Your customers expect instant updates from your business, whether it is an order confirmation, appointment reminder, or shipping alert. The easiest way to meet that expectation without breaking the bank is with SMS notifications.
In this guide, we’ll unpack the meaning of SMS notifications, share best practices, and provide clear examples of how to use them for your business.
Table of contents:
- What is an SMS Notification?
- Why SMS Notifications Are a Winning Communication Method
- Top Use Cases SMS Notifications
- Best Practices for Using Text Message Notifications
What Is an SMS Notification?
SMS notifications are text messages sent to a mobile device to share time-sensitive updates, alerts, or confirmations.
Unlike marketing messages, which aim to promote products or services, SMS notifications aim to inform and improve communication between entities and individuals. Understanding SMS notifications, the simple alerts delivered to your mobile phone, can significantly enhance how businesses and organizations connect with individuals.
SMS Notification vs. Push Notification
One important distinction to note is how SMS notifications differ from push notifications. Here’s a quick overview of the key differences:
SMS Notifications: A Winning Communication Method
The immediacy and reach of text messaging makes SMS notifications one of the most effective communication tools to keep your customers informed and engaged. This is true no matter where they are and what mobile device they have.
As of 2025, nearly 7.4 billion registered smartphones can get SMS messages. On top of this, text messages have a 98% open rate and are delivered within seconds, even to recipients half a world away.
This ubiquity, immediacy and familiarity make SMS notifications so valuable for modern businesses. In the digital age, people have come to expect lightning-quick updates and responses when dealing with businesses. In fact, 90% of consumers see immediate responses as either ‘Important’ or ‘Very Important’ in customer service scenarios.
Thus, to give your customers the instant, accessible and familiar experience they desire, turn to SMS notifications to deliver important information—rather than other formats like email or push notifications.
Additionally, short messaging service notifications are a preferred business-to-consumer communication method. In fact, studies show that:
- 83% of consumers like to receive appointment reminders via SMS
- 60% prefer handling customer service interactions over SMS
- 75% want to receive updates on the shipping status of their deliveries via SMS
Top Use Cases for SMS Notifications
SMS notifications are best used when your customers need instantaneous updates with relevant information from your business. Some appropriate times to use SMS notifications include:
Emergencies
Governments and organizations use emergency text alerts to provide critical information during natural disasters, health crises, or security threats.
Ex: Fire crews are on I-5 S near Mission Bay to put out a bush fire. Stay clear of the area.
Order updates
Whether it’s a delayed shipping notification or delivery confirmation, SMS is an effective tool for providing timely updates.
Ex: Delivered! It’s time for a run – Your running shoe obsession is here.
Routine Alerts
For businesses that need to optimize their daily schedules or make adjustments for clients, SMS shines as a reliable method to reach out to customers for time-sensitive alerts.
Ex: Our technicians are running a bit behind schedule – but only by 15 minutes! You can expect them to arrive around 2:15 today.
Rescheduling Alerts
Sometimes you need to reschedule appointments or services. SMS is one of the most effective ways to get your message read, and appointments rescheduled quickly.
Ex: Hi Henry! Your pet groomer is no longer available on Friday at 2pm. Could you instead come in on Thursday at 4pm or Friday at 10am?
Appointment Reminders
Healthcare providers, service companies, and others send appointment confirmations and reminders to ensure individuals keep track of their scheduled commitments. One recent study showed reminder texts reduced missed medical appointments by up to 41%.
Ex: Hi Sara! This is a reminder that your living room design consultation is scheduled for Friday at 2pm. See you there!
Event Reminders and Information
Use an SMS notification to improve guest attendance to your events or share helpful information about your event venue. You can share information about parking, registration, policies, or just remind people about the event.
Ex: Petco Park Events: Reminder that bags must be no larger than 5" x 7"
Transactional Updates
For banks and financial institutions, daily protocol often involves SMS notifications, meaning they often use SMS to inform customers of account activities, transactions, and security confirmations.
Ex: Hi Jenny. $500 has been withdrawn from your account at East Village on Sept. 24. If this was not you, please contact us immediately.
Travel Updates
Airlines and transport services send boarding passes, flight changes, and travel advisories through SMS to keep travelers informed on the go.
Ex: Your flight UA1241 on 9/30 has been delayed. New departure time: 6:10pm. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Educational Alerts
Schools and universities transmit important notifications to students, parents, or alumni regarding campus events, closures, or emergency situations.
Ex: Homecoming will be on 9/28! Please remember to sign up if you want to participate in any of the day events here: [link]
Faith Organization Communications
Churches and religious organizations use SMS notifications to communicate with their congregation about service times, event changes, prayer requests, or community updates. This keeps members connected with their faith community and aware of important spiritual activities or organizational news.
Ex: Reminder: Christmas eve mass will be at 4pm, 8pm, and midnight.
Best Practices for Using Text Message Notifications
SMS notifications are a powerful tool for delivering immediate and time-sensitive information to your clients. They should, however, be used with care and only in situations that call for them. Some best practices to most effectively use SMS notifications include:
- Get SMS opt-ins: Make sure to get consent before sending clients SMS messages for any reason—the Telephone Consumer Protections Act (TCPA) demands it. Furthermore, be open about why you’re collecting your customers’ phone numbers and don’t send them excessive messages or spam—it could easily deter clients from your business.
- Keep messages clear and concise: Get to the point immediately and don’t add any unnecessary information. While most SMS messages don’t go ignored, clients may be apt to make your messages an exception if they consistently read like a novel.
- Personalize alerts: Personalize your alerts with information about your specific clients. For instance, if you’re reminding them of an appointment, include the client’s name, the types of services they’ve booked, and what time they should arrive.
- Ensure relevance: Make sure any text messages you send are relevant to their recipients. If you have to cancel a day’s worth of appointments, for instance, only inform clients who have booked for that specific day, rather than letting your whole contact list know you won’t be around during that time.
- Encourage replies: Offer your contacts the ability to reply with a text to boost engagement and provide a channel for feedback or questions.
- Get the timing right: SMS notifications and SMS alerts work best when they feel timely. Make sure you’re sending them at appropriate times.
Following these rules, customizing and carefully wording each text can be tedious work for business owners to do by hand. Using SMS templates can significantly help with streamlining your process.
Send Timely SMS Notifications With Textedly
Timely text message alerts are highly effective at keeping your contacts in the loop and satisfied with your business. If you’re looking for a platform that can help you automate and scale SMS notifications – look no further than Textedly. With Textedly, you can:
- Create SMS notification templates
- Schedule SMS notifications for the perfect time
- Automatically personalize mass messages with customer data
- Send updates instantly to the right audience
- Enable two-way conversations to improve customer satisfaction
These features give you exactly what you need to scale SMS notifications for your business. Get started today on Textedly – your first 50 texts are free so you can test the platform before you pay for it.
