Ever notice the name or number at the top of a text message? This is called a sender ID. When you’re sending business SMS, you have two sender ID options: to send from your brand name or from what we call a reply number. Here, we explain when, why and how to use them.
Option 1: Send from your brand name
Sending from your brand name means your recipients will recognise you straight away. In this scenario, your recipients cannot reply to the message. This is because there is no number for the response to route through to. But you have other options…
Can I send from my brand name & receive replies?
Not directly. But you can actually encourage recipients to respond via a reply number in a new message thread. See the example below 👇
An even easier option is to include a ‘tap-to-text’ link, which we can create for you once you have a reply number set up. See the example below 👇
A tap-to-text link allows a recipient to click on the link to be taken to a new SMS thread, with a pre-populated message box (usually a keyword) to send straight to your reply number. When the recipient clicks the link, they’re taken to a new message thread, like below 👇
You can also set up a auto-response, so that when the recipient sends the keyword, they receive a confirmation message. For example:
“Thanks for confirming you’d like a callback! A comfort expert will give you a call shortly. If you’re busy, not a problem – we’ll personally follow up to arrange a time that suits you 🙂“
Top tip: Your sender ID can be up to 11 alphanumeric characters long. So you can get a bit creative. For example, if your company name was ‘Personal Computer Fixers Ltd’, you could change your sender ID to ‘PCFixers’. We recommend excluding any spaces, as when you send the message, most mobiles will typically strips out spaces.
Option 2: Send from a reply number
Businesses send from a reply number when they want to receive replies in the same message. With a reply number, it’s important to make it clear who the message is coming from.
When recipients reply to you, these replies go directly into your FireText account in your ‘received’ messages section. You can also set up ‘forwards‘, so that when a recipient replies, you’re notified of the incoming message via email.
And that’s not all! You can set up as a many keywords as you like on your reply number. This is super handy. With every keyword you set up, the recipient texting it in is added to your chosen contact group, allowing you to create even more targeted messages.
Contemplating which SMS sender ID to use?
We’ll help you out – email us at hello@firetext.co.uk and one of our lovely account managers will guide you in the right direction 😀