Why still use SMS? Here is what they say
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There are many platforms and methods for communicating and distributing messages today, and their capabilities are advanced and powerful. So why do people still use SMS to send messages, and why does SMS still carry serious weight in marketing? See The history of SMS and how it is used today.
Every week I receive an SMS from a particular organisation — either an invitation or a reminder about the timing of an event. Out of curiosity I asked them: there are plenty of popular messaging platforms now, WhatsApp, WeChat, Line and the rest, so why choose the most primitive option? For how the channels divide the work, see SMS, MMS, or WhatsApp? — Hong Kong Omnichannel Decision Table.
They gave three convincing reasons:
- SMS is not constrained by internet access. As long as the phone has basic mobile network coverage, the SMS arrives — so any handset, of any model, can receive it, because this is fundamental infrastructure on the phone network.
- Recipients do not need to join a group to receive an SMS individually. In other words, what they receive is relevant to them, and they are not disturbed by other group members responding. It is a respectful way to communicate.
- SMS can be scheduled through a platform, which lets the sender plan a strategy in advance and deliver information that is both effective and well-timed.
I also asked some recipients how they feel about receiving SMS:
- Broadly they welcome it, because the sender pays to send and the recipient receives free of charge — so they assume the content must be genuinely important, and reminder messages in particular are very useful.
- SMS content is short and stays within a set character count, so the message is simple, clear and easy to understand. On the SMS character limit, see How many characters does an SMS actually allow?.
- All you need is a mobile phone to receive it, with no worry about it not arriving.
Given these six reasons, you could try this approach yourself, to get important and well-judged messages to your key customers.