Consider the proven results of messaging campaigns: MarketingProfs reported SMS marketing has a whopping 98% read rate, while 40% of text messages actually receive a response from customers. And when it comes to paying via text messaging, customers enjoy the convenience just as much. From mobile readers to crypto transactions, digital payments are fast and convenient.

Why would a business expand its customer tools to offer payment solutions via text messaging? A study conducted in 2020 by Weave found that 35% of customers are interested in paying with a text from their phone.

Convenience and Personalization

By offering flexibility and convenience to customers, businesses are more likely to improve their accounts receivable turnover ratios. Companies with high accounts receivable turnover ratios indicate that they collect payments from customers quickly without long waiting periods.

In addition, customers may also enjoy the personal, casual aspects of receiving text messages rather than formal bills sent via snail mail or email with a deadline to pay. In fact, a 2014 industry survey found that 52% of customers would be likely to text with a live customer support agent, and that the same percentage would prefer texting instead of their current method of reaching customer support.

One limitation to consider is the nature of SMS and MMS messages sent in the United States. Your messaging provider can make the physical and backend parts of their systems secure, but no one can secure messages once they are enroute without the special security environment provided by over-the-top apps like WhatsApp.

Compliance

Perhaps the number one priority for businesses accepting text payments is the need to be PCI compliant. If you don’t plan to process payments yourself, make sure you partner with a vendor who builds compliance into their interactions with your customers.

There are only 12 requirements your business must meet to accept debit and credit card payments, but being aware of these requirements is only half the battle. You must also adhere to them in your systems and transactions.

To ensure you take no shortcuts with compliance in text payments, practice these rules:

• Partner with a payment processor that has a solid track record of compliance
• Know the ins-and-outs of sensitive cardholder data
• Establish crisis and incident response plans
• Conduct regular security audits

Payment Data Storage

Storing cardholder data – account numbers, pins, CVVS, and more – is also a critical aspect of a company’s PCI compliance and security when accepting text payments. When data breaches occur, scammers are often skimming cardholder data.

In an ironic twist, your company’s own employees may be a major cause of non-compliance if they are not handling cardholder data appropriately. A Veritas Technologies study of international office workers found that 71% employees are exposing companies to risk by sharing sensitive data outside of the businesses that employ them.

Training employees in ethical and secure data handling is just as important as ensuring your internal controls and infrastructure meet compliance standards. Many companies choose to bring in an outside expert to establish data security standards and train employees for mobile payment practices.

The ability to accept payments or store personal information is becoming increasingly popular with global companies. In fact, banks and other financial institutions use WhatsApp to send bank balances, overdraft alerts and other inquiries to their customers via messaging. WhatsApp, which is supported by SMS-Magic, also has the ability to safely secure personal data.

BYOD Policies

With the rise of remote and mobile work, many companies have developed “bring your own device” policies. Guided by these policies, employees are allowed (or encouraged) to use personal devices that are not under the purview of the company, even if they are used for business purposes. When employees use their own device to communicate with customers, the employee becomes responsible for ensuring that they are practicing compliant behaviors when they’re engaging in messaging and in text payment processing.

Even secure transmission apps like WhatsApp can make proving secure communications difficult. For example, if a company ever had to conduct a security investigation – internally or externally – it would be difficult to extract information from an employee’s personal device unless individual consent or subpoenas are involved.

That’s why it’s important to make sure your business has an ironclad phone policy for employees using their personal devices for business purposes. Establishing dedicated work apps keeps their communication within a controlled work environment, ensuring you have access to communications if issues arise in mobile payments.

Whether you’re using WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, LINE, or any other messaging channel to accept text payments from customers, your business is making the customers’ lives easier. 

Ensure your company’s infrastructure is prepared to handle this sensitive data by choosing the right payment processors, cybersecurity specialists and messaging solutions to keep you compliant and safe. 

At SMS-Magic, we can help your business securely accept mobile payments from customers via our messaging solution that meets PCI and telecommunications regulations. To chat with an expert, set up a free demo.

