What is Transactional SMS?
Do you ever get strange text messages from companies telling you that your order is ready for delivery? Maybe a text message telling you when your hotel reservation has been confirmed? Congratulations if so! You know a lot more about commercial SMS than you think.
Almost 98% of individuals who receive notifications read them. Given this, it's no wonder that transactional SMS from bulk SMS providers have become the preferred means of client engagement for many businesses and organizations around the world. It is non-marketing and focused on improving customer relations by building a healthy relationship between the business and its intended audience.
What is a transactional SMS? and how does it work?
Bulk SMS is a method of sending transactional SMS. It is a type of pre-programmed SMSthatacompanyor organizationsendstoitsusersorcustomersto provideimportant information on how to directly use the company's products or services. Transactional Text messages sent by bulk SMS service providers are often non-marketing and nonpromotional, indicating that the text message was triggered by the customer's choice and providing individualized details of the transaction between the business and the customer.
For example, if your organization conducts online financial transactions, you can send an electronic receipt to your customers via a transactional SMS. The concept of using SMS to sell goods has changed immensely over the years. Just a few years ago, most
businesses depended only on SMS advertising to promote their products and services to their customers.
Instead of focusing on promotional marketing, the focus has shifted to informative communications that help customers throughout the customer lifecycle. As a result, the mechanics of store-customer relationships have changed radically.
How you can grow your business with bulk SMS service
When items are shipped, up to 80% of customers prefer to track their orders via text. In addition, nearly half of potential consumers chose to establish a company brand after receiving an SMS from them, allowing them to engage on a more personal level.
If three out of four consumers show interest in your product and contact you about it, it is clear that mass communication is effective in increasing sales. With this in mind, it's no wonder that organizations both small and large rely heavily on bulk SMS services to ensure 24/7 customer care.
Transactional in addition to being more engaging for clients, text messages are also more time-sensitive and trustworthy, ensuring quick and secure delivery of important information and upgrades over a secure connection.
Types of transaction SMS
While the main objective remains the same, sending important transactional information to clients at the right time, there are several types of transactional SMS used for different purposes. You can use transactional SMS with bulk SMS services in different ways depending on your purpose and type of purchase and regardless of the products and services you sell.
Purchase confirmations, shipping and arrival notifications, one-time passwords, and ereceipts are some of the most common forms of transactional SMS.
One Time Passwords (OTP): To keep your system secure, transactional SMS can be used to send OTPs to customers. Automated one-time passwords can be used to verify consumer behaviour such as logins, transactions, and other activities.
•Transactional SMS allows you to deliver critical information about your products or services to your customers. For example, if you own an online business, you can send
these notifications to your customers to let them know about purchase status, delivery updates, delivery information, and payments, among other things. This will help you keep your clients updated throughout the process, from start to finish.
•Confirm or reject a reservation: Customers can be informed about the status of their reservation for a hotel stay, travel or other activity by sending transactional messages using a bulk SMS service provider.
•Essential Alerts: Sending transactional SMS to your customers to notify them of specific activities can help your business provide better customer service. Keeping your customers informed about important events, whether it's a meeting or a business transaction, is key to maintaining fruitful working relationships.
Transactional v/s promotional SMS
To promote their goods and services, businesses send promotional text messages to potential clients. Marketing SMS delivery is largely used for advertising and marketing purposes, with investment being the main draw.
In addition, transactional texts are used to send non-commercial messages to clients and to deliver important transactional data. Only transactional SMS can be sent to corporate subscribers to inform them of events and modifications that have absolutely no connection with promotional activities.
Alternatively, transactional SMS focuses on providing benefits to clients through personalized and distinctive text messages, as opposed to simply promoting your goods and/or services. Unlike promotional SMS, transactional SMS are triggered by client actions.
Transactional SMS can only be sent after the consumer completes the transaction, but you can send promotional SMS to potential customers at any time about a price reduction your business is offering.
Impact of SMS on business
Each type of SMS, whether transactional or marketing, has a different function that depends on the type of company sending it. Consequently, your goals and the effectiveness with which you use each message will determine the impact each type of SMS will have on your company.
Promotional SMS is the way to go if you want to increase website traffic, client loyalty and purchase prices. Promotional messages describe discounts, special offers, and other things your business provides. They can also help you sell your products and services
and have a positive impact on the economy by using classic marketing techniques faster and more effectively.
Transactional SMS are a powerful tool for increasing user engagement by giving users access to information, building brand trust or helping businesses build relationships with consumers by sending important information about their goods or services.
Examples of transactional SMS
Depending on the purpose and goal, transaction texts can be applied in different ways.
• Welcome messages
As the name suggests, invitation messages are personalized text messages that you can send to new customers once they sign up for one of your company's services.
• Order status details
When clients order products from your online store, you can provide regular updates on the status of their orders.
• Recurring invoices and payments
With transaction you can inform your customers about all their financial transactions.
• Delivery notification
It is easy to inform your consumers that their purchased products have been delivered safely and on schedule to their designated locations.
Conclusion
In conclusion, transactional SMS is essential for companies that want to improve their customers' experience using rich communication methods. If your company does not have the necessary expertise and connectors to automate transactional SMS, you can turn to specialized e-commerce platforms for bulk SMS APIs. They will help you combine and implement better bulk SMS service techniques with the right technologies and equipment, allowing your company to grow at a faster pace.
References:
Do’s and Don’ts of Bulk SMS Marketing
Bulk SMS is effective Channel in 2023