6 Best text message services for businesses in 2024

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Many marketers believe text message services are only for personal use. 

SMS has gained significant traction as a powerful tool for businesses. It engages with customers, sends essential updates, and runs marketing campaigns efficiently.

Text message services offer unparalleled efficiency in executing marketing campaigns, as well as helping businesses deliver targeted promotions and exclusive offers. 

On top of that, it can provide time-sensitive announcements directly to its customers’ pockets.

This article will show you how to improve your marketing campaigns with SMS services, and will explore the six best text message services to boost your business marketing strategy.

Let’s get started.

Benefits of using text message services for business

Text messages have enhanced how companies connect with their audiences. Here are some benefits of utilizing SMS services in your marketing strategy.

• Instant and direct communication: Text messages enable direct and immediate communication with customers, delivering promptly to recipients’ mobile devices.
• High open rates and engagement: SMS services boast exceptional engagement levels. This is due to the personal connection recipients feel with this communication strategy.
• Cost-effectiveness: Text message services are cost-effective compared to traditional advertising methods. This makes them a budget-friendly choice for businesses seeking efficient communication.
• Automation and integration capabilities: Modern text message platforms offer automation and integration features, empowering businesses to automate message delivery based on triggers such as customer actions. 
• Enhanced customer engagement and personalization: Text messages allow for personalized communication, which helps businesses to forge stronger connections. 

How to choose text message services for business

Selecting an exemplary text message service is crucial. It helps maximize its impact on your business operations. 

Here’s a concise guide to help you make an informed decision:

• Pricing and plans: Evaluate the pricing plans offered by different SMS services. Consider your budget and the volume of messages you anticipate sending. 
• Main features: Examine the platform’s main features, especially its automation capabilities. A robust system should allow you to automate message scheduling, triggers, and responses. 
• User interface and ease of use: Look for a service with an intuitive dashboard. It simplifies tasks such as importing contacts, creating campaigns, and analyzing results. 
• Messaging features and customization options: Ensure the SMS service provides messaging features that suit your communication goals. This includes options for bulk messaging, personalized content, and dynamic fields. 
• Integrations: Consider the integrations offered by the text message service. It should seamlessly connect with your existing tools. 
• Customer support: You need a service provider that provides  24/7 customer support. Reliable customer support ensures smooth operations and quick issue resolution.

Best text message services for business comparison 

Before we go into the details of the best text message services, here’s a brief overview of how they compare.

Platform	Free plan available	Paid plan starts from	Best for
Omnisend	Yes	$16 for up to 500 emails and up to 60 SMS	Omnichannel marketing (sms combined with email, and push messages)
Attentive	No	Custom	Businesses focused on SMS marketing
SMSBump	Yes	$19/month	Ecommerce businesses focusing on SMS
SimpleTexting	No	$26 per month/500 messages	Businesses looking for flexible plans
Twilio	No	No pricing plans. Cost based on carrier fees	Businesses that require customizable and scalable SMS solutions
Textedly	No	Pay-as-you-go pricing	Businesses that want flexible pricing

Omnisend

Best for omnichannel marketing  

Pricing and plans

• Free
• Standard: Starting at $16/month
• Pro: Starting at $59/month

Main features

Here are Omnisend’s significant features.

• Omnichannel marketing: Omnisend is one of the top email and SMS marketing software. It seamlessly integrates email, SMS, and push notifications into a unified workflow.
• Automation capabilities: Omnisend offers a range of prebuilt automation workflows, simplifying the process of sending automated SMS campaigns to your target audience. 
• Global reach: With Omnisend, you can access a global SMS reach. That enables you to send text-only messages to international markets. 
• Multiple list-building tools: Omnisend provides diverse tools for growing your contact list. These tools include customizable signup forms, landing pages, popups, teasers, and more. 

User interface and ease of use

Omnisend offers an intuitive and user-friendly interface tailored to marketers’ needs. It ensures smooth navigation and allows for swift campaign creation, audience segmentation, and automation setup to cater to the text message marketing needs of small businesses and enterprises. 