Your audience will get used to the same messaging patterns and promotional offers after a while. If they start to feel they can predict the contents of every message they get from you, they’ll likely unsubscribe. How can you keep your marketing campaigns new and engaging?

Creativity and thinking outside the box are key! If you’re looking for some inspiration, check out these four campaign marketing ideas to get you started!

1. Send a Thank You Note . . . With a CTA!

Saying “thank you” is always a great policy, and this applies to messaging campaigns, too! When a customer purchases a product from you, send a follow-up message letting them know you appreciate it. Thank-yous are also welcome after appointments or service calls. Saying “thank you” lets your customers know that you understand they have options, and you’re grateful they chose your business.

However, your thank-you message doesn’t have to stop there! Try incorporating a call to action, or CTA, into your message to drive organic interaction with your business. You could ask customers for feedback on their recent purchase, showing that you care about their long-term satisfaction with your transaction. You can also offer an upgrade or accessory at a discounted rate, or send a free shipping coupon to use on the next purchase. Keep the conversation rolling after a successful transaction by guiding your customer towards their next step!

2. Create Seasonal Connections for Themed Campaigns

The changing seasons carry powerful emotional connections for many people. Some of us look forward to the coziness and festive atmosphere of winter, while others get excited for fall pumpkins and hayrides, summer vacations or spring gardens. Tap into these associations to capture your audience’s interest. Offering special deals, promotions, product spotlights or blog content can be a lot more fun when you make seasonal connections. You can even add emojis or images in multimedia messages for a fun, personal touch! Try incorporating phrases like the following:

• Brrrr! Are you ready for snow? Contact us today to get your furnace winter-ready!
• It’s almost time for flip flops, summer cocktails and beach reads! Is your smile ready for vacation photos? We’re offering 15% off whitening services all month!

Finding creative connections between your product or service and the time of year can boost your relevance in customers’ eyes.

3. Offer Fun Facts To Spark Readers’ Interest

A good messaging campaign has more to offer than just coupons and promotions. The purpose of messaging is to share information. Offering interesting, colorful and relevant informational content can keep your customers excited to open your messages and engage with your brand. Most people enjoy the feeling of learning something new, so tap into that desire by offering little-known facts or statistics that are relevant to your brand conversations. These examples may spark your creativity:

• Did you know that 65% of college students struggle to afford their required textbooks? We offer affordable, quality content to support you and your students. 
• On average, a bar of soap lasts 3x as long as a bottle of body wash. Want to get the most bang for your buck? Check out our new body bars in lavender, vanilla and citrus scents!

4. Appeal to Nostalgia

Nostalgia is in. Vintage clothing, movies and music are all making a comeback, and you can leverage this trend to connect with your audience’s interests. Open a discussion about how things used to be, and then transition to the present-day. Your readers will enjoy the blast from the past (especially if you add images to your message!), and they’ll feel a sense of connection between their generation and your brand. These examples illustrate the power of nostalgia:

• Remember lying in the yard trying to bleach your hair with lemon juice? You deserve the highlights you dreamed of in high school. Book a color appointment today!
• When it comes to romance, there’s nothing quite like a drive-in movie. With our projectors, you can recreate the experience in your backyard!

Reminding your customers of the past not only creates positive associations, but it also gives you the opportunity to highlight ways in which your products or services make life easier.

Are you ready to run more effective marketing campaigns through conversational messaging? Our customer support team can get you started. Contact us for a demo or a free trial!

How you implement conversational messaging, however, will depend on several factors. Here are our suggestions for evaluating your messaging readiness:

1. How many messages do you expect to send per month?
   SMS-Magic is a powerful tool, no matter how many messages you send, but our platform really shines as your volume increases. You can send thousands of text messages in just a few minutes, or you can send eye-catching multimedia files at a slightly slower pace. It’s easy to tailor your message volume to your goals and budget.

