Why SMS Messaging Is Having a Big Moment (and What Brands Need to Know)
There’s nothing wrong, per se, with Gmail’s Promotions tab. Anything that declutters a user’s inbox is probably worth applauding. But from a brand’s perspective, there’s something a little deflating about it, is there not?
You spend all this time crafting the perfect marketing email: precisely tweaking the pitch, the tone, the structure. Then your message winds up languishing unread beside a hundred other promotional emails.
Brands want to be on the mainstage. Instead, they’re relegated to a quarantined section many miles from the action.
It is in this context that a different channel has come to shine: SMS. Text messages are fast, direct, and hard to ignore. But while the opportunity is huge, it comes with its own rules.
Let’s dig into why SMS is suddenly such a hot ticket in marketing, how it compares to email, and best practices to keep in mind.
Email’s Still Big, But SMS Is Growing Faster
Don’t get it twisted: email isn’t dead. For many businesses, email still drives a huge share of retention revenue. But thanks to the Promotions tab and consumers’ ever-shortening attention spans, those numbers are shifting.
The gold standard used to be that brands would earn around 40% of revenue from retention channels like email, SMS, and push notifications. Email, at one time, made up the vast majority of that pie. Today, it’s more like 60/40—and an even split within the next few years isn’t hard to imagine.
This is especially the case in industries like apparel, beauty, and accessories, and it’s not hard to see why. A consumer learning about a flash sale on summer dresses from their Gmail Promotions tab—hours or days after the email was sent—is far less likely to take the plunge than someone getting an instant notification.
Why SMS Works
The topline advantage of SMS communications is simple: consumers are significantly more likely to actually see them. The numbers here are drastic: where average email open rates today hover around 15-20%, SMS open rates stand at 98%.
Consumers, for whatever complex reasons, are happy to let hundreds of emails pile up unread in their Gmail Promotions tab—but would never think to simply ignore a text message.
This is, as they say, a double-edged sword. On the one hand, SMS communications are able to bypass all the endless distractions of modern life—from the news, to social media, to the blaring offers of your competitors—and meet consumers precisely where they are, the very moment you want to reach them. On the other hand, the slightest abuse of this power on the part of brands can lead to an instant block.
Consumers will tolerate a lot of noise in their inbox—not so much in their messages. True, tolerance levels have grown in recent years: with so many brands on the SMS train, consumers have gotten used to a higher volume of texts. But the standard here is still higher. Brands need to ensure their messages are worth the interruption.
SMS Best Practices (and Pitfalls to Avoid)
If you’re a marketer thinking, Great, let’s start blasting texts every day, pump the brakes. SMS is a different beast than email, and it’s more expensive. SMS can cost four times more than email when you account for carrier fees and message charges. That means efficiency isn’t optional: it’s survival.
Here are a few golden rules:
- Find Your Voice: The perfect SMS message functions as a kind of poetry. It’s all about compression: in just a few dozen characters, you need to convey:
- A distinctive brand voice,
- A tangible call to action
- At least a limited degree of personalization.
- Test, Test, Test: Just like email, SMS benefits from A/B testing. Try out different offers, tones, and timing to see what resonates with each audience. But focus your testing where it matters most: messages tied directly to revenue. If a promo text brings in $30,000 in sales, optimizing that is way more valuable than tinkering with a softer new arrivals message that only brings in $7,000.
- Segment Your Audiences: Not all subscribers are created equal. A loyal repeat buyer might be fine getting texts three times a week, while a one-time purchaser might only want occasional nudges. Tailoring frequency and content to the right segments will boost performance and reduce opt-outs.
- Poll Your Audience: It can feel impossible, sometimes, to know what the consumer actually wants. One quick way to find out? Just ask them. Give the consumer agency. Poll them on the types of messages they’d like to receive. When consumers feel involved in the process—viewed as people, as opposed to sentient credit cards—they are far more likely to engage.
- Keep an Eye on Costs: MMS (texts with images) can be impactful, but they often count as three messages—triple the cost. Use them strategically and only after testing whether the visuals really drive extra revenue.
Mastering this optimization and compression takes work; it’s a craft like any other. But it is always worth the effort.
Innovations in SMS (and Where AI Fits In)
Of course, no marketing conversation in 2025 is complete without talking AI. There are legal gray areas: some states prohibit AI-driven automated texts, for instance. But when it comes to copy, AI has the potential to be a marketer’s best friend.
Here’s the thing, though: per a number of recent studies, consumers are getting much better at detecting AI-generated copy. That doesn’t mean marketers can’t use AI in an SMS context. It just means they need to use it judiciously: it should be used to optimize the process, not replace it. Your brand’s distinct voice still needs to shine through in every message.
Another innovation to watch: simplified one-tap sign-ups for SMS lists. Instead of replying to confirm subscriptions, users can now tap once to join. This small tweak could significantly increase opt-in rates.
The Bottom Line: SMS Belongs in Your Holiday Strategy
So where does this leave brands right now? The advice is clear: lean into SMS, especially as the holidays approach. Inboxes will be jammed, competition for attention will be fierce, and the brands that use SMS smartly will have an edge.
But don’t treat SMS as a silver bullet. It’s not about replacing email; it’s about balancing both channels. Be mindful of costs, focus on audience segmentation, and test relentlessly.
Most importantly, don’t wait until November to start. Holiday campaigns should launch early; October is the new November in marketing timelines.
In short: email may still be the king of retention, but SMS is the fast-rising prince. And if you play it right, your texts could be the thing that cuts through the noise, gets that quick click, and turns a casual browser into a buyer.
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