8 Best SMS Marketing Tools for 2024: What You Need to Know

It's a quiet Tuesday afternoon.

Katie, the owner of a small boutique fitness studio, is staring at her phone.

The studio's 6 PM class starts in two hours, but only three spots are filled. Katie knows she needs at least six participants to break even.

With a mix of hope and desperation, she opens her new SMS platform with its SMS marketing tool and quickly crafts a message:

“
Last-minute openings for tonight's 6 PM HIIT class! First 5 to reply 'IN' get 50% off. Ready to sweat?"

She hits send, and within minutes, her phone starts buzzing. One reply, then another, and another. By 5:45 PM, the class is full, with a waitlist forming.

Although Katie’s story is fictional, it’s an example of the power of SMS marketing tools in action.

With email inboxes cluttered and social media algorithms unpredictable, SMS remains a direct line to your customers' attention.

But how do you know which SMS marketing tools to use and which platforms offer the right solutions for you?

In this guide, we'll explore the best SMS marketing tools available in 2024, dive into the features that matter most, and help you navigate the complex world of text message marketing.

Best SMS Marketing Tools

SMS platforms offer all kinds of tools to help in your SMS marketing.

So what SMS marketing tools do you actually need?

Which are the best SMS marketing tools you can use to really make a difference in reaching your customers and prospects?

Here are a few of the most important ones…

1. Text Blasts

For SMS marketing, you need to be able to send out mass text blasts without a huge hassle.

Most SMS marketing platforms will allow you to send out text messages on a mass scale.

And, unlike a group text message, your messages will come through individually rather than in a big group message.

This, obviously, is the most vital tool you need if you’re going to be engaging in SMS marketing.

Katie, the fictional fitness studio owner from our introduction, used a text blast to quickly fill her evening class. As we saw, she sent a single message to her entire subscriber list, offering a discount for last-minute sign-ups. Within minutes, her class was full, demonstrating the power of mass text messaging.

2. Message Scheduling

It seems simple, but the ability to actually schedule messages for specific dates and times is almost a must when it comes to SMS marketing tools.

SMS marketing solutions usually allow you not only to schedule your messages for a particular time, but also to set your message to repeat at specified intervals (such as daily, weekly, or monthly).

Let’s say a local bakery owner named Tom scheduled a series of texts to go out every Saturday morning at 8 AM, announcing the day's fresh specials. And imagine how this consistent, timely communication could potentially lead to a 30% increase in weekend foot traffic over three months.

3. Reporting

At the very least, you need to be able to view simple reporting that shows you information about the message content you sent and who you sent it to.

Beyond that, it’s helpful to have analytics available to view metrics such as delivery rates, click rates, response rates, and opt-out rates.

SMS in general may not have the robustness of analytics available in the same vein as emails, but you should be able to have at least some reporting you can view.

As another example to illustrate, imagine that marketing manager Lisa was skeptical about SMS marketing until she saw the analytics. After sending a promotional code via text, she could track a 25% click-through rate and a 15% conversion rate—far exceeding her email campaign results. Those analytics told her to keep pursuing and optimizing her SMS efforts.

4. Automation

Automation is an SMS marketing tool that really allows you to be hands-off—and therefore, to save time and money as you engage in your SMS marketing.

What kind of automation is available for SMS marketing?

You can create drip campaigns that move your recipients through a workflow of a series of messages and delays
You can set up “auto-reply” messages that automatically send text message replies when people submit messages to your SMS marketing phone number
You can integrate with your current services, such as your CRM, POS system, or broad marketing platform, to trigger automated messages based on particular actions

Fictional (but helpful) example: Mike's car dealership set up an automated SMS workflow. When a customer booked a test drive online, they automatically received a confirmation text, a reminder the day before, and a follow-up message asking for feedback after the appointment. This automation increased test drive attendance by 40%.

8 Best SMS Marketing Tools with each of the subheadings in this section and corresponding icons]

5. Subscriber Organization

Being able to easily manage and organize your subscriber list is a simple but vital SMS marketing tool.

Without this kind of tool, the only options you’d have would be to send messages to you entire list or to specific individuals.

But the ability to organize your subscriber list into groups means that you can create separate lists based on demographics, behaviors, preferences, or any other criteria.

Then you’re able to send highly targeted and relevant messages to the people in your list.

Let’s say Emily is a boutique clothing store owner. And let’s say she segmented her subscriber list based on previous purchase history. She was then able to send targeted texts about new arrivals in specific categories, resulting in a 50% increase in repeat customer purchases.

