6 min read

Business Communication until the recent years was just understood as one-way where businesses would just shoot messages to customers without bothering about the reach or their target audience. With the significant focus on Cloud telephony and features that come with it, it has paved the way for newer more advanced forms of communications. A simple text message is now the go to form of communication for businesses.

An increase in the usage of smartphones has made it easier for businesses to stay in touch with customers and provide excellent customer service. This gives brand recognition and customer loyalty at the same time.

According to research conducted by IDC, 80% of the people check their smartphones within 15 minutes of waking up. It could be for various reasons like checking weather, news, work email, messages, online shopping, etc. The same research also suggested millennials keep smartphones with them for a whopping 22 hours in a day.

With the dependency on smartphones being at such a high rate, businesses consider SMS marketing to be one of the most successful ways to keep customers engaged and keep the conversation window active.

The smartphone market growth has made 64% of customers preferring text messages as against Voice calls, according to a survey conducted by a leading business magazine. The number of messages exchanged between family and friends on a daily basis is a massive 80 million plus says the survey.

With the response rate so high for messages, it’s only natural that businesses choose this form of communication even though it is one of the oldest form of communication.

2-Way messaging

Now that we know the success ratio for messages vs. phone calls, Cloud telephony providers have taken simple one-way business message communication to the next level and made it more interactive.

Marketers have useful insights given by cloud telephony providers which show that the key to running successful marketing campaigns is by keeping the audience engaged with meaningful conversation and not just one-way communication which some even call information dumping.

What is 2-Way messaging?

2-way messaging solves the issue of one-way dead-end business communication. As more and more businesses have now realized the importance of conversation lies in keeping in touch with customers which otherwise may end up in a negative way with businesses risking huge losses.

But 2-Way messaging has opened up new forms of business communication. It allows marketers to enter into direct conversation with end users and keep them satisfied thereby achieving brand recognition and customer’s trust.

2-Way messaging includes sending and receiving messages on a number which could be short code or long code number. These numbers could be shared or dedicated. The messages are triggered and delivered via a cloud-based platform in a very short timeframe. The messages are usually configured with a predefined set of keywords chosen by businesses which is enabled by the cloud telephony providers. These keywords are set up either on shared or dedicated short code/long code numbers.

How does 2-Way messaging boost business communication?

2-Way messaging helps businesses respond to customers immediately. The faster response rate is one of the main reasons why businesses choose 2-Way messaging. With one-way messaging, customers would just receive all kinds of messages and there was no way out. But with 2-Way messaging, customers can choose whether they want to opt-in or opt-out of receiving messages from that particular brand. The flexibility obtained as a result of 2-Way messaging has made businesses to explore beyond just the normal use case.

The typical use case of 2-Way messaging until a few years ago was usually businesses sending promotional messages and asking if the customer wanted to be notified about their products. The configured keywords were as simple as “Yes” or “No.” Although the keywords configured in the current trends are still simple like “yes” or “no”, the area of use cases has broadened.

2-Way messaging has now become the chosen medium for sending transactional messages like customer support ticket inquiries, appointment reminders, appointment confirmation, cancellation, order confirmation, cancellation, feedback about the support received, etc. It is the most cost-effective method for successful business communication. It is also the most affordable choice for any business, whether it’s a startup with a low budget or an enterprise.

Kaleyra’s 2-Way messaging platform has a high deliverability rate which delivers messages in milliseconds due to optimized routing and strong network operator connection with 800+ operators across 200+ countries.

Businesses main aim would be to bridge communication gaps and enable hassle-free communication. But regulation compliance acts as a worry for most businesses who are trying to go global and reach customers beyond geographical barriers. With Kaleyra’s 2-Way messaging businesses can concentrate on their products and reach customers across the globe while Kaleyra handles all regulatory compliance paving the way for smooth business interaction anywhere, anytime.

Engaging customers was never this easy. Kaleyra’s 2-Way messaging makes it possible to allow customers to choose if they want to subscribe or unsubscribe from receiving updates via messages on their phones. The opt-in/opt-out options provided by businesses gain customer’s trust by knowing that they can subscribe or unsubscribe at a time chosen by them. This not only gives businesses a clear understanding of who their target audience is and plans better for future campaigns, it gives customers the control on what kind of messages they want in their inbox.

Shared or dedicated short code/long code numbers provided by Kaleyra allows businesses to configure unlimited keywords and track user responses easily by checking real-time reports. The real-time reports and detailed analytics provide insights on the customer’s mobile number, the status of the message and the response sent according to the configured keywords. Businesses can choose specific keywords, apply filters and check the responses accordingly.

2-Way messaging is a proven method to gather detailed insights about customer preferences and experience. It’s one of the easiest ways of understanding customer logic through short, easy feedback and surveys. 2-Way messaging has the fastest response rate from customers when compared to email or phone call.

2-Way messaging is a total win-win for both businesses and customers. It shows customers that businesses value their opinion and it matters to them expressing genuinity of the businesses to provide a valuable customer satisfaction experience.

If reading this has inspired you to try 2-Way Messaging, check out Kaleyra’s offering. It can be set up in 3 easy steps, which include procuring a short code/long code number, configuring keywords, and sending out messages to a customer.