SMS can be incredibly effective for your business, but there’s more to it than just sending texts. Here’s everything to look out for when you’re shopping around – from price to security.
How much will you be paying for your business texts?
You know how the old saying goes: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Make sure there are no hidden fees or ‘add-ons’, such as monthly charges for sender IDs. Look out for these things before you sign up.
Top tip: If you’re new to SMS, we’d recommend trying a pay-as-you-go option. It’s flexible. You don’t have to commit to contracts, especially while you’re trying things out.
How secure is the SMS platform?
Security should be every provider’s top priority. Choose a platform that demonstrates and evidences a strong focus on security to ensure your data and your customer’s data is secure.
Look out for providers who go above and beyond certifications. Initiatives such as the Mobile Economic Forum (MEF) work to protect consumers against spam and fraud by educating businesses and influence standards for safe communications. FireText is an MEF signatory, which means we work with the forum to operate a business SMS code of conduct that protects users and recipients from unwanted messages.
By taking a holistic approach to security, this helps businesses communicate with customers safely and credibly, via a secure and trusted channel.
Top tip: A secure platform keeps your data, and your customer’s data, safe. This should be a standard, not an added bonus, so look out for official security accreditations such as ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus. Some providers’ only security awareness is saying they are GDPR compliant. This isn’t a security badge, it’s a necessity.
Will your SMS messages be sent via reliable networks?
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. Sending via UK Tier-1 networks means your messages will be sent in the same way as your usual mobile SMS, ensuring your campaigns are sent not only securely, but in an instant. You wouldn’t want a bad actor who’s sharing your connection to bring your campaign to a crashing halt.
Top tip: To understand the reliability of SMS providers, look out for elements such as uptime, the amount of messages they send and the type of networks you use.
Is your SMS provider independent?
Some SMS providers create multiple brands to compete against each themselves, often coming from a false advertising position. Beware of these tactics – it can often give you the illusion that you’re shopping around. As the UK’s largest independent provider, here at FireText we send more in the UK than most of them put together.
Will you receive good customer support?
As an SMS company, we often see customers coming to us after a poor experience elsewhere. Unfortunately, they were impacted by slow response times from other providers, last-minute changes to the platform, or dramatic prices hikes after being drawn in with cheap upfront rates.
As a company, we at FireText have formed a blueprint for top-tier customer service not just in the SMS world, but in any industry. Our team send real-time emails and are always around for a chat – no robots or virtual queues.
Top tip: Before choosing a platform, we recommend looking at recent reviews regarding customer support. Dig deep, you’ll be surprised! This will give you a real insight into the sort of experience you’ll get. Email us at hello@firetext.co.uk to get a glimpse of the kind of experience you’ll get with FireText.
Will they help you grow your business?
Good SMS providers will help you create effective campaigns. From our experience, we know that the best content and segmenting brings the best results, so we help our customers by offering support with content and best practices, to be in it for the long term. Learn what did and didn’t go well with every message and use this knowledge to keep improving.
We’ll work with you to view the results of every campaign and review your content on a 1:1 basis. We’ll also provide resources that help you transform your text messages.
Top tip: When you’re looking at providers, keep an eye out for testimonials and case studies. This will give you an idea of how much they support customers for the long term.
Get started with business SMS!
Check out our business SMS page to learn more about the FireText platform and experience. This includes best practice business SMS examples, and a breakdown of features depending on your use case. If you’d like to chat to one of us humans, please send us an email by clicking below…