2. Do you work with a CRM like Salesforce or Zoho?
   If you send just a handful of messages each month, you can use SMS-Magic without using a customer relationship management tool like Salesforce or Zoho. If, however, you have conversations with more than a few clients or customers, a CRM can help you track your conversations, segment your delivery lists and customize your messaging campaigns. SMS-Magic is a top-rated partner for Salesforce and Zoho, and it integrates with them seamlessly.

3. Do you need to track all your conversations in one place?
   Once you’ve integrated messaging and your CRM, SMS-Magic will store all your messages to a single customer in one record. If you use a practice management tool like Litify, you can see the conversation history in Litify – there’s no need to open both applications. Accessing a conversation history allows contact centers to work more efficiently and reduces customer frustration. Customers don’t have to repeat their stories time and again because the conversation is available to the rep immediately.

4. Do all your employees need the ability to message?
   We can provide messaging access to all your employees – not just your marketing team – if that helps you respond to your customers faster. Some of the law firms that use SMS-Magic have found that empowering all their employees with messaging access allows their staff to respond to client questions and concerns, even if the lead attorney on the case is in court. The message history is available to everyone, so staff members can relay information to clients, follow-up on missing documents or send appointment reminders.

5. Do your employees need messaging access on the go
   The SMS-Magic Mobile App is a great solution when your staff members can’t be in the office. One of our customers, a property management company, has streamlined maintenance requests by converting to messaging. Tenants can use their preferred communication method to report maintenance issues, and staff members can respond promptly, even if they are visiting a property at the time. Because SMS-Magic is integrated into Salesforce for this customer, all conversations are stored for easy access back at the office.

You know how powerful conversational messaging can be. Your customers love it! They read 98% of the messages they receive and respond within three minutes to 95% of them. You can deliver a message at your convenience and your customer can respond at theirs.

Billions of people use messaging platforms like SMS, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp – allowing them to make payments, talk to their bankers, and submit applications from their mobile phones. Conversational messaging has become the preferred business communication channel around the world.

Are you ready to switch to conversational messaging? We’d like to help make your decision easier. Our customer support team would love to show you how SMS-Magic can make reaching your customers easier and more effective with a demo or a free trial!

As chief operating officer for Kwartler Manus, a personal injury law firm based in Philadelphia, Kwartler’s job is to help the firm’s staff convert prospects into clients. Often, he said, when people are seeking representation because of an injury, they contact several law firms to compare services and expertise. Law firms that can quickly connect with prospective clients have the best chance of earning their business.

When Kwartler started working with the firm three years ago, he realized that emails and phone calls were not the best way to start those relationships. He said it was difficult to get people on the phone.

“We’re all busy,” he said. “People can’t answer the phone right away or it’s inconvenient for them to return a message.”

Conversational text messaging, however, allows the firm to reach out quickly and personally. Clients can ask questions in a live interaction at their convenience.

Research about messaging shows that we prefer texts because globally we send 5 billion texts a day and open 98 percent of them. Conversely, we only open our emails 22 percent of the time, according to Gigaom. Research from Asurion shows that we look at our phones at least 96 times a day or once every 10 minutes or more. Kwartler knew that the firm’s prospective customers were just like the rest of us.

He said it was quickly apparent that his firm needed a conversational text messaging solution, and he contacted SMS-Magic. He chose SMS-Magic because it is integrated with Litify, his firm’s management software.

He was interested in getting the most out of both platforms by synching messaging with his management tools. He has had some advanced training with Salesforce and Litify and has become a Litify advocate. SMS-Magic is designed so that all client contacts are recorded in one place within the Litify environment. Anyone in the firm can see exactly what has been communicated, and they don’t have to open a second platform to do it.

“With SMS-Magic, we’re able to respond quickly to initial client queries via text,” he said. “We can start the conversation and tell the client who we are and then make sure we’re talking to the right person. It’s a conversation between the client and one person at the law firm. Clients really like the personalization.”

