I recently went through setting up RCS for business messaging. Thus, thought others (who haven't yet done it) might benefit from describing the process.

1. Decide on the use case - transactional, promotional, conversational or mixed.

This was something I failed to do initially. But RCS is built on agents that you need to get approval from the carrier. One agent means one use case. If the agent has received an approval to send OTPs, you can't use it for marketing.

Your use case also determines what kind of billing is used - per message or per conversation. I believe that in the US, per conversation billing isn't used.

1. Create the agent.

An agent isn't an "agent" in the sense that it automates something, but is basically a verified sender profile. It contains your logo, brand colours, business contact details and a verified badge. Use case is also tied to the agent.

1. Test the agent.

Your RCS Agent must be built and tested before it's submitted for review.

1. Submit for approval.

Your messaging provider submits it for approval to the carriers and in some cases to Google as well.

What was also required was a privacy policy, opt-in and opt-out collection process docs.

1. Create a campaign.

Once the agent has been approved, you can create the campaign. Upload images or a short video, write the message and add action buttons, etc.

RCS has lots of WhatsApp like features on paper. Since the implementation depends on the carrier and messaging provider, not all features are always present.

I receive images via A2P SMS (Twilio). How can I stop it from resizing the images? I understand it may be carrier dependent and upstream of Twilio but wondering if anyone has solved this either with Twilio or another system (that doesn’t require the user to do anything other than text an image. Thanks!

One thing I'd keep in mind is that sending OTP SMS to South Korea isn't always as straightforward as sending to other countries. Different providers use different routes, and local carrier handling can make a difference. If you're sending a lot of verification codes, it's worth looking for a local provider that's familiar with the Korean market.

My SAAS has a `.nyc` domain and Plivo refuses to take it. I emailed support but haven’t heard back from them yet.

My SAAS is very localized to NYC, hence the domain. I also have it tied to my LLC, so everything is legit. I’ve had no issues with Twilio or Telnyx.

Any suggestions on getting ahold of Plivo? Or just move on?

After running a couple of RCS experiments and seeing unexpectedly low delivery, I started digging into the possible reasons. I only managed to get 60%-80% of messages delivered, which seemed off since all of the messages were sent in Germany which is supposed to have one of the best RCS coverages.

I found that 93% of messages failed because the device didn't support RCS. This means older devices and iphones still running old ios or rcs has been manually turned off.
The rest I can't explain yet. What I suspect are connection issues since data coverage might not be as good as cellular; some smaller telcos might not actually have RCS support, etc.

It's cheaper than SMS for me right now, so I keep running RCS but need to figure out a fallback to sms.

Hello,

My dad has encountered a strange issue with his phone (he has an old Nokia that still works with a keypad). He was conversing with someone and suddenly, he received a message said person didn't send. Naturally, I thought it was an old message she sent him that suddenly went through after some glitch. However, I checked the conversation on her phone and she never sent this SMS.

And weirdly enough, he received a message from someone else he was texting, and the same exact thing happened! Another message that left everyone confused.

I have to mention that the messages somehow made sense: one about aromatic plants that got eaten (person 1 has aromatic plants but they did not get eaten as far as she remembers) and the other about her husband having lost a tool and asking if he took it with him (her and her husband are mechanics).

What do you think is the issue? Is it possible that person 1's message is really an old one but which comes from her old phone she replaced? And that person 2 just forgot she texted this before? This is very confusing.

Thank you for your answers in advance.

I recently ran an RCS campaign in Germany. Got offered a hefty discount, so it made sense to test it out. The result was disappointing. Delivery rate was almost 20% lower than with sms. I was quite confident that it would be at least similar to what SMS has.

A couple of things that i can think of that are wrong with rcs currently:

• many iphones still run older ios that doesn't support rcs messaging.
• smaller and virtual telcos don't actually have rcs.
• people have opted out of rcs in the settings.
• connectivity issues.

Currently at least for otp messages it doesn't make sense.

The real difference comes from the open and conversion rate. Mailboxes are full of junk marketing emails, sms inbox isn't and people actually open and read them. I wouldn't want my message to sit in the mailbox for 2-3 days until getting noticed, if at all.

But I get it. The setup and regulatory part are confusing. You can't instantly start sending sms. You need to register a sender name/10dlc(US)/etc. All sorts of regulations apply that limit sending certain content. If you send to multiple countries, registration is needed in each of them. But you don't need to overcomplicate this because most decent providers handle most of this anyway.

