SMS is a critical communication tool for reaching current and potential customers. Almost 4 billion people worldwide own smartphones that can receive SMS messages. Text messages have a 98% open rate, compared to 20% for email, and more than 60% of recipients read their messages within five minutes of receiving them.

SMS should be a key part of your communication strategy. But when you send a critical text message, how can you be sure it reaches its intended recipients? A few simple strategies can make a difference in your delivery rate.

You can help your organization’s text messages get to where they need to go by following the advice in Plivo’s SMS best practices guide. It covers topics such as how to choose the most cost-effective phone number type for sending content, how to get opt-in consent, what triggers a carrier review, and a lot more.

Coding an application that follows these practices can give your organization an edge over your competitors by improving your relationship with your customers — and happy customers are more likely to stay customers and spend more money with you.