In addition to personalization, Kwartler Manus clients appreciate the quick response, as well as the opportunity to either move forward with their inquiry or end the contact altogether. And they really like handling it all without actually talking to anyone.

Everyone in the firm has a license to use SMS-Magic. “That way, if a principle or associate is in court, someone else can respond to the client,” Kwartler said.

Kwartler Manus doesn’t market by sending mass emails to potential clients. Instead, the firm includes space for phone numbers on ads and other materials prospective clients can return to the firm to indicate their interest. The firm uses phone numbers to contact prospects by text messaging.

“We wanted to start conversations.” Kwartler said, “So we wanted a texting platform that allowed us to have conversations with our clients. As a client’s case progresses, our staff can text them one-on-one.”

Working with SMS-Magic has been very easy, Kwartler said. He gives SMS-Magic high marks for creating a product that works well and then supporting it with engineers, developers and staff members who care about their customers.

“The SMS-Magic team responds to our texts right away,” he said. “They get back to us within an hour or two – at all times of day. When we’ve needed extra help, they’ve worked with us without the extra charges other companies use.”

After the dramatic initial increase in messages during the first three months – from 89 messages to 2,634 – Kwartler Manus has sent more than 182,850 conversational messages to its clients. The increase in usage has been steady and is currently averaging just under 7,000 messages a month. Kwartler said he couldn’t be happier with the integration of the two systems and the addition of messaging to the firm’s communications tools.

“Integrating SMS-Magic with Litify has given us a real competitive advantage,” he said. “It’s made life easier for our legal teams and has helped us serve our clients better.”

“I think the numbers will show that we’re converting more prospects and earning business we were leaving on the table before we made the switch,” he continued. “I highly recommend SMS-Magic to any law firm or company that needs fast, personal communication that’s trackable.”

If you’re interested in exploring how SMS-Magic can help you respond to your customers, book a DEMO or FREE TRIAL.

One caveat: Before you send surveys via text messaging, your respondents must have opted into receiving messages from you. Like other types of solicitations, you must have their permission before the first message is sent. If you’re already working to grow your opt-in list, this requirement will just be another part of your overall marketing strategy.

Designing Your Survey

Conversational messaging lends itself to two different kinds of surveys. The first is a survey conducted entirely through messaging; the other is a text invitation that links to a web-based survey.

Using messaging for the first type of survey is growing in popularity so it’s possible that you might have taken a “quick” survey that only has one or two questions. Responses are generally limited to yes or no and numerical ratings.

For example, the text might read, “Reply and rate your experience today between 1 and 10.” If you reply “8,” your message goes through. If you answer anything other than a numeral between 1 and 10, however, you might receive a message to try again.

When you use this type of survey in your business, it will be powered by an automated messaging sequence that you’ve designed and written specifically for this task. The first message is generally triggered by something your customer does online or with their mobile phone. You determine the trigger, the sequence of messages and the wording of the messages.

You’ll have to consider what message to send if the input you’ve asked for isn’t what you get. For example, if your customer answers the question above with “Loved it!” you’ll have to write a message that asks them to try again.

The second type of survey invitation contains a link to a web-based survey that lives on your website. You can use any survey design software you prefer to create the survey. Customers will use the link in the texted invitation to access the survey, but they will complete the survey on your website. The survey questions can be yes-no, multiple choice or fill in the blank. You can even provide space for longer qualitative answers, if you want those responses.

How Effective is Conversational Messaging in Surveys?

Researchers at the Pew Research Center wanted to know how effective text messaging is when it’s used as an invitation to take a survey. They didn’t have to worry about getting permission to text during the experiments because they already had a study group whose members had opted into text messaging.

The Pew researchers sent invitations by both text and email to one group and just by email to another. Within 30 minutes of sending the invitations, 15 percent of the text-and-email group had competed the survey, and only 6 percent of the email-only group had. Although the research showed that text recipients initially responded faster to the survey than those invited with an email, by the end of the experiment the responses were equal between the two groups.

