How Virtual SMS Numbers Work for your Business

You don’t need your own phone number to send an SMS on our platform. We keep a shared pool of numbers that any customer can use. You can even add your own branding with a custom Sender ID.

Perhaps, though, you want a Dedicated Virtual Phone Number: an SMS number that only belongs to you.

Here’s what a Virtual Phone Number can do for your business:

• Allow your customers to opt-in to a contact list to receive updates and special offers. Advertise your number in marketing collateral or online and watch your database grow.
  
• Encourage prospective customers to opt-in to your list by running an SMS text-in competition.
  
• Allow customers or staff to schedule or reschedule appointments via SMS.
  
• Make it much easier for your customers to protect themselves against phishing attacks.
  
• Handle customer enquiries and after-sales support via a reliable channel.

And a whole lot more ...

Get noticed with a Dedicated Virtual Phone Number

What’s the biggest reason enterprises move to SMS? They’re sick and tired of being ignored.

Let’s face it; once an email is sent, it’s in the lap of the gods. Will it even be noticed amid all the spam? Will it sit in a filter, forever unseen?

It probably hasn’t escaped your attention that people around you check their phones all the time —recent research from the USA showed the average person doing it 96 times per day. According to a Shift Communications survey, 82% of smartphone owners read every message they receive.

Using a Virtual Mobile Number helps to tilt these odds even further in your favour. It’s the difference between messaging your customer from a completely unknown number every time, and one that you used for all your prior correspondence.

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How to let customers text you any time

Because your Dedicated Virtual Mobile Number is unique to you, you can include it in your marketing materials. Unlike shared numbers, which only allow replies with 48 hours of sending, and Sender IDs, which don’t allow incoming messages at all, customers can text you on a Dedicated Number at any time.

Use the powerful functionality of Virtual Numbers to generate leads, handle enquiries, schedule appointments, and provide customer service and support.

Dedicated Numbers; the gold standard in fast, frictionless contact

Do you want it to be as easy as possible for your customers to get in touch with you?

SMS technology has been around long enough that almost everyone feels comfortable sending off a text—even if they hate talking to strangers, hate computers, or their phone is from the Jurassic era.

Sending an SMS doesn’t require your customers to install an application, sign up for anything or use an unfamiliar interface. It’s easy peasy.

With a Virtual Number, you can give your audience a direct line to your business; ensuring you can provide your customer base with a consistent and reliable communication channel.

Virtual Numbers are a key part of a wider strategy

The data is clear: SMS marketing is effective and engaging. Using a Dedicated Number gives you your best chance to grow your brand, be noticed, draw in responses, and keep everyone secure.

When it comes to branding, consistency is critical. Using a recognisable and concise Virtual SMS Number for all SMS sent from your business guarantees recipients to identify and engage with your messaging successfully.

Personalised SMS campaigns, coupled with a recognisable Sender ID, can reinforce the emotional relationship customers associate with a successful brand. Build strong business relationships and trust with text messages that your subscribers can identify straight away.

Set up a Dedicated Virtual Phone Number today to give your business greater brand awareness and marketability.

How SMS helps you protect customers and earn trust

You’ve probably heard of phishing and spear phishing. Perhaps you’ve even been stung.

These are scams where criminals impersonate a business to infect its customers with malware or to trick them into handing over usernames, passwords, and other valuable information.

Sadly, phishing is a booming black market business; the deceptions grow more sophisticated all the time. And these types of hacking attempts are all too common in SMB and SME companies.

Related: “How hackers bypass 2FA security features and what you can do about it”

Every business needs to be alert to this. Protecting your customers is the right thing to do, and it also protects your brand. It’s especially important if you’re handling financial transactions, commercially or personally sensitive information, or serve high net-worth individuals.

If you or your customers have the tech-savvy to use email verification tools or know-how to spot forged email headers, great! If you’re servicing anyone of ordinary computing ability, using a Dedicated SMS Number for your most sensitive alerts makes it a lot easier to figure out what’s real and fake.

There’s no such thing as foolproof security, so don’t be complacent. We urge you to be alert to the ways that fraudsters have exploited SMS.

Using a Dedicated SMS Number for your alerts does make phishing more work than forging an email. This limits your exposure. Lazy crooks will look for easy money elsewhere.

Of course, this kind of system only works if your customers understand that only SMS alerts from your Dedicated Number are legitimate. This requires you to communicate that system effectively. Done right, this is also a fantastic marketing opportunity. You can build a better relationship by demonstrating that you’re actively guarding their money and data.

SMSGlobal provides robust and powerful solutions to handle things like Two Factor Authentication (a measure that Google reports to be 96% effective against bulk phishing attacks) and One-time Passwords on our platform. Just plug into the OTP API and twist the key. This ready-to-go API frees your developers to focus on what they’re best at while securing your valuable data.

The Long and the Short of Dedicated Numbers

When purchasing a Dedicated Number for your exclusive use, you can choose between a long code and short code. Although their uses tend to differ from one business to another, both are very important and form the basis of any SMS marketing campaign.

Learn more to find out which might be right for your unique business needs.

Long Codes are functional and affordable

An SMS long code is sometimes called a Virtual Mobile Number, Response Number, or Inbound Number. If your marketing needs are modest or you’re just getting started on your SMS journey, a long code might be the perfect choice for your business.

Long codes 101:

• It looks just like a regular mobile number, making them a popular choice for SMS campaigns.
• Consists of 11-16 digits depending on the country you’re sending within.
• It is usually tied to a local area code.
• It’s limited to one message per second. This should be fine for most customer service applications.
• It’s the most cost-effective Dedicated Number solution available.

Be noticed and remembered with a short SMS code

An SMS short code can contain 4-8 digits, depending on the country you’re sending from. Concise and memorable, short codes set you apart from the crowd, signalling instantly that your operation is reliable.

Short codes explained:

• A premium Dedicated Number option, used for large scale SMS marketing blasts.
• It’s much easier to remember than a shared number. This makes it ideal for jingles, flyers, banner ads, and other marketing materials.
• Usually specific to an allocated country
• Facilitates large messaging volumes; ideal for time-critical alerts, bulk marketing messaging, or if you operate a busy platform.

Can you choose your own Dedicated Number?

Yes, you can specify a custom dedicated number. This is subject to availability, and the application process can take some time. If you want to know more about custom Dedicated Numbers, get in touch with one of our dedicated SMS experts at any time.

Related: “Sender IDs [Explained]”