6. Opt-In Solutions

Growing your SMS marketing list should be one of your top priorities—and having different opt-in tools allows you to do just that.

Some of these opt-in tools include:

“Text-to-join” options—in which users can simply text in a particular word to your SMS marketing phone number in order to be automatically subscribed to your text list
Web sign-up forms and banners—in which users can simply fill out an online form or banner, provided to you by your SMS platform, in order to be automatically subscribed to your text list
QR codes—in which users can simply scan an automatically generated QR code in order to be automatically subscribed to your text list
Manual addition—in which you can collect your subscriber’s opt-in via your own means and methods, and you can add them into your SMS platform database by uploading a spreadsheet

Imagine that during a busy trade show, marketing director John's software company used a "Text-to-join" keyword displayed on their booth. They gained 500 new subscribers in two days, far more than they could have managed with manual sign-ups.

7. Two-Way Communication

Although not as important for SMS marketing as it would be for, say, customer support, the ability to carry on two-way communication within your SMS marketing solution is an amazing tool as well.

Rather than making your SMS marketing one-sided, two-way communication allows you the opportunity to really interact with your customers and prospects.

You can manage individual text message conversations, monitoring your customers’ replies and responding back as appropriate.

Another fictional example: When Rachel's restaurant announced a new menu via text, they invited customers to text back their favorite dish. This engagement not only provided valuable feedback but also led to a lively discussion that strengthened customer relationships.

8. SMS API

If you are wanting to program your own SMS marketing processes, you can choose an SMS platform that has an SMS API tool.

An SMS API allows you to use your own developer resources to create the SMS process that you’re hoping to see.

Your developers can simply look at the instructions provided in the API documentation, and they’ll be able to set up the workflows and automations that you want.

Let’s say that Juan, a digital marketing director for a large e-commerce platform, integrated SMS notifications into their order tracking system using an SMS API. And imagine that customers now receive real-time updates about their package status, reducing customer service inquiries by 30%.

Which SMS Marketing Tools Do You Need?

So we had a list of some of the best SMS marketing tools above.

All well and good.

But which tools do you actually need?

Which will you actually use?

The answer is that it depends on your use case.

General Usage

There are some SMS tools that will prove invaluable for most use cases.

Some of those would include:

Text blasting—you want to be able to quickly send mass text messages to your subscriber list
Message scheduling—you want to be able to designate the specific times that your messages go out
Reporting—you want to be able to see some data on your message performance
OPTIONAL: API—if you have developer resources, you want to have a way for them to create the type of SMS process you’re hoping to see

Examples…

“
FitLife Gym: New class alert! Join our Weight Training Bootcamp every Tuesday at 7PM. Book now: [link]

“
Weekend deals at TrendyWear! 🛍️ 20% off all summer styles. Shop now: [link]

“
NeedDad Foundation: Thanks to your support, we've raised $23,324 this month for fatherlessness awareness! See our impact: [link]

Promotional Campaigns

Regardless of your industry, SMS presents a unique opportunity to engage in text message promotional campaigns.

With these kinds of campaigns, there are a set of SMS marketing tools that will be particularly helpful to you.

These tools include:

Automation—you want to be able to set up automations that save you time and make sense in your workflow
Subscriber organization—you want to be able to group your subscribers into pertinent segments so that you can have more targeted outreach
Opt-in solutions—you want to have flexible ways to allow your audience to subscribe to your text messages
Reporting—you want to be able to see some data on your message performance

Examples…

“
Welcome to BeautyBliss! 😊 Enjoy 15% off your first purchase with code WELCOME15. Shop now: [link]

“
BookWorm alert! 📚 New mystery thriller 'Midnight Shadows' now in stock. 10% off for Mystery Club members. Order: [link]

“
Thanks for joining JavaJoy's SMS list! ☕ Show this text for a free coffee with your next purchase.

Flash Sales

Retailers and e-commerce businesses often use SMS for flash sales or other time-sensitive promotions.

For this use case, a few SMS tools you’ll need are:

Text blasting—you want to be able to quickly send mass text messages to your subscriber list
Message scheduling—you want to be able to designate the specific times that your messages go out
Opt-in solutions—you want to have flexible ways to allow your audience to subscribe to your text messages
Reporting—you want to be able to see some data on your message performance

Examples…

“
FLASH SALE! ⚡ Next 3 hours only - 50% off all dresses at StyleHub. Shop now before they're gone: [link]

“
Last-minute getaway! ✈️ 70% off Bali packages for next week. Book in the next 2 hours: [link]

“
24-hour software blitz! 💻 All Adobe Creative Cloud plans 40% off. Ends midnight: [link]

Appointment Reminders and Event Reminders

Service-based industries in particular often rely on client appointments, but any service can have events (such as a webinar) that they want to promote.

