More and more businesses and organizations are taking advantage of SMS messaging to get their message into the hands of their customers. Whether it’s a flash sales coupon, appointment reminder, or weather alert, SMS is an engaging method of communication that organizations across all industries can leverage — especially with the right tools.
There are tools available that allow users to send mass SMS sends, which is great. Bulk SMS sends allow for you to get a mass message out to a large audience quickly and easily. But, what happens if someone responds? Once you begin dealing with two-way SMS communication, bulk SMS no longer works so you have two options: respond manually or look to an SMS autoresponder.
With an SMS autoresponder you can have pre-set answers to questions audience members may ask. For example, if you send out an appointment reminder using an SMS autoresponder, you can ask the recipient to confirm their attendance by responding with a specified word or phrase. If they do so, they will then receive a pre-set thank you message. Recipients could also have the option to cancel the appointment from the same message and receive a different message than if they confirm. The best part? It all happens automatically.
So, if you’re looking to provide two-way SMS communication with your audience, an SMS autoresponder is definitely a good tool to have. But, which one? Here’s a quick list of some features you should look for to ensure you have the most complete solution available.
Shortcodes and keywords – Shortcodes allow you to easily opt-in new contacts by having them text into a specific six-digit number with one of your specified keywords. This allows for improved delivery and easy recognition.
Response operations – When a contact responds, they should be able to automatically receive a reply based on the content of their message automatically. The right SMS autoresponder solution should allow you to easily set up this decision logic ahead of time in order to provide engaging SMS communication.
Message scheduling – Timing is everything. A solution with the ability to schedule messages will allow you to ensure your message is seen at the ideal time and date.
Contact management – From storing basic details to recording how they interact with your messages, having built-in contact management means you don’t need to look for another separate solution for contact storage. Thus, you don’t have to worry about importing data whenever you want to create an SMS campaign.
Multi-channel capability – Building off having built-in contact management, imagine having all of your communication needs in one platform. From email and SMS to voice, social media, and more, a multi-channel platform allows you to provide engagement across all mediums, which creates consistency no matter what channel a recipient is on.
See what SimplyCast has to offer.
SimplyCast’s SMS autoresponder solution is part of its all-in-one engagement automation platform. See how the platform can work for you by trying it free for 14 days.
