If your organization wants to text messaging for either mass internal, or external communications, you’ll need to start with an SMS Gateway API to provide the ability to send SMS (short message service) text seamlessly connecting three things:
- Messaging Platform,
- Aggregation Service
- Our World’s Mobile Carrier Networks To You.
Your text messaging solution needs to be flexible, scalable and capable of meeting the needs of your business, your staff and your customer base. If your organization, be it a business or institution needs to send bulk text messaging, you need a reliable SMS Gateway that is compliant with local text messaging regulations regarding consumer privacy to avoid being blocked from sending messages. In the United States this means all your text campaigns require formal registration, while in Canada your messaging provider manages them if they are 10DLC, and short codes are registered.
Generally, a Campaign Service Provider (CSP) for mobile marketing is either an operating SMS Gateway, or in some instances a reseller. A facilities-based operator is just that, meaning they are not a reseller, providing full aggregation services.
If your service provider isn’t asking you questions about your campaign content be concerned, because managing and providing guidance on regulatory requirements is essential to all text messaging campaigns regardless of region. It’s in your best interest.
Remember: SMS is the global default standard in messaging, with every smart-phone being able to receive it without any additional application software being required.
Most importantly, by using a trusted SMS Gateway’s API, your text messaging is ensured the broadest reach possible to your intended audience.
What is an SMS Gateway Service?
An SMS Gateway utilizes an application programming interface (API) that allows integration between different devices and applications. This is substantially different from single platform messaging services, such as Facebook, where all communications take place within one application.
What can text do for my business?
An SMS Gateway API allows companies and institutions to send bulk SMS text messages to a broad range of recipients, regardless of what device they are using or what network they are on. Communication happens swiftly and efficiently even though hundreds of messages may be broadcast at once to a long list of recipients.
How can text messaging scale?
The SMS Gateway API integrates into your existing communications platform creating software that is ideal for companies that need to communicate simple messages quickly to large groups of people, as well as to individuals. It works by transforming each text message being sent through the interface into a format the receiving device(s) can understand, even if the originating device didn’t create the message in that format.
Integrating an SMS API With Your Company
SMS Gateway and API integration are what make it possible to run text messaging campaigns, whether they are internal, or external. Using an SMS gateway provider for bulk SMS campaigns helps businesses communicate smoothly and effortlessly with their contact list, and stay compliant with mobile network regulations.
What is an SMS API?
An SMS API is provided by an SMS aggregator, such as Swift SMS Gateway, as a way to integrate messaging so messaging originating by your business or institution can be managed, packaged, delivered and deciphered on your mass recipient’s end. Each SMS message can be started in a software application provided by the SMS aggregator, or directly integrated into your current communications platform suite.
Once the text message is created using the computer-based application, it travels through the SMS Gateway at the aggregator, and is transformed into a format the receiving device can understand and display. The SMS gateway API ensures each message comes through clearly and isn’t a string of undecipherable symbols.
The API SMS Gateway also allows mobile devices to send text messages that can subsequently be received, opened, and read by your business or institution. Basically, a proper text message gateway serves as a translator and a courier, delivering messages and ensuring they are coherent, no matter who is sending, who is receiving, and whether the message is singular or a bulk SMS.
Additional functionality of an SMS API
A good SMS gateway also provides a wide range of additional functionality to support various types of SMS campaigns. Such campaigns may be designed to alert employees of a mandatory meeting, stay in contact with a group of patients, clients or students for appointment setting purposes, or to market products or services to a customer base.
Triggers can be set up in the system, such as reminders based on the date and time of an appointment. This means the recipient will get a reminder message sent out at a preset time before their appointment date and/or time, without the company having to worry about remembering to do it manually.
SMS messaging can also be utilized to deliver mass text messages to groups of people that have been created using marketing lists, membership rolls, subscriber lists, or employee rosters. The mobile numbers are added to your database, then filtered to create groups for the purposes of the SMS campaign. Proper Opt-In/Out management is absolutely demanded, and your text messaging SMS Gateway provider can advise you and assist you in this.