SMS reminders about appointments or events can really help boost attendance, and there are certain SMS marketing tools that can help.

Some of those tools are:

Message scheduling—you want to be able to designate the specific times that your messages go out
Automation—you want to be able to set up automations that save you time and make sense in your workflow
Two-way communication—you want to be able to engage in back-and-forth conversations with your customers
Message templates—you want to be able to save your message content so that if you send out the same message again in the future, you don’t need to re-type it out

Examples…

“
Reminder: Your dental appointment with Dr. Smith is tomorrow at 2PM. Reply YES to confirm or NO to reschedule.

“
Your spin class starts in 1 hour! Active Life Studio, 7PM. Running late? Reply LATE and we'll hold your spot.

“
TechCon 2024 kicks off tomorrow! 🎉 Don't forget your badge. Check-in opens at 8AM. Event guide: [link]

Customer Support

Many businesses use SMS as a channel for customer support and gathering feedback. Using SMS in this way can improve response times and increase customer satisfaction.

For this use case, you'll want to focus on:

Two-way communication—you want to be able to engage in back-and-forth conversations with your customers
Automation—you want to set up auto-replies for common queries to provide instant responses

Examples…

“
Internet down? Try these quick fixes: 1) Restart your router 2) Check cables. Still need help? Reply HELP for live support.

“
Flying with us tomorrow? Baggage allowance: 1 carry-on (max 10kg) + 1 checked bag (max 23kg). More info: [link]

“
How was your recent support experience with TechSoft? Reply with a number 1-5 (5 being excellent). Your feedback helps us improve!

Internal Communication

Although not a marketing use case per se, many businesses use SMS for communication among employees or team members.

Here are some SMS tools that will be useful for this:

Text blasting—you want to be able to quickly send mass text messages to your subscriber list
Message scheduling—you want to be able to designate the specific times that your messages go out
Message templates—you want to be able to save your message content so that if you send out the same message again in the future, you don’t need to re-type it out

Examples…

“
URGENT: Supplier issue. Please remove all kale salads from the menu immediately. Questions? Call manager on duty.

“
DAILY SAFETY REMINDER: Always wear proper PPE on site. Report any safety concerns to your supervisor immediately.

“
SALES UPDATE: Meeting with ALK Corp rescheduled to 3PM. New product demo required. Check email for details.

Advanced SMS Marketing Tools

In addition to some of the core features mentioned above, here are a few more advanced SMS marketing tools you can consider…

AI Solutions

As you well know, AI has swept the world.

And industries across the board are catching on.

SMS solutions have integrated AI tools that can help you accomplish tasks such as writing your message content, shortening your message, and generating images for your message.

Online Platform + Mobile App + SMS API Access

Some SMS services only offer an SMS API.

Some others only offer an online platform.

Others offer both an SMS API and an online platform—plus, a mobile app to boot.

Depending on your priorities, you may or may not need/want all of these options.

An SMS API is useful for implementing your own SMS processes, if you have your own developer resources.

An online platform is useful for having something ready to go right out of box, if you don’t have your own resources to develop your own solution.

And a mobile app is useful for using your SMS services on the go.

Integrations

Integrations are fantastic because they allow you to connect your different services together so that they “talk” to each other.

This kind of intertwining of services can obviously make your processes much more efficient—and feasible.

Many SMS services offer a handful of direct SMS platforms, but most primarily have integrations available via the integration site Zapier.com, so an account at Zapier is required as well.

SMS Marketing Tools Offered by 14 SMS Services

Chart labeled “SMS Marketing Tools” and listing all of the following

Get a Free 14-Day Trial with Mobile Text Alerts

What are some of the SMS marketing tools and features offered by the different software options available?

Common Across Most / All Software

The following are tools that are generally offered across most if not all major SMS marketing software:

Text blasting
Message scheduling
Reporting
SMS automations
Subscriber organization
Opt-in methods:
- Text-to-join keywords
- Customizable web sign-up form
- Automatically-generated QR codes
- Importing existing lists

Mobile Text Alerts

Our service Mobile Text Alerts is a user-friendly SMS platform and API service that’s known for its available and friendly customer support.

Here are some of the tools we offer:

Custom API
Integrations
1-on-1 messaging inbox
Message credit rollover
Message templates
AI solutions
Online platform
Mobile app
iMessage

Twilio

Twilio is a developer-focused SMS API service that’s known for its robust API options and documentation, and also has email, voice calling, and WhatsApp options.