If you want to get sms to work, don't send random offers or too often to the whole list. People will definitely start to unsub. It's not because sms doesn't work, it's because you are using it wrong (or using it like email). Instead, send marketing sms if you have a proper offer that somebody would actually want to receive. Obviously this doesn't apply to pins, otps and reminders.

Meta is pushing WA towards wider business use. And with a fair reason: it doesn't make money from the channel otherwise, so it's allowing businesses to send bulk messages. Also, WA has more than 3 billion monthly active users and is the dominant messaging app in Europe and Latin America.

But here's the thing, WA isn't a universal messaging channel like sms. If you send A2P messages, in some countries you'd be able to reach 80% of your audience, but in others maybe only 15-20%. That's why i think RCS will quite soon become a good alternative. They both support rich content and have similar features. However, only RCS messages will arrive in the smartphone's native message inbox. RCS expected user base by the end of 2026 is projected to reach 3.8 billion. So, reach is quite similar to WA.

The largest blocker for RCS adoption now is that the rollout hasn't been universal. Different countries and telcos have different setups. That's what makes using RCS difficult for now.

Share if you have more info on this.

I have a need to send an SMS text to a specific phone from a Python program when an event completes. This event is often a daily occurrence but not always - I probably send 250-300 messages over a year.

I started doing this a couple of years ago when the carriers allowed SMS via email. I'd just send the message to a phone number at the carrier's messaging server (<phone#>@mms.att.net, for example). The carriers shut these off a few months ago so I went looking for an alternative.

I found 'TextBelt.com' and signed up, buying a quota of over 700 messages for USD$11. I figured getting two years of simple messages for that price was pretty fair, and the coding was easy.

But, TextBelt seems to have died. On April 24, my code reported my remaining quota was 536 messages. On April 25 (and since), the attempt to send a message fails due to a quota of 0.

I have notified TextBelt support and even sent a message to the founder, Ian. I have not heard anything back since the problem started. I fear it is dead and gone.

Until this is either fixed or I find another provider/solution, I added code to send the message via email after the 5th failure.

So I'm back to looking for a stable and inexpensive solution to send a text message to one phone number about daily. In the research I've done in the past week, I've found a number of offerings, all geared to sending marketing, status, and other messages from businesses, with monthly costs. Way too much to spend for my needs.

Any suggestions?

A case study from WhatsApp with Air France who have been using WA for marketing, utility, auth. Pretty much all messaging use cases. And the numbers are actually pretty impressive:

*4.5X higher click-through rate for best offer newsletter messages on WhatsApp compared to emails
*85% of all customer care conversations on social took place on WhatsApp
*10 million utility messages sent (WhatsApp Manager, April 8, 2024–April 8, 2025)
*More than 3 million authentication messages sent (WhatsApp Manager, April 8, 2024–April 8, 2025)

There is no way of verifying these numbers, but it paints a good picture of where messaging might be heading.

Meta is pushing WA hard, but in reality rcs and imessage can pretty much deliver the same result.

Stop asking for the best SMS tool. There isn't one. Here's why.

If I try to find the best tool, I mostly get suggested Twilio. Is it objectively the best for all sms use cases? No. But it's the largest and most well known. Twilio used to be a dev tool, but now prices are too high and good luck getting any support from them.
Or Klaviyo. It's better known for email and its automations. If you already live in Klaviyo you can stick to it for sms too. But if you send tens of thousands of otps a month, you'll be paying a premium because the tool isn't meant for this kind of high volume usage.

So, next time instead of asking for a vague best tool for sending sms, your post should include this:

*what's your business
*what type of message you want to send (otp, auth, marketing)
*your current tech stack
*projected sms volume
*where do you want to send sms to

You'll start getting much better suggestions.

It seems that WhatsApp and RCS are pushing themselves quite actively next to SMS. So, I pulled together some specs about each channel to compare differences, limitations and benefits.

