SMS Gateways: Spotting the Right One

Differentiating between the various SMS gateways is crucial when it comes to choosing a messaging provider. What do you need to look out for and how do you make that choice?

In recent months there has been quite a positive response to bulk SMS messaging via SMS gateways. The reasons for this are clear:

• communication via an SMS gateway is cheaper than traditional forms of communication, which includes post (a.k.a. snail mail) and voice calls.
• sending an SMS to a mobile phone means that the recipient is much more likely to pay attention to it – the mobile phone is one of the most personalized electronic devices of today. This means that, when an SMS is received, it packs a greater punch than, say, an email or a letter with a printed label (a hand-written letter from Granny is something entirely different).

If bulk messaging is what you need to empower your marketing campaigns, then we’ll show you how to make an informed choice when it comes to choosing the best out of many SMS gateways.

Here are some questions you need to ask:

“Who are they?”

This may sound like a silly question, but there are a lot of SMS gateways out there hosted by different SMS messaging providers. Look at a couple of providers and start making notes:

What is your initial impression?
Although more akin to a gut feeling, first impressions are very important as this is the company you’ll be using to get in touch with the life-blood of your business via their SMS gateways.

How much information do they supply on their website?
Just browse around, and see if they have a surplus of information relating to the SMS gateway you might consider using.

Do they have a presence in more than one country?
Whether you currently just want to send to clients or customers in one country, it’s important to keep your options open in terms of future developments as switching from one provider to another could be a costly exercise. Additionally, ensure that your service provider’s SMS gateway supports two-way messaging to give you the opportunity to interact with your clients.

Do they offer anything else aside from a website, like forums and a Facebook or Twitter account where you’ll be able to interact with them?
Think of this as a value-added part of the service they provide. While normal support channels are available by default, it helps to be able to get in touch with the people that are hosting the SMS gateways that help you reach out.

Now, once you’ve skimmed through all the data, it’s time to start asking the more important questions. These include:

“Is registration free?”

Seeing as you’ll be paying for your messages that get sent through the SMS gateways, should you be charged for registering? If the service provider supplies you with added benefits associated with this registration fee, are there other providers that provide the same services at no additional charge?

“Are there any hidden costs?”

Does your intended provider supply you with any type of guarantee that there will be no hidden costs? If you’re unsure, the best way to find out is to give them a ring and supply them with a hypothetical monthly scenario.

“How much will you pay to send a message?”

Sending messages through SMS gateways are generally cheaper than sending messages through your mobile phone because the SMS service provider buys credits in bulk from the network providers. But how much will you have to pay for these messages? Whether you pay on a per message basis or for credits to send these messages, it’s important to keep in mind that cheaper that the price should be on par with the type of service provided.

“Do you have to buy credits in bulk?”

Taking into account that you’re registering for a service that provides you with a bulk messaging capabilities via SMS gateways, it’s not uncommon that they’ll require you to buy messaging credits in bulk. Still, this minimum requirement should at least be affordable and supply you with enough credits to get started with your SMS marketing campaigns. Also, remember to check whether your messaging credits can expire when they remain unused for a certain period of time.

“How easy is it to use the product?”

What does it help you if the SMS gateway you are using is great, but extremely complex? If registration is free, log in and see whether you’ll be able to test the service. In a number of instances you’ll be provided with messaging credits for testing purposes.

“How efficient is the support?”

This not only refers to the support team sitting there waiting for your call overcome with an eagerness to please, but documentation, too. The best way to test this is to invent a hypothetical situation involving SMS gateways, and test the support and documentation on the website itself. And if you can’t think of any situations, why not just give them a ring and ask (or use your favorite search engine)?

Does the above make sense? To get started with your journey to finding the right provider, start reading the SMS gateways page now.

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