Text invitations may be especially effective if your campaign values quick responses. Some contests, for example, could benefit from leveraging fast response times.

Researchers also found that, when invited by texts, more respondents completed surveys using smart phones. A little more than half the respondents invited by text completed the survey using their phones. Only 33 percent of those in the email group completed the survey with their phones.

That result may impact your survey design. If you use text to invite respondents to take your survey, you’ll also want to be sure the survey is easy to read and complete on a smart phone.

Finally, researchers found that using short codes to deliver survey invitations allowed cellphone carriers, device manufacturers and/or individuals to block delivery. Short codes are five- or six-digit codes that allow transmission of messages faster than a traditional 10-digit phone number.

Pew researchers chose to use short codes because of the volume of messages they intended to send. Short codes allowed messages to be transmitted faster, even though some of the messages were blocked.

If you are sending a high volume of messages, you’ll need to determine if short codes will perform better than long codes overall. Using long codes would allow access to those respondents who have blocked short codes but would take longer to send.

How Can SMS-Magic Help You?

Staying in touch with your existing customers and getting to know your potential customers has become a requirement in today’s business world. SMS-Magic, through conversational and automated text messaging, can help you reach out to customers with surveys about their experience with your company.

SMS-Magic offers a free trial so that you can get a feel for our product. If you’re as pleased as we think you will be, you can choose the level of service that’s best for your company.

Contact us to set up a demo or to start your free trial. Let us show you how you can engage your customers in new ways!

To help you master this part of text messaging campaigns, we have compiled 6 things that we’re sure your boss wants you to know. Here they are:

1. You must have express written consent before your company can legally send text messages to anyone. That means more than just asking for their phone number. It doesn’t matter who it is – an existing customer, a former client, a trade-show lead, or someone on a purchased marketing list. Before that first message goes out, your customer must say it’s okay. In other words, they must opt in.

2. Several governing bodies regulate commercial text messaging. They include individual countries, including the U.S., consortiums of countries like the European Union, state or local governments, and the carriers who deliver messages around the world. Your text messaging partner, like SMS-Magic, should be able to help you navigate the rules for your campaigns.

3. Include the following in your first text:
   • Your company name. Don’t make your customers guess who’s sending the message.
   • The promotion premium. If you’re offering a coupon, discount or e-book in exchange for permission to text, do it at the beginning of the text.
   • Message frequency. Let your customers know how often you plan to send.
   • Message and data rates. Remind customers that they might be charged to receive SMS messages.
   • How to opt out. “Reply STOP to unsubscribe” works well.
   • How to reach customer service or ask questions.

You’ve probably received opt-in requests from companies you do business with. Take a look at how well they’ve provided information to their customers. Some of the offers we’ve seen have been really creative. One was on a parking meter. Learn from the best.

4. Track opt-in and opt-out requests so that you send only to the customers who have specifically asked you to. European laws also require you to “forget” a customer at their request. That means purging all their information from your system and being able to show your work. If regulators ever ask, you must be able to prove you have permission to text.

5. In the United States, commercial text messages are governed by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). It prohibits the following types of text messages:
   • Unsolicited Text Messages – businesses are not allowed to text consumers without their permission.
   • Requesting Payment – businesses may not request payment or additional identifying information before revealing the actual message.
   • Scrambled Messages – businesses must send readable texts. They may not scramble the message or use unintelligible audio.
   • Do Not Call Registry – businesses must respect the Do Not Call registry established by the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission.
   • Robocalling & Automated Dialing – businesses may not use robocalling to generate phone numbers or send text messages.

6. The last thing we think your boss wants you to know has nothing to do with rules and regulations. Instead, it’s about being authentic in all your customer interactions. Behaving like a trusted friend helps you build customer relationships that can last for years. Text messaging is the perfect channel for building trust.

Staying in touch with your existing customers and getting to know your potential customers has become a requirement in today’s business world. SMS-Magic, through conversational and automated text messaging, can help you reach out to customers in new ways.