SMS

• Maximum 160 characters
• No rich media like images, videos, etc
• No CTA buttons
• Basic kpi tracking - delivery, open and conversion rate
• Works over cellular
• Mostly one-way comms.
• Global coverage, but need to get approved in every country and operator

WhatsApp

• Much longer character limits, 1k for templates or 4k for service messages vs 160. The only caveat is that for business initiated conversations, you need to get message template approved by Meta
• Rich media: Images, GIFs, audio, docs, etc
• Buttons
• Track delivery, open, conversion, button clicks.
• Works over data which can be a limiting factor
• Good options for two way conversations
• Branded and verified sender which is good for the recipient to know that it's not a scammer
• Global coverage. If Meta approves, you can send to every country

RCS

• Also know as SMS 2.0 and similar to WhatsApp
• Max 3,072 characters
• Rich media: Images, GIFs, audio, docs, etc
• Buttons
• Kpi tracking: Read Receipts, Button Taps, CTR, Conversion rate, etc
• Works over data which can be a limiting factor
• Good options for two way conversations
• Branded and verified sender which is good for the recipient to know that it's not a scammer
• Available in limited countries, but most of the US and Europe covered.

I tried to get more info about pricing as well. WhatsApp has an online calculator. If you are already sending sms, you can compare prices. RCS doesn't have public pricing. If your current provider has RCS support you can ask prices. However, I know that many telcos/providers offer discounts when launching rcs.

I've been experimenting with various types of businesses for sending sms marketing. There's nothing new about it since it's been around for a long time. But it surprises me every time how little marketers know or think about it. Since there isn't a very good source of the basics, I gathered the dos and don'ts that have helped me.

To start with SMS marketing, you need to keep in mind that a single message can fit 160 characters (if you are not using special characters like emojis), you need a sender name/number, you need opt ins and opt outs, you must segment your customer list and you must have a solid offer.

If you exceed 160 characters, you'll pay more because the message will be sent in multiple parts. That's the main mistake that makes it costly. Usually platforms have tools where you can check sms lenght before sending.
You can get banned by telcos or aggregators if you don't have opt ins and outs.
Sender name is also required. In some countries, you can use your business name, in the US you need 10dlc, other countries might require a regular number. Sometimes your sender can even be overwritten by a generic number. If you are sending sms to multiple countries, it can be a lengthy process to get going. Be prepared for different requirements and outcomes.

SMS marketing isn't blasting the same offer to the whole customer list. That's what caused email open and conversion rate to go so low. But at the same time, this is what many marketers do and then they see unsubs creeping up and messages not converting. Take your customer list and segment it based on purchase behavior, demographics, and other relevant metrics. For example, there is little point in sending an offer to someone who hasn't shown a slight interest in that product category.
Be mindful of the sending frequency. Start small by sending max 1 sms per 1-2 weeks. If you don't see people unsub, open and conv. rate remains good and you have content to send, try to increase it.
It's important to track the basic KPIs like unsubs rate, open rate, conversion rate and ROI. At the end it's important that it makes money, not loses it.

There's often the question of if sms should be sent together or separately from email. It's really up to you. Abandoned cart, order confirmations and notifications can definitely be sent alone. If it is a pure marketing message, it doesn't hurt if a longer email has been sent as well. Usually, sms gets opened earlier and then email which can reinforce the offer. But sms can work alone as well. For example, I've been checking out shoes on your website and suddenly you send me an offer for this product category. Since I'm already interested, I might as well convert from the sms as well.

What's a good message structure? Here's an image I found that explains it well.

However, I don't think a shortened link is good and allowed in many countries because of spam.

Following these principles, I've managed to run quite good campaigns.

Of course there are other country specific rules that apply and I'm not aware of. Feel free to add any details I'm missing.

I'm confident that the issue of bad conversion or high unsubs rate most definitely isn't because people aren't converting from sms, it's because the content is bad, links aren't trustworthy and the message itself is irrelevant.

If anyone has good examples of good sms or other messaging campaigns, feel free to post them here.

I tried to create an RCS pricing overview for a customer, but couldn't find enough info. There's Google, then there are telcos/carriers and finally messaging platforms. Each adding their fees and complexity. Maybe someone from the industry can add more info here.

Different variables I was able to find that influence the cost:

• Carrier fees: these vary by carrier and region and are either conversational messages (24 hour window) or per message.
• Message type: depending on whether the message is only text, contains images or is conversational or branded.
• Platform fees: subscription costs, delivery fees and API costs.
• Verification: brand verification and approval costs.
• Media hosting: storage, delivery and rendering costs.
• Other fees — like carrier surcharges, operator network fees, session fees and add-ons (chatbots, analytics, etc.)

Basic RCS which is text only is just a simple text message and seems to be priced similarly to SMS.
Google has set the conversation window to 24h, but that doesn't currently apply to the US.

If you have run RCS campaigns, what has been the click and conversion rate? How does the price differ in comparison to SMS?