SMS is delivered using a sender ID, a shortcode, or a long code and is carried out via an API.
Customers can reply to SMS 2 Way communications using pre-programmed instructions like “Y” for “yes” and “N” for “no,” among others.
Applications of SMS 2 Way:
Using SMS 2 Way to interact with clients relies on what you want your messages to achieve. Simply asking yourself (or your team), “What’s next?” is all that is required.
Once you’ve made a decision on what you require, you may create the ideal SMS sequence. Here is one instance. Assume you are at the office of Dental care and you have to send One Way SMS to your patients.
How would SMS 2 Way allow you to expand on that?
- Firstly, clear your patients what they have to do with your Appointment. Either they want to reschedule it or cancel it.
- Think about what should occur after they react. You may programme an automated answer, such as “Thanks, see you then,” to be sent if the receiver confirms.
- You may use conversational messaging to provide the patient with several available times throughout the course of the following week if the receiver requests to postpone.
- After this, what comes next? Client’s patients go to the Dental clinic twice a year. So you could immediately schedule the following appointment and utilize SMS to notify them the following day with a link to add the appointment to their calendar.
When you need to generate business through marketing efforts, SMS 2 Way is also perfect. Suppose you run a restaurant and during the sluggish period you need to send food with offers. You might:
- Send a message with the special offer and a link to your website to your opted-in SMS marketing list.
- Next, what? Make sure to ask your client whether they are willing to secure or book their table.
- The following step is to confirm the number of individuals the reservation is for if they answer yes.
- Send the table’s available times next.
- They might reply with a text to request to reserve a table at the desired time using the replies you’ve instructed the subscriber to use.
Almost any customer service-focused organization, including retail, spas, hotels, and restaurants, may use this type of SMS marketing.
How to configure SMS 2 Way for your company?
- Create your free account on the SMS service provider company.
- Use your API key by logging in with your account.
- Next, confirm that you are the sender of the message by registering your phone number or requesting a sender ID from the service provider.
- Send our Quickstart guide to your developer so they may learn how to use our API and send their first text message to clients.
- You must ask the service provider for an “inbound number” in order to receive text messages. Your clients will text you using this number, which is either a short code or a long code.
- This API reference outlines the request parameters for receiving messages from your clients. Give it to your developer.
- Consider the kind of SMS 2 Way you want to send and how you want your clients to reply when the technical side of things is set up.
- If you’ve connected service Provider API, you’ll be able to generate your SMS campaigns directly from your CRM tool when you’re ready. Text messages may also be sent using Service Provider’s web dashboard.
Final Thought:
The client is the primary focus of the growth into new channels. They desire the same level of interaction with businesses that they do with their friends. From retail to banking, they have led this transition across industries. Businesses must check a number of boxes if they want to stand out in a customer-focused environment.
SMS integration into your channel suite is practical and economical in addition to making consumers happy (win!). The TCPA, a consumer protection law, covers SMS and was created to guarantee that individuals are only contacted when they wish to be.