Messaging features and customization options

• Personalized SMS: Craft individualized SMS messages tailored to each recipient.
• Behavior-based content: Customize content based on customer interactions and behavior.
• Scheduling: Set optimal delivery times for messages to maximize engagement.
• Message templates: Utilize pre-designed templates for efficient messaging.
• Multimedia attachments: Enhance messages with images, links, and multimedia elements.

Integrations

Omnisend has a large App Market and integrates seamlessly with popular ecommerce platforms including Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce. 

Customer support

Omnisend offers 24/7 support via emails and live chat. Users of the Pro plan spending $400 a month also receive a dedicated Customer Success Manager, and there is the Omnisend Academy, ebooks, reports, and a dedicated knowledge base to help customers succeed with their marketing.

Attentive

Best for businesses focusing only on SMS marketing

Price and plans

Attentive offers custom pricing.

Main features

• Advanced personalization: Attentive excels in personalization. It allows audience segmentation and sending of tailored messages via dynamic content.
• Automation capabilities: Attentive leverages automation for streamlined SMS campaigns.
• Two-way texting: Utilizes keywords to trigger interactive responses for customer engagement.
• Deliverability tools: Enhances deliverability through Smart Sending and Quiet Hour features.

You can explore features of Attentive alternatives to make an informed decision.

User interface and ease of use

Attentive has a straightforward layout that enables easy navigation through features. The features include audience segmentation, personalized messaging, and automation triggers. You don’t need technical expertise to use Attentive.

Messaging features and customization options

• Dynamic content: You can send tailored messages with dynamic content.
• Scheduled messaging: You can utilize clever sending for optimized delivery times.
• Interactive responses: You can employ keywords to trigger responses and encourage customer engagement.
• Personalized content: You can craft messages aligned with customer preferences.
• Segmentation: You can divide the audience for targeted messaging strategies.
• A/B testing: You can test variations for optimal message performance.

Integrations

Attentive seamlessly integrates with Shopify, enhancing its ecommerce capabilities 

Customer support

Attentive offers email support. On top of that, it has guides, a blog, and a help center.

SMSBump

Best for ecommerce businesses focusing on SMS

Pricing and plans

• Free
• Growth: Starting at $19/month
• Prime: Starting at $59/month
• Powerhouse: Starting at $199/month

Main features

Here are the major SMSBump features:

• Dual opt-in options: SMSBump offers multiple options. This includes forms, links, keywords, and QR codes. They help build SMS and email marketing lists.
• Real-time analytics: You can gain insights into essential metrics to monitor campaign performance.
• Flow builder: Access over 40 pre-built flow triggers for various customer scenarios.
• Robust segmentation: Build more than 40 segments based on behavior, preferences, and demographics.

It’s important to consider other SMSBump alternatives when choosing the best service.

User interface and ease of use

SMSBump is easy for experienced marketers and newcomers. Its straightforward design facilitates personalized messaging, segmentation, and automated workflows.

Messaging features and customization options

• Personalized messaging: You can craft personalized SMS messages tailored to individual recipients.
• Automated flows: SMSBump offers pre-built flow triggers to automate customer interactions.
• Segmented targeting: You can leverage robust segmentation for precise audience targeting.
• Analytics: You can access real-time insights to track campaign performance.

Integrations

SMSBump seamlessly integrates with Shopify, BigCommerce, and Adobe Commerce.

Customer support

SMSBump offers 24/7 email and chat support for all pricing tiers. Also, you can find guides, ebooks, blogs, and a knowledge base on their site.

SimpleTexting

Best for businesses looking for flexible plans

Pricing and plans

SimpleTexting offers one pricing plan starting from $29/month.

