The value of bulk SMS for businesses

Small or large businesses throughout Australia are rapidly understanding the value of adopting mass or bulk SMS service as an effective way of getting their message across to large groups of people for marketing and communication campaigns, offering special deals and alerts to upcoming deals.

Bulk SMS is a simple yet effective way to send mass text messages to a specific set of people or groups of people at a low cost with an assurance that such people will receive the text message promptly through their mobile phone, Web or any sort of mobile communication system. Bulk SMS providers use a variety of wireless telecommunication gateways to ensure such short messages are distributed efficiently.

In Australia, several reliable bulk SMS providers can service your needs. The only requirement is that you provide the bulk SMS company with the database of either clients, customers, staff or whoever needs to receive the message.

The whole process from formulating the SMS to distributing it takes only minutes from start to finish. It does not matter if your database covers a few hundred or one hundred thousand contacts, it is a great way of communicating.

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Advantages of Bulk SMS distribution

What is so good about sending SMS in large quantities is that you, as the client, do not need any special software to be installed or downloaded as the bulk SMS providers are web-based. It means that you only need a web browser and of course access to the internet. So you only have to state to the Bulk SMS provider which group or groups of people you wish to contact and they will do the rest.

What is also so good about distributing such text messages is that it is a two-way process. It means that a piece of communication can be sent in mass to a target audience and you have the opportunity, if required, to receive replies from the recipients which can be viewed on the web or forwarded to a specific email address. That means that you have immediate responses to the SMS that was just sent out a little while ago.

Imagine scheduling the transmission of a text message (SMS) for a set time or a certain date and knowing that the bulk SMS provider will do the rest. Great for reminders for appointments or notifying of important dates or events that customers, clients, or staff should know about. If you want to introduce or promote a major or minor marketing or communication campaign, use a bulk SMS provider to do the work for you.

More Benefits of Bulk SMS

Bulk SMS distribution offers several advantages, including:

  1. Cost-effective: Sending bulk SMS messages is a cost-effective way to communicate with a large audience. Compared to traditional advertising and marketing methods, the cost of sending a single SMS message is low.

  2. Time-saving: Bulk SMS distribution is a quick and easy way to reach a large number of people in a short amount of time. It is much faster than making phone calls or sending emails, as SMS messages are delivered instantly.

  3. High open rate: SMS messages have a high open rate, with more than 90% of messages being read within 3 minutes of being received. This means that your message is likely to be seen by your target audience quickly.

  4. Personalized messages: With bulk SMS distribution, you can personalize your messages to your audience, making them feel more engaged and connected to your brand.

  5. Increased engagement: SMS messages have a higher response rate than email, with many people responding within minutes of receiving the message. This can lead to increased engagement and a higher conversion rate.

  6. Reach a large audience: Bulk SMS distribution allows you to reach a large audience in a matter of seconds. You can send messages to thousands of people at once, making it an ideal tool for mass communication.

  7. Real-time tracking: With bulk SMS distribution, you can track the delivery status of each message in real-time. This allows you to monitor the success of your campaign and make adjustments as needed.

All incoming and outgoing SMS are recorded and documented, and a delivery tracking analysis can be prepared for the marketing or communication campaigns you may be an instrument in managing. These recordings are easily exported onto an Excel spreadsheet for review and comment if required.

Take the example of governments and local councils who realised the value of immediacy and cut-through of bulk text messaging as an easily understood and used information tool. One case is alerting the community of any unsettled weather conditions through SMS. The ability to reach hundreds of thousands of mobile phones on multiple gateway networks within seconds means that distributing large volumes of SMS quickly has established itself as a trusted and reliable communication tool used across Australia.

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Cost of Bulk SMS distribution

When sending SMS in bulk it is obvious that one demands to know that there is an effective and efficient way to keep the overall cost of distributing SMS to a minimum. A review of the major bulk Australian SMS providers indicates that they do offer low and competitive rates for each SMS sent out whether they be in small or large volumes. Knowing that bulk SMS providers offer a range of prices to suit businesses’ needs, organisations like gyms and social clubs through online services use SMS in bulk to keep their customers and consumers happy with regular offers and updates.

In Australia, there happens to be a good range of reliable bulk SMS service providers available that offer reasonably low prices dependent on distribution volumes during a monthly period. The ranges investigated varied from low volume numbers of less than 10,000 text messages per month to over 250,000 + messages over a monthly period. They do provide reliable software and have a reliability factor within a range of 99.95 to 100% uptime. In many cases, there are no set-up costs and a two-way SMS option at no extra cost.

