Short messaging service (SMS) messages are quickly becoming the primary form of communication for personal and professional uses. In 2021, mobile users in the United States sent roughly 2 trillion SMS or MMS messages. Worldwide, 23 billion texts are sent every day — that’s 270,000 every second, as cited by Forbes. It’s worth noting that there are many different kinds of text messages, but a large portion of these daily messages are SMS.As SMS has grown in popularity, businesses have begun to adopt SMS messaging in order to communicate with different audiences. With an open rate of 98 percent, mobile marketing campaigns have surpassed email campaigns as the primary method of communication from a business to its customers. Consumers are 4.5 times more likely to reply to an SMS marketing message than a marketing email, according to a 2022 article from G2.The interest is there and the stats back it up. But what exactly is an SMS message?
What Is SMS Message?
Short messaging service (SMS) is a text messaging protocol that allows the user to send messages or segments of text up to 160 characters long. SMS messages cannot contain any form of media (photos, videos, etc.) SMS is the most popular form of text messaging, especially due to the fact that more phone users globally can receive SMS messages. You might be inclined to debate which type of messaging your business should use for mobile messaging campaigns. In the debate of SMS vs iMessage, the answer is SMS.
Do All Text Messages Use SMS?
“Text messages” is a slang term that encapsulates multiple different messaging protocols. In short, all SMS messages are considered text messages, but not all text messages are SMS messages.
RCS: Rich communication services is a way for messages, phone calls, video calls, and file transfers to support features such as read receipts and typing notifications. It is very similar to messaging apps where communication can be done over the internet, and not cellular data.
MMS: Multimedia messaging service operates similarly to SMS, however, MMS can be used to send photos, audio, or short videos. An MMS can contain up to 10 images and 1600 characters, as long as the entire message is under 5 MB in size.
iMessage: Developed by Apple, it is one of the fastest growing messaging services on the market. iMessage is capable of sending messages including text and multimedia from any connected Apple device. These messages can be sent to users who also use an Apple device. iMessages can be sent using internet connection or cellular data.
How Do I Open My SMS Messages?
All SMS messages received will appear in the Messages app on a device. A user clicks on the Messages app to see a list of text message conversations with friends, family, colleagues, or businesses. By clicking on a single text message conversation the user can read a new message and type a response.Message notifications can be customized by each user and by device. For example, a push notification can appear on the device lock screen when new texts are received. That push notification can show a preview of the text message or hide the message for additional privacy. When a user clicks on the push notification, the device will automatically open the Messages app to the individual text message conversation. This saves time and makes it easier to quickly read and respond to text messages.
How Do I See My Text Message History?
Viewing previous text messages is easy. The Messages app on iPhone and Android devices provides users with quick access to a complete text messages history. To view text messages, users open the Messages app, select a text message conversation and scroll up to reveal all past exchanges.Text messages have provided brands with a clear communication channel. Consumers are comfortable navigating their text messages and familiar with how to find past texts when they need to reference information.When it comes to mobile marketing campaigns, you want to keep it simple, especially when you are limited to 160 characters. That’s why you want to use a text message platform like Lumavate. With Lumavate you can streamline your messaging directly to multiple audiences and make sure you send texts when you want, to the audience you want. You can plan ahead and have your messages sent at different times, or you can immediately send texts directly from the platform.Integrate with your remaining tech stack, or create a mobile opt-in form from our templates and have your customer base sign up for mobile messaging content instantaneously. With Lumavate you can trust that your mobile marketing campaign will have all the proper tools to launch a successful campaign. For more information on how Lumavate can help you start your mobile marketing journey, book a demo today.
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