For SMS marketing or sales focused campaigns, regulations on the use of SMS Gateways to send bulk text messages is strict and even requires registration of your brand and each campaign in the USA for you to begin, or restart. There is a nominal fee for these actions, which can be handled by your SMS Gateway service provider as your campaign service provider (CSP) and the costs passed down to you.
These regulations prevent unwanted text messages from reaching consumers who would prefer not to receive them, and cuts down on SPAM. The penalties for not registering your brand or campaigns, and or deliberate SPAM can result in fines from the major mobile carriers.
The SMS Gateway can also receive SMS tied to a their SMS API response systems that will perform actions in an automated format. Incoming SMS are frequently used to complete two-factor authentication or other types of identity verification.
They can also be used to acknowledge a subscription, confirm an appointment, verify information, answer questions, or participate in polls or surveys. The scope of actions for which an SMS Gateway can be leveraged is almost unlimited.
Use an SMS API Gateway to send multiple types of messages to large groups of recipients.Why Should I Use Commercial Text Services?
SMS Gateway and API integration is a must if your organization uses text messaging at any scale. Having to send text messages singly is time consuming and opens the door to errors. Using dubious and cheap services to send bulk messages can result in your number or company being blocked for spam.
By leveraging an authentic and trusted bulk SMS service provider for messaging customers, you can rest assured that your messages are being sent in a way that complies with regulations safeguarding consumer privacy, and avoid penalties for presumed spam.
Using an SMS Gateway provider for Transactional SMS
You can use your SMS Gateway for Transactional SMS too, without worrying about marketing rules. In Transactional SMS the recipient has agreed to receive and obtain information about a product, service, subscription, or account they already want from a mass commercial text message sender.
However, instead of being marketing-related (designed to sell, cross-sell, up-sell, or re-sell), Transactional SMS is more of an informational service and customer support version of SMS. It can be used for one-on-one messaging options, or for bulk texts. Examples of transactional SMS include:
- Two-factor authentication for remote login
- Relaying new account verification and information
- Verifying a subscription
- Confirming an appointment
- Sending a reminder
- Acknowledging an order
- Delivering shipment updates
- Supplying a one-time-password (OTP)
What is the cost of an SMS Gateway?
The cost of using an SMS Gateway can be broken down into three components:
- Setup – Your service provider’s one-time fees and other related fees such as campaign registration for message channels such as short-code, toll-free, and US 10DLC submissions.
- Platform – Any related monthly fees such as licensing, portal costs and support.
- Messaging – Typically cost in two parts: 1. Transit 2. Associated Surcharges (which are additional fees each carrier applies as direct pass-throughs priced per message).
Messaging volume makes up the majority of your costs and is priced on actual monthly rate tables. The related costs of the different message channels are largely closing as carriers are enforcing stricter regulations and their demand for surcharges. For smaller volume use there are cases where your service provider may offer a blended cost. In larger volume applications this is seldom in your favor, as the surcharge fees vary greatly based on what destination networks your messaging is being sent to and the message channel you’re using, be it short-code, toll-free or 10DLC.
In all cases, SPAM-like marketing is forbidden on any legitimate SMS Gateway.
The more complex and higher volume your text message campaigns are, the more expensive an SMS API integration will be. However, the cost of not using a reliable, reputable SMS Gateway can be much worse.
Without proper integration in place, your text messages can disappear into the ether, come through garbled and unintelligible, or get blocked for non-compliance with regulatory guidelines. By choosing a SMS gateway solution offered by a provider like Swift SMS Gateway, you gain access to a variety of SMS API plans from which to choose.
Swift SMS Gateway has campaign registration expertise as a trusted campaign service provider (CSP) that is invaluable when navigating the complex regulatory requirements being enforced in text messaging. Our experts do it right the first time, so your messaging campaigns aren’t blocked and denied by carriers. Swift SMS Gateway was an early participant on the Campaign Registry’s development and has securely automated much of the administration on campaign submission.
Swift SMS Gateway supports full database integration, providing your choice of easily connecting to countless communication platform suites should you use them, or using our existing on-line group messaging service. Swift provides a single master dashboard with sub-account availability for custom message handling, scheduling and reporting too. If you are ready to take your organization’s text messaging to a new, improved level with an API SMS Gateway solution, simply contact Swift SMS Gateway for a free demonstration today.