The graph below shows a rating of how each Bulk SMS distributor fares in their charge structure.

By comparing the charges of individual Bulk SMS providers, it was noted that there was a significant difference in prices between such companies, dependent on the volume of text message distribution for each month. For low volumes, the review found that Cellcast offered the cheapest rates followed by ClickSend, which was approximately 12% higher than the cheapest rate. TextIt was the dearest by between 20 to 30% depending on the volume distributed each month

With larger volumes of over 250,000 SMS each month, Cellcast shone as providing the cheapest rates of all its competitors. TextIt charges were much more expensive than many of the other bulk distributors.

Customer Service, Support and Compliance offered by Bulk SMS providers

Customer service, support, and compliance are all critical aspects of any bulk SMS provider’s offering.

Here’s why:

Customer service: Effective customer service is essential in any business, and the bulk SMS industry is no exception. A good bulk SMS provider should offer reliable customer service, including responsive support via multiple channels, such as email, phone, or live chat. Customers need to be able to reach the provider easily to get help with any issues or questions they may have.

Support: Bulk SMS providers should also provide technical support to ensure that their customers can send messages successfully. This includes offering documentation, guides, and tutorials, as well as assistance in troubleshooting any issues that arise. Providers should also offer assistance in setting up and configuring their service, ensuring that customers can use the platform effectively.

Compliance: Compliance is a critical aspect of bulk SMS providers’ offerings. Providers must comply with local laws and regulations governing SMS marketing, including opt-in requirements, sending frequency limits, and content restrictions. A good provider should ensure that their customers are aware of these regulations and provide tools and resources to help them comply. This includes offering opt-in and opt-out tools and enabling customers to manage their contact lists effectively.

Overall, a bulk SMS provider that offers good customer service, support, and compliance is more likely to be successful in providing a reliable and effective service to its customers. By providing these essential services, providers can ensure that their customers are satisfied, their campaigns are effective, and their business is successful.

The major Australian bulk SMS providers reviewed run high-speed gateways that can distribute high-volume text messages within a short period. As such they can provide detailed and easily interpreted reports that present various aspects of delivery whether it be bounces of text messages sent through the API or an online platform.

All of these providers do have a customer centre number whether it be 24/7 or during business hours.  All provide an email support service  Although in one case not mentioned, that being TextIt, the other bulk providers are anti-SPAM compliant. They provide a cleaning service that allows them to clean SMS contact lists when imported and can reformat numbers when different styles are indicated. Some possess auto-opt-out availability for their clients with no-charge access to their accumulated pool of shared virtual reply numbers.

So overall, when it comes to providing an overall good service to support their promises of presenting a quality range of customer-related features for bulk SMS distribution, four bulk providers exceed a 90+ rating, namely SMS Tech, SMS Central, DirectSMS and ClickSend. The remainder of these bulk providers are nearly as good with an 80+ rating so the differential is minimal in sorting one against the other, so it would be difficult to exclude anyone or more providers dependent on customer service and support.

 

Which Bulk Text Messages Provider Has The Best Reliability?

Again it is reassuring to know from the review done of the major bulk SMS providers that they offer a reliable and efficient means of distributing text messages effectively. Some of these bulk distributors do a service but there may be a time lag or their promptness in servicing the clients is not as good as other competitors.

Bulk SMS Comparison Table

The Bulk SMS Comparison site of major Australian bulk companies provides you with an independent review of the features, charges, services and reliability of these companies. The review was prepared by a set of experts in the text messaging field who are no longer in the area but have the knowledge and skills to be able to advise readers.

The reason for the site was that potential clients who wanted to use SMS as a great way of communicating needed a set of selection criteria to decide which bulk SMS provider would be best suited to their needs. Knowing this demand, the authors established this site outlining the major features that needed to be considered before engaging one of the bulk companies.

It needs to be mentioned that even though the site is free to anyone using it, if the use of the site leads to an agreement with one of the bulk SMS companies to engage their services, then a commission may be requested from the bulk company but not the client.

As bulk SMS provider sites can change their features and services without notification, if you do find an anomaly or a change of features or charges, please let the authors know so that the changes can be made promptly.

 

This page was last updated on 6 January 2024.

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