Main features

Here are the main features offered by SimpleTexting:

• Automation capabilities: SimpleTexting offers automation features to streamline SMS campaigns and interactions.
• Keywords and triggers: SimpleTexting utilizes keywords to trigger automated text messages and engage customers.
• Scheduled messaging: Plan and schedule messages for optimal delivery times.
• Multi-channel support: To enhance engagement, send messages via MMS, SMS, and more.
• List management: Efficiently manage contact lists and segment audiences for targeted messaging.

User interface and ease of use

SimpleTexting’s user interface is clean and user-friendly. Its intuitive design makes audience segmentation, personalized messaging, and scheduling easy.

Messaging features and customization options

• Personalized SMS: You can craft personalized SMS messages tailored to recipients’ preferences.
• Two-Way communication: The tool enables interactive communication with customers using keywords.
• MMS messaging: It can enhance messages with multimedia content like images and videos.
• Segmentation: You can divide your audience for targeted messaging strategies.
• Scheduled messaging: You can plan messages for specific delivery times.
• Templates: Use pre-designed templates for efficient messaging.
• Opt-out management: Easily manage opt-outs and compliance.

Integrations

SimpleTexting offers integrations with Zapier, Mailchimp, and Wix.

Customer Support

SimpleTexting provides 24/7 customer support. It also has blogs, videos, and a help center.

Twilio

Best for businesses that require customizable and scalable SMS solutions.

Pricing and plans

Twilio bases its pricing plans on carrier fees.

Main features

Here are Twilio’s main features:

• Automation capabilities: Twilio offers automation features to streamline messaging workflows and interactions.
• Programmable SMS: You can utilize APIs for sending and receiving SMS messages programmatically.
• Two-way communication: You can enable interactive communication with customers through keywords and responses.
• Messaging templates: Use pre-approved templates for compliance and efficiency.
• Global reach: Reach customers worldwide with Twilio’s extensive network.

User interface and ease of use

Twilio offers a developer-centric interface designed for technical control. 

It provides APIs for seamless integration and customized messaging solutions. This makes it ideal for businesses with programming expertise.

Messaging features and customization options

• Custom messaging: You can use Twilio APIs to send custom SMS messages. You can tailor them to specific use cases.
• Two-way conversations: Twilio enables dynamic and interactive conversations using keywords and triggers.
• Messaging templates: You can utilize pre-approved templates for compliance and efficient messaging.
• Multimedia messaging: You can enhance messages with images, videos, and other media.
• Global SMS reach: Twilio’s network allows for global message delivery.

Integrations

Twilio integrates offers integrations with Zapier.

Customer support

Twilio offers email support. Also, it provides guides to help you create an account. 

Textedly

Businesses that want flexible pricing.

Pricing and plans

Textedly offers a pay-as-you-go pricing model.

Main features

Here are the main features for Textedly:

• Custom keywords: You can personalize keywords for various groups. This facilitates signups for your text marketing campaigns. You can increase the number of keywords available as you upgrade plans.
• Scheduled SMS: Textedly offers a planner to schedule single or bulk text messages.
• Long text messages: You can send SMS with over 455 characters and MMS of up to 1,600 characters.
• Drip campaigns: You can engage subscribers with automated and constant communication. You can get updates through Drip Campaigns.

User interface and ease of use

Textedly has an accessible user interface suitable for beginners. Its design simplifies tasks like customized messaging, scheduling, and segmenting audiences. 

Messaging features and customization options

• Personalized content: Customize text messages to suit recipient preferences.
• Longer messages: Send extended SMS and MMS content for more detailed communication.
• Drip campaign customization: Configure automated messaging frequency and content for constant subscriber engagement.
• Keyword customization: Tailor keywords for targeted sign-up and segmentation.

Integrations

Textedly offers integrations with Zapier. 

Customer support

Textedly offers email support for all customers. It has a help center where you can find useful articles.

Final thoughts

Each service has distinct features and capabilities to enhance your customer engagement and communication strategies. 

These top-tier platforms have the potential to transform your communication approach.  Whether aiming for global reach or interactive dialogues, they’ve got you covered. The best one will depend entirely on your needs and business objectives.