The A-B-C of International SMS

International SMS is an ideal option for all cross-border communication, whether for marketing purposes or internal company communication. Here’s what you should know to ensure a seamless, cost-effective integration into your current software environment.

Why Use International SMS?

International SMS can be used in situations that require you to communicate across national borders. Examples include:

• the promotion of a website or web service
• important service updates and alerts
• co-worker communication in situations where colleagues are located in other countries.

These messages can either be one-way or two-way with the use of the appropriate interface.

A Note on Numbers: If you’re intending to send and/or receive SMS messages within the U.S, you’ll have to make use of a short code. All U.S. short codes are registered through a central body, the Common Short Code Administration (CSCA).

International SMS messages, on the other hand, can be sent using a Virtual Mobile Number (VMN) local to the destination country. For example: If a U.S.-based company wishes to communicate with contacts in the United Kingdom, they’ll be able to make use of a VMN with the +44 international dialing prefix.

One of the key benefits here is that, in many cases, the foreign recipient is not charged for receiving the message (which could make international SMS a more cost-effective solution as opposed to local U.S. SMS messaging).

Choosing the Right Application

The tools required to send international SMS messages are the same as those used to send local SMS messages. Essentially, they can be divided into two categories:

1. Web-based Application: As the name suggests, this is a web interface accessible through virtually any recent web browser. Users can view incoming messages in the ‘inbox’, and the application also provides address book functionality, as well as reporting capabilities.

Curious about the web-based interface? Visit Clickatell’s Communicator page for an example.

2. API (Application Programming Interface): Businesses with their own development teams are able to employ any of the available API’s to send international SMS messages through the SMS gateway. These API’s include:

• HTTP/S
• FTP
• XML
• .COM
• SOAP
• SMPP
• SMTP

Choosing the right API depends on your current software infrastructure, and also on your future marketing/communication needs. Note that not all API’s provide two-way functionality and might require the use of more than one to achieve bi-directional communication, whilst providing integration with certain environments.

For more information on custom international SMS messaging using API’s, visit Clickatell’s SMS Gateway page.

Calculating Cost

Once you’ve got your contact lists in place and the right tool to do the job, it’s time to calculate the cost of each message. Typically there are two ways to go about this:

1. Calculating Individual Message Cost: In certain instances your provider might give information regarding the cost of each message, thereby allowing you work out how much of your budget will be spent.
2. Using Routing Profiles: It may also be possible that your international SMS provider makes use of routing profiles that will allow you to specify the maximum cost of messages. Though it is important to note that if your routing profile is set too low and a cheaper route isn’t available to your destination of choice, your message won’t be sent.

International SMS Reporting

Finally, once your messages have been sent, there are a couple of tools available that will allow you to see which of them were successfully delivered, which are still awaiting delivery and which of them failed (which generally occurs if the destination mobile phone has been turned off for longer than 24-hours).

This makes international SMS not only a cost-effective communication solution, but also an efficient operation.

More information on how you can integrate this communication method into your existing business framework, can be found on the international SMS page.

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Tags: Clickatell USA, Developer API's, international SMS, International SMS messages, International SMS software, messaging solutions, SMS API, SMS tools