An SMS marketing company is a marketing agency that specializes in sending promotional and informational content to its clients' customers via text messages. 

Some of the typical services that SMS marketing companies offer include: 

• Promotional campaigns 
• Customer survey campaigns 
• Automated responses 
• Appointment reminders 
• Content sharing 
• Brand awareness campaigns 
• Lead generation 

The cost of SMS marketing services depends on several factors, including the geographical region you are targeting and the SMS provider, message length and volume, type of message (SMS or MMS), and additional features like campaign scheduling and tracking or customer support. 

For the US, these are the typical costs of SMS marketing services per text length: 

• Up to 160 characters: $0.015 per SMS 
• Up to 320 characters: $0.03 per SMS 
• Up to 480 characters: $0.045 per SMS 
• Up to 640 characters: $0.06 per SMS 

If you plan on running an international SMS marketing campaign, you will have to pay additional carrier fee costs that vary from country to country and depend on the partnerships between your service provider and local carriers. On average, an international SMS costs between $0.25 and $0.50 per message. 

In 2023, 86% of business owners and marketing managers used SMS marketing, which is a 56% increase compared to 2022. Some companies are unsure if SMS marketing still works, but the statistics show that SMS campaigns have high open rates (98%) and click-through rates (10.66%), making them a powerful marketing tool.  

While there are plenty of businesses that need SMS marketing, some industries have seen excellent results, including: 

• Travel and tourism 
• Healthcare 
• Food delivery and catering 
• Shopping
• Real estate 
• Financial services 

A relevant example is a travel planning company called Expedia, which ran an SMS marketing campaign to send personalized travel offers for destinations in the UK. The campaign generated 17,000 clicks for the promoted URL and grew the conversion rate to 28%. 

With SMS marketing you can increase sales in several ways:  

• Running brand awareness campaigns 
• Upselling to your existing customer base 
• Offering time-limited promotions and deals 
• Driving prospects to your website through engaging content 

When looking for the right SMS marketing company for your business, you should consider its experience in your industry, existing portfolio and case studies, pricing plans, and strategy. 

Based on your company's needs, you should focus on these steps: 

1. Know your marketing goals: Define the main KPIs you want to achieve, like the conversion rate, number of completed user surveys, SMS content click-through rate, etc. 
2. Find the right expertise: Some SMS marketing agencies specialize in local campaigns, while others have deals with international carriers and can offer affordable rates for global campaigns. 
3. Set a budget: Determine the amount you can invest in this SMS marketing project. 
4. Review agency experience: Ask for a portfolio of relevant work, case studies, reviews, and clients you can contact for feedback. Ideally, the agency should have tangible results with companies from your industry. 
5. Ask about the strategy: Find out how the agency plans to create a custom SMS strategy to meet your goals. 
6. Inquire about analytics and reporting: Ask the agency about the tools it uses to track SMS open and click-through rates and other metrics. Ask how often you can expect to get progress reports. 
7. Interview: Set up interviews with prospective SMS marketing agencies to discuss the project in detail and determine if they are a good fit for your team. 
8. Ask for proposals: Send a request for a proposal (RFP) to the shortlisted SMS marketing agencies. 
9. Make a decision: After reviewing the RFPs, choose the best-suited agency and establish all project development processes. 

If you need a custom-made list of SMS marketing agencies, contact us. Our team will match you with the most suitable agencies based on your list of requirements. You can browse our Marketplace for more details. 

The key success metrics utilized by SMS marketing companies include: 

• SMS delivery rate 
• Message open rate 
• Customer response rate 
• Unsubscribe rate 
• Conversion rate 
• SMS campaign return on investment (ROI) 

According to statistics, the success rate of SMS marketing is as follows: 

• The average message open rate is 98% 
• 51% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase after reading an SMS that includes an ad, discount coupon, or QR code 
• 90% of consumers respond to an SMS within 30 minutes 
• Coupons sent via SMS are redeemed 10 times more often than traditional coupons 
• 96% of marketers who used SMS marketing reported that it has helped them increase revenue 

You should ask an SMS marketing agency questions about its relevant industry experience, the types of services it provides and recommends for your business and the approach it will take to delivering SMS campaigns. 

These include the following: 

Its Relevant Background 

1. How many years of experience do you have in SMS marketing? 
2. Do you have a portfolio of relevant SMS marketing projects? 
3. Do your team members have relevant SMS marketing certifications and experience using tools like Klaviyo, Textmagic, Twilio, Omnisend, etc? 
4. Do you work with any of our competitors? Will there be a conflict of interest? 

Company Services and Processes 

1. Is SMS marketing cheaper than other marketing channels? 
2. What are SMS marketing platforms that the companies use? 
3. Why is SMS marketing better than email? 
4. Do you suggest a local or a global campaign and what geolocations do you recommend we target?
5. Should we use MMS instead of SMS? 
6. What is the volume of messages you can deliver in one month? 
7. What is the recommended SMS frequency for this campaign? 

The Project 

1. How do we define project milestones? What happens if they are not met? 
2. How many people will be on the project? What are their roles? 
3. What metrics will you use to define the success of this SMS marketing campaign? 
4. How often will you provide us with status reports and relevant metrics? 
5. What is the expected deadline to successfully deliver the campaign? What happens if the project is late? 
6. What is the planned budget? Are there any additional costs we can expect? 
7. What kind of support can you provide after the project is finished? 

According to DesignRush and Google reviews, the top 5 SMS marketing companies in the US are: 

1. SmartSites 
   • 5.0 stars on DesignRush (52 reviews) 
   • 4.9 stars on Google (510 reviews) 
   • Top clients: Honey Do Men, Arco Cafe, The Haymaker, Walker and Hawkes 
2. SkyDiamond Elite 
   • 4.9 stars on DesignRush (12 reviews) 
   • Top clients: Faherty, Prive Revaux, Naked Cashmere, Hanacure 
3. The Media Captain 
   • 4.8 stars on DesignRush (11 reviews) 
   • 4.9 stars on Google (144 reviews)  
   • Top clients: A Schottenstein Real Estate Group, Highlights for Children, Cincinnati Favorites, Kutol  
4. Hinge Commerce 
   • 4.7 stars on DesignRush (4 reviews) 
   • 5.0 stars on Google (6 reviews) 
   • Top clients: BioSteel, Solv Wellness, Chateau Ste Michelle, Blue-9 Pet Products 
5. Email champs 
   • Top clients: BudPop, Mission Liquor, Stardust Hair, Dr. Laser 

Discover more about these and other SMS marketing companies. All of these were carefully selected based on successful projects, industry reputation, customer reviews, and team expertise. Personalize your search and sort companies by location, budget size, hourly rates, and reviews.