A transactional SMS is an automated SMS message companies send for non-marketing purposes in response to an event or action triggered by customers to assist them throughout their journey. Common examples include order confirmations, welcome messages, and shipping updates.
With technological advancement, customers increasingly demand more immediate and personalized interactions. So, staying connected with customers and providing timely information is essential for every business’s success.
Traditional communication channels like email have low open rates and slow response times, and important messages are often lost in the shuffle. This is where Transactional SMS comes into play. SMS transactional messages facilitate direct and effective communication with customers in real-time. Businesses can deliver very urgent information, updates, and alerts directly to their customers’ fingertips by utilizing these services.
In this comprehensive guide, you will learn about the definition, types, and use cases of transaction SMS. We will also cover how it can help your business improve customer engagement, satisfaction, and loyalty.
🔑 KEY HIGHLIGHTS:
- Transactional SMS has several benefits, such as high open rates and readability, increased conversion rates, third-party integration, being helpful to people, and working even without the internet.
- The major transactional SMS types are user account-related messages, service-related messages, e-commerce order-related messages, government and & other organizations, and many more.
- The use-case examples of transactional text messages are payment & billing alerts, service updates, appointment reminders, order confirmations, and many more.
- The best practices for implementing SMS transactional messages are to keep the messages short and sweet, make them informational, use a clear CTA, provide clear instructions on how to opt-out and use professional transactional SMS services.
What are the benefits of Transactional SMS?
Transactional SMS is a non-marketing automated message sent to an audience along their customer journey. The business organization mainly provides important and time-sensitive information about an account or transaction data to enhance customer engagement and trust, and streamline operations.
Let’s see the several benefits of transactional SMS for both customers and business organizations:
- High open rates & readability: Transactional text messages are one of the most reliable ways to reach your message in front of your audience, and they have a high trustworthy rate compared to email and social media posting. According to Startupbonsai, it has a nearly 100% delivery rate and a 98% average open rate within 3 minutes of receipt.
- Helpful to people: Transactional SMS are more informational and time-sensitive. They always help people or customers by keeping them up-to-date on important account activity, orders, bookings, etc. They effectively increase customers’ impressions of your company and is one of the efficient b2b social selling strategies.
- Increased conversion rates: With high open and engagement rates, people will have more chances to read and act on your important messages. This can help reduce missed appointments, late payments, and more. As a result, it improves the customer service experience.
- Integrates with your favorite apps and CMS: Some transactional SMS services also integrate with other apps to send SMS alongside email triggers for a fully automated and seamless experience.
- Simple & easy implementation: Customers can easily opt-in to receive transactional SMS when signing up or in their account profile. Businesses can get started quickly with a professional transactional SMS service that handles sending bulk SMS.
- No internet, no problem: Customers can receive transactional messages and notifications such as password reset anywhere without wifi connections. Making it a reliable way to communicate important updates to teams or clients.
Types of Transactional SMS and its examples
Transactional SMS has a variety of use cases that help businesses communicate important, non-promotional information to customers. As it simplifies customer’s experience by helping them through every phase of the customer journey. You probably get transactional SMS messages regularly too without even noticing about it.
Let’s take a look at some popular examples of transactional text messages along with their types:
1. User account-related messages:
Account activity notifications
Transactional SMS informs customers about important account activity, such as login attempts, password resets, and other security-related events. These messages help customers maintain their account status and protect against unauthorized access.
Notification Example: “There has been a login attempt on your Pinterest account from a new device. If this is not you, please contact our support team immediately.”
One-time passwords (OTPs)
Many business websites use one-time passwords(OTP) sent via text as an additional layer of security for account access. When a customer tries to log in or perform a sensitive action, they’ll receive a unique OTP code that they must enter to verify their identity.
The notification example of OTP is “Your one-time password for logging into Semrush is 547840. Enter this code to access your account.”
Two-factor authentication codes
Like OTPs, two-factor authentication (2FA) codes are sent via SMS, providing an extra verification step to protect customer accounts. After entering their password and username, the customer will receive a 2FA code. To use any website and account, customers must complete the login process by entering an input code.
The main purpose of 2FA is to secure and authenticate both businesses and customers.
The two-factor authentication codes notification example “To access your Semrush account; please enter the 2-factor authentication code 987654 on the login page.”
2. Service-related messages
Payment and billing alerts
Businesses must be clear about the details regarding payment and billing alerts. The account person must clearly state the due date, the amount due, and the various payment methods that customers can use to make their payments. It’s also a good idea to highlight any late fees or penalties that may apply if the payment is missed.
Providing a link or instructions for making payments online using a phone helps the customers. Consider sending transactional data alerts 2-3 weeks before the due date, a reminder 1 week before each customer, and maintain a friendly environment.
Notification examples:” We’re sorry that your subscription renewal for 1123335 has failed. Please update your payment details to ensure your subscription remains active.”
Service updates
Service update messages are essential to inform your customers about the organization’s offering campaign and operations changes. By transmitting this message, customers will easily know what has changed and when the change will take effect. For this, businesses must outline first how the change will impact customers and any actions they may need to take.
They should also provide contact information for customers to reach out with any questions or concerns. Plus, sending the updates as soon as possible is essential, followed by a reminder closer to the effective date. Also, use polite and soft language to your customers.
Notification examples: “We’re excited to announce that we will upgrade our network service in your area starting 1st March. This upgrade will provide faster speeds and improved reliability.”
Appointment reminders
Appointment reminders ensure customers don’t forget about their scheduled meetings and quickly deliver appointment confirmation messages to customers and others. Send these reminders 1-2 days before the appointment, including the date, time, location, and reason for the appointment.