SMS-Magic offers a free trial so that you can get a feel for our product. If you’re as pleased as we think you will be, you can choose the level of service that’s best for your company.

Contact us to set up a demo or to start your free trial. Let us show you how you can engage your customers in new ways!

Most of our customers say it’s virtually impossible to get a customer to return an email. And we hear comments like, “No one answers the phone anymore” or “They won’t answer if they see a strange number on caller ID.”

So the question is: If you can’t reach customers and prospects, how can you provide a service or sell a product?

As a software-as-a-service company developing SMS and MMS texting solutions, we think we know how to reach your customers, but we thought it might be better to let our customers show you how text messaging works in their businesses.

Why Use Text Messaging?

Before we get to the great ideas, let’s take a minute to talk about the reality of communication in 2022. Emails were great when everyone read them sitting in front of their desktop computers and the alternative was sending mail through the postal service. Voice mails, too, served their purpose.

These days, however, emails are easy to ignore. In fact, we only open 22% of the emails we receive. And the more mobile we’ve become; the more unwieldy emails have become. It’s just not convenient to reply on the run.

And most of us don’t even listen to the voice messages we receive. It’s likely we will wait for a text.

Texts are quick, easy and always with you. We send more than 5 billion texts every day, and we read 98% of the ones we receive. Clearly, text messaging is the channel we prefer.

Here are some great ideas from two of our customers. You can apply these ideas directly to your own business or modify them to fit your unique situation.

When You Have Seconds to Respond

In the high-stakes legal world, the key to winning new business is responding quickly. When legal prospects have a need, they normally shop for an attorney online. One of our customers estimates that he has seconds to reach out to a prospect before they move on to a competitor.

To engage a prospect quickly, our customer has developed a series of automated text messages that are triggered by where the prospect is on the firm’s website. Different practice areas are housed in different sections of the website, so it’s possible to tell where the prospect’s interest lies and tailor messages specifically for that need.

No matter what the prospect needs, the initial messages introduce the law firm and ask how the firm can help. As the prospects reply, the conversations continue with pre-programmed messages. And when it’s appropriate, a member of the intake team takes over with live messaging and continues the conversation.

The system is designed to be active 24/7. The automated messages launch even if the prospect is searching at 3 a.m. National practices can benefit from a time-neutral system because prospects may shop for an attorney at any hour of the day.

Once a prospect becomes a client, SMS-Magic makes staying in touch easier than ever. Our customer uses Litify to manage his firm, and SMS-Magic is designed to work seamlessly with Litify. Messages are tracked by SMS-Magic in the Litify environment. That means everyone in the firm opens one application, rather than two. They can see all the client’s information, including all text communications, in one place.

If an attorney is away from the office, anyone at the office can respond to queries and a different attorney can continue working on the case. The case doesn’t stop because the lead attorney is unavailable. It saves the firm time and better serves the client.

When You Must Respond on the Fly

Another of our customers manages large rental properties. They wanted to handle maintenance issues as quickly as possible, and they asked their residents to email maintenance requests to a dedicated address. Staff members responded as soon as they were in front of their computers.

It was a great plan, but it didn’t work. Residents complained that their requests weren’t handled quickly enough and started texting requests instead using email. Residents liked the immediacy and the convenience of texting.

The workflow, however, wasn’t designed to accept requests via text. Trying to make sure texts were transferred promptly and accurately created extra work for the management staff. The staff was missing requests and couldn’t always be sure issues had been addressed. And staff members could only respond to requests when they were in the office.

Our customer’s CRM was Salesforce. SMS-Magic is designed to work with Salesforce, as well as other CRMs, and the integration made using a text-based system for maintenance requests easy. Once our customer installed SMS-Magic to handle all their text messages, maintenance requests began to flow smoothly.

SMS-Magic tracked all customer contacts, no matter what the source of the contact. Our customer was able to track all maintenance requests – by email, phone or text. And anyone on the staff could access the record. That meant anyone could give a resident an update on their request.

It also made sense to equip each staff member with the mobile version of SMS-Magic. With the app, they could answer texts from either their own phones or from company phones. The system would track the contacts in Salesforce no matter what phone was used. No longer were staff members tied to their desks. They could visit company properties and respond to maintenance requests at the same time. Our customer said it was a game changer for their business.

How Can You Test Drive SMS-Magic?

Would your business benefit from an integration between your CRM and your texting platform? We’d love to help you start texting or help scale your texting to a higher level.

We have experts ready to help you take SMS-Magic for a spin for FREE! Schedule a demo or start a free trial today! We think you’ll love what you see!

It doesn’t have to be that way!

We’d be willing to bet that your customer relationship management system (CRM) contains an incredible amount of information about your customers, even first names. By using a name in your emails and texting campaigns, you personalize the communications right from the start. But that’s just one way for your CRM to help connect you to your customers.

Try a Conversational Messaging Hub

If your customers contact you more than once, they may not always reach the same person on your team. For example, a law firm may have a team managing the case load – attorneys, paralegals, intake specialists or other administrative staff members. When clients reach out, their lawyers may not be immediately available, but the clients still need updates. The team member who responds needs information quickly to serve the client.

If your CRM and your texting system work together, it would give you a single record that shows your staff all the interactions with the client, no matter what channel the client uses – text, email, phone or mail. When a text comes in, your staff members would be able to continue the conversation because they have the history at their fingertips.

If you have a customer service team, they will find this capability very useful, as well. One of the most often cited customer complaints is being bounced from person to person trying to solve a problem. If the customer must repeat the problem over and over, frustration can build quickly.

A conversational messaging hub stores all contacts for an individual into a single record. If a customer service rep must transfer a call, the next rep has all the information in front of them. It saves time, aggravation, and maybe, a customer relationship.

Compliance Laws are Getting Tougher. Are You Ready?

The European Union has recently adopted new privacy regulations, and we expect other countries to follow suit. Can your system handle customer requests?

You can send texts only to customers who have given you express written consent. In other words, customers who have opted into your communications. They can also opt out by asking you stop sending texts to them. If regulators ask to see your records, you must be able to prove you are following your customers’ requests.

Opting in and out of texts, however, are not the only customer requests you might be asked to verify if regulators come calling. A customer can ask that you “forget” them entirely – that all mention of them in your system is erased.

If your CRM works well with your texting capabilities, you won’t ever have to worry about compliance with GDPR or other rules and regulations.

Security is Everyone’s Concern

Even the smallest databases can contain enormous amounts of personal information that thieves want. In the past several years, criminals have hacked into the data of some of the largest and most successful companies in the world, and it isn’t pretty.

Keeping your CRM and texting capabilities secure is a shared responsibility, but your texting partner should be able to assure you that they have strong security policies in place. Their policies should be designed to keep all aspects of the system – technological, physical and administrative – secure.

What’s Your Next Step?

Knowing the vital role your CRM plays in your quest for more customers and higher revenues, what should you do next? Of course do your homework, but we would like to suggest that SMS-Magic is the best solution in the marketplace.

Why? Here are just a few reasons:

1. SMS-Magic works with your favorite CRM.
   We work and play well with others. We are a preferred provider for Salesforce and Zoho, and we integrate easily with Litify. Contact us to see what we can do with your existing architecture.

2. SMS-Magic helps you automate texts while keeping it personal.
   SMS-Magic is perfect for sending automated messages to your customers and prospects. We provide templates for your use and have lots of information about creating effective messages and campaigns. You can switch from automated to live in an instant so your customers know they’re talking to a person – not a bot.

3. SMS-Magic’s Conversational Messaging Hub Gathers Contacts into One Record
   Working with your CRM, SMS-Magic consolidates all contacts from a customer into one record, including phone calls, emails and messages. Our conversational messaging hub is the first of its kind and is designed specifically to meet your needs. Never again will your customers be forced to restate the problem – making them and your service reps happier.