A few minutes before, inform customers about rules and regulations and suggest they arrive early. Moreover, including contact details helps to maintain some cases, such as when the customer needs to reschedule or cancel. Hence, you can use gentle reminder emails for four important appointment reminders.
Notification examples:” This is a reminder from Fashion Design and Solution Pvt. Ltd. confirming your appointment on 5th March at 12:00 am at Perth.”
3. E-commerce order-related messages:
Order confirmation
Order confirmation SMS is an automated text message sent to customers immediately after they place an order, confirming their purchase details. When sending an order confirmation SMS, you must list the items ordered, their quantities, pricing, and the estimated delivery date.
Provide the order number prominently and include a link to track the shipment. You must also include your return exchange policy and contact information if the customer has any questions. Use friendly, appreciative language to express your gratitude to your customers and businesses.
Notification example: “ We’re excited to let you know that your order no. 112 for Sunscreen has been shipped. Your package is expected to arrive on July 16th.”
Payment confirmation
Payment confirmation emails are the next step, sent after the customer’s payment has been successfully processed. This message should include the payment method, amount charged, and order details.
While sending the payment confirmation SMS, you can provide a link to the order status page so customers can easily check the fulfillment progress. Restate policy and privacy and mention any loyalty points or rewards earned by your business company that help to create a trustworthy environment for your customers.
Notification examples:” Dear customer, This is to confirm that your payment of $60 for Sandal was successfully processed on 15th July 2024.”
Order cancellation confirmation
Order cancellation confirmation message is sent to customers whenever they want to cancel their order, providing details about the cancellation. The SMS clearly states the order number, items canceled, refund amount, and method.
Facilitate a timeframe for when the refund will be credited to their account. You must include your cancellation policy and contact information if they have other questions. Use an understanding and friendly tone to acknowledge their decision to cancel.
Notification examples:” We have processed your request to cancel order #46. Your order has been successfully canceled, and you will receive a full refund of $[51] soon. We’re sorry to see you go. Please let us know if there is anything we could have done better to meet your needs.”
4. Government and other organizations
Emergency alerts
Time is of the essence during an emergency. Communication delays can result in confusion, panic, and loss of life. Transactional messages facilitate numerous advantages, making them the best method for sending urgent notifications.
Notification examples: ” Flood expected in Nile area from 12 am. Seek immediate shelter in a safe location and avoid low-lying areas and driving. Stay safe and updated with the latest news lines.“
Voting reminders
Transactional SMS sends an alert to voter reminders about upcoming elections, polling locations, hours, and other critical voting information. A good meeting invitation message helps you quickly inform your community members about upcoming meetings for discussion.
Notification example, “Election day is Tuesday, November 5th. Polls are opening from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Please find your polling place by visiting our website.”
General alerts and notices
Some general alerts and notices are intended to share important announcements, policy updates, safety, time-sensitive, and environmental information, such as introducing new practices, communicating lessons learned from incidents, and providing information about government services. Hence, Transactional SMS effectively delivers general alerts and notices about events and other news.
Notification examples: “ This is to notify you that the Kathmandu Street area will be closed for construction work from June 15th through June 18th. The closure will be in effect daily from June 14th to June 19th.”
What are some of the Transactional SMS best practices?
Using a professional transactional SMS service is important when sending important, time-sensitive messages to customers. These services ensure your messages are delivered more securely to the right people.
Here are some guidelines for Transactional SMS best practices:
1. Keep it short and sweet
The transactional SMS allows you to send 160 characters only at a time. A short and sweet message can hook your reader’s attention and set the tone, whether profound, academic, or conversational.
You can insert the URL to provide additional information. Remember, you should use straightforward language that is easy for your recipient to understand.
2. Keep your transactional messages informational
You should provide Transactional messages to your customers with actionable information rather than promotional content. Provide updates and confirmations about customer interactions with a business. Stick to facts and avoid any sales language or calls to action.
By keeping transactional SMS messages informational, businesses can ensure that customers receive the updates they need without feeling overwhelmed with unnecessary content. This approach helps serve as an important touchpoint for maintaining customer trust and satisfaction.
3. Use a clear CTA
A clear CTA(Call-to-Action) is essential for transactional SMS. Avoid using many words or complicated language that may confuse the audience. The CTA should also stand out on the page and grab visitors’ attention.
CTA also provides the proper guidelines for customers on what to do next, whether logging into an account, tracking an order, or confirming an appointment.
4. Provide clear instructions on how to Opt-out
You should provide clear instructions on how to opt out of receiving SMS messages at any time. Based on the messaging principle and best practices, you must give multiple opt-out steps through a phone or email.
So, include simple instructions like “Reply STOP to unsubscribe” to make it easy for customers to opt out of receiving future transactional messages.
5. Use a professional transactional SMS service
A professional transactional SMS platform ensures reliable and efficient messaging, offering numerous benefits like fast delivery, user-friendly interfaces, and real-time analytics. It also follows relevant standards and regulations.
In addition, some professional transactional SMS services automatically send messages at a large scale based on specific accounts, orders, or appointment events. Consider using a service provider like AWS SNS, Sinch, etc.
Conclusion
Transactional SMS is the ultimate tool for any modern business organization to communicate critical information to customers. It significantly improves customer satisfaction, increases engagement, and boosts business productivity and revenue By cutting through crowded email inboxes.
Transactional SMS is used for many different purposes in many other industries. Some use case examples of transactional SMS, such as account activity notification, OTP, 2FA, and many more, illustrate the adaptability and efficiency of transactional text messages. The importance of transactional SMS in accomplishing these objectives is growing as businesses look for ways to enhance their communication approaches.
FAQ
What is the difference between Transactional SMS vs Promotional SMS?
Transactional SMS messages are mainly used to send informational and time-sensitive messages to registered customers, whereas promotional SMS messages are mainly used for marketing and sales messages.