4. SMS-Magic helps you stay compliant.
   We can help you keep up with the details like customer permissions as they opt-in (and perhaps opt-out) of your messaging campaigns. Our back-end systems are structured so that we can display individual requests, and we can prove you’ve complied with customer requests. You won’t have to worry about regulators asking to see your records. We use on-going processes to collect and store information about distribution and can share it with regulators, if necessary.

5. SMS-Magic provides technical, physical and administrative safeguards.
   Our technical safeguards include use of access controls, integrity controls, audit controls, identity authentication, and transmission security to avoid unauthorized access. We take extra precautions to ensure the physical security of our servers and systems. Our administrative measures include administrative actions, as well as policies and procedures, to manage the selection, development, implementation, and maintenance of security measures to protect electronic information.

We have experts ready to help you take SMS-Magic for a spin for FREE!

Schedule a demo or start a free trial today!

We think you’ll love what you see!

Seemingly simple requests, like a request to opt out of communications, can sometimes have expensive consequences. Fines for illegal text messages can range from $500 per text to $1,500. If you’re sending thousands of texts, fines can quickly become overwhelming due to non compliance.

More than that, however, is the desire to build trust between your company and your customers. Customers these days want a transparent look into your motives and methods. Asking permission before you send a text and honoring requests to stop sending texts are small ways to demonstrate transparency and care for your customer.

Michael Weinhouse, founder and co-CEO of Logical Position, wrote in a Forbes leadership article, “But as scary as the idea of transparency might seem, I know from experience that, in the long run, it’s good not only for your customers but also for your business. In addition to attracting new customers, transparency allows you to better serve your current ones, ensuring they stick with you.”

We think asking customers to opt into your messaging program will help make the world (and your business) a better place. It demonstrates the kind of respect we all want.

What Are the Rules?

In the United States, commercial text messages are governed by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The Federal Communications Commission established the act in 1992 to slow the stream of unwanted telemarketing calls. In the subsequent years, the TCPA has been expanded to include text messages, too.

Here is a quick guide from law firm Whitfield Bryson LLP outlining what is not allowed under the TCPA:

• Unsolicited Text Messages – businesses are not allowed to text consumers without their permission. If a consumer gives permission for texts, the first text you send to them should confirm their permission.

• Requesting Payment – businesses may not request payment or additional identifying information before revealing the actual message.

• Scrambled Messages – businesses must send readable texts. They may not scramble the message or use unintelligible audio.

• Do Not Call Registry – businesses must respect the Do Not Call registry established by the FCC and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

• Robocalling & Automated Dialing – businesses may not use robocalling to generate phone numbers or send text messages.

• Restrictions for Residential Numbers – businesses may no longer use an “established business relationship” as the basis for texting someone’s home number. That includes mobile phones that are used as home numbers.

So what should you do? Here are suggestions from Gleantap, a customer management platform created for the fitness industry:

• Receive consent before any message is sent
• Mention your company name in the first text
• Give the coupon or value proposition upfront
• Mention the frequency of messages that will be sent monthly
• Disclose possible carrier costs and fees
• Give an option to ask for help and opt out of future texts

How Can SMS-Magic Help You?

Our customers use messaging in a wide variety of applications in a wide variety of industries. No matter what industry you’re in – banking, higher education, hospitality, healthcare or others – SMS-Magic can make compliance a breeze. We’ll help you keep up with customer permissions as they opt-in (and perhaps opt-out) of your messaging campaigns.

SMS-Magic is designed to track opt-in and opt-out requests so that you send only to the customers who have specifically asked you to. Our back-end systems are structured so that we can display individual requests, and we can prove you’ve complied with customer requests. You won’t have to worry about regulators asking to see your records. We use on-going processes to collect and store information about distribution and can share it with regulators, if necessary.

Does SMS-Magic sound like the answer you’ve been looking for? We hope so!

Contact us to set up a demo or to start your free trial. Let us show you why your compliance worries will disappear with SMS-Magic!