The ability to easily use your email to translate into an SMS seamlessly makes your communication ability very effective.
ClikSend is assessed as the best value SMS gateway system as a communication and marketing tool for businesses.
The ability to easily convert your email into a text message simply known as SMS will make your communication so much more effective. As you probably have experienced, people do not necessarily read all their emails or if they do, it may be done in a matter of hours or days. However, interestingly and factually, people do read their SMS from their mobile phones within a matter of seconds or at the latest minutes. That’s why using an email-to-SMS gateway system is such an effective marketing and communication tool, particularly when it comes to marketing and communication campaigns, special offers, points of interest, appointment reminders, alert notices or notification purposes for goods collection.
Several SMS gateway providers have the facility to ensure your email is sent from a personal computer without the requirement for changes to any existing CRM system. This means that the business or individual can decide to send out a communication using the services of the provider anytime and anywhere there is access to a computer and the Internet.
It needs to be stressed that there are different Email to SMS gateway services available from providers. Promptness and reliability as well as security are important factors that will be better serviced when using a premium direct gateway provider that uses secure British telecommunication carriers. Therefore the gateway will route through these UK mobile phone network systems to assure the business that the message will be effectively distributed. Such a premium gateway is more expensive than the hybrid gateway service which uses oversee telecommunication carriers to be their vehicle pathway of distribution.
Many gateway providers can receive user replies from client feedback or customers or from staff who wish to respond by SMS in response to an original text message. This immediate two-way communication is very useful when the business requires immediate feedback or the need to know about employee rotations in the workplace or reminders of appointment schedules.
When reviewing a wide range of national and international email to SMS gateway providers as can be viewed in the SMS comparison table, it became evident that certain SMS providers were able to present a good range of features that businesses could use at a reasonable charge.
The list was mainly concentrated on those providers who can offer premium gateway facilities but can use hybrid carriers should the cost and time factors not be a concern to the business. The companies are ClickSend, SMS Broadcast, WholesaleSMS, Clickatell and SMS Tech.
The two standouts were ClickSend and SMS Tech. They both have the infrastructure in place to ensure their gateway network is efficiently used to support the Email to SMS solutions. The use of these providers has a browser-based message platform of Outlook Mobile Service, Online SMS and SMS Gateway provisions. These two companies can distribute from low to large volumes of text messages at any one time.
As can be seen from the graph provided, the dominant players in the email-to-SMS gateway are ClickSend and SMS Broadcast. They are both highly based on their features, costs, reliability, reputation and customer service. The graph is an indicative way of visually demonstrating their overall quality as a reliable provider of Email to SMS based on their gateway provisions.
Regarding the price of each SMS for distribution purposes, the review of the best range of SMS providers shows that there was a range of fee schedules based on an SMS over a monthly basis. This is dependent very much on the volume of text messages distributed. The larger the volume sent over a month, the cheaper per text message than small volumes distributed over the month.
It was assessed that ClickSend and SMS Broadcast offered the cheapest charge for sending a text message with a low rate for both small and large volumes every month. This was followed by DirectSMS and SMSTech and then TextIt which were a little more expensive but again that dependent on the quantity sent.
Consideration of other charge factors need to be taken into account. For example, SMS Broadcast and ClickSend offer unlimited credit validity which is not presented with other email to SMS gateway providers. Additionally, these two companies do not charge a monthly fee and their virtual number cost is less than the other competitive providers mentioned.
It is one thing to be concerned with the cost factor, it is another matter to know that the message will be transmitted when required, that is, dependent on the reliability of the email to SMS gateway system. In the review taken of numerous SMS providers in the UK, it was assessed that both ClickSend and DirectSMS delivered the most reliable and effective email-to-SMS gateway solution. For many businesses, the issue of reassurance that a message is sent when required can be of paramount importance particularly if it is a critical alert or an appointment reminder. Both these companies have sophisticated gateway technology that is supported by technical skills. The fact that each provider has a customer care service 24/7 or during business hours throughout the week means that there is support when required.
The reliability is supported by an uptime of 99% or higher with a Service Level Agreement (SLA) or money-back guarantee. The two top providers mentioned have such type of assurance as part of their contractual agreement with the businesses that engage them.
Finally, for this section, the Email to SMS gateway provides the type of technology that converts your emails into SMS and this means that your customised communication can be distributed directly to the recipient’s mobile phone.
Emails to SMS gateway use a system called Application Programming Interface or API. It allows your email to be converted into an SMS that people will receive on their mobile phones. This means that you can write a personalised message via your email address and send it via a platform whether it is Outlook, Gmail or AOL. The message can be sent from an external CRM or a third-party software system. As mentioned previously, the gateway system will use a premium or hybrid carrier depending on your request as the costs are more expensive for the former system but more secure and reliable than the hybrid overseas telecommunication carrier vehicle.
The gateway software that the provider manages allows for a seamless convergence between the platform that the provider has and the email system that you use. By having a CRM platform that you can send as an email, this can be easily sent as a text message.
You should always check that the gateway provider has a customer support service to assist you should there be any complications or for general assistance. It is preferable that such service is 24/7 rather than business hours and that it has a person to talk to rather than just an email address.
The Email to SMS gateway site has an SMS Comparison table to assist you in easily comparing the features, charges, reliability and customer services that will make your life simpler when reviewing these providers or wanting to engage a provider. This information service provided on this site is free of charge and is available fully for your use.
The SMS comparison tables and sites were initiated some time ago by a group of experts in the SMS field who felt that people were lost or confused when assessing the value of numerous SMS providers available in the UK. As a result the authors, now not working in this field, felt they could offer this comparison service impartially. As a consequence, such a comparison is now available. Should you use the site and as a result engage a provider, then the authors may request a commission for the provider but not from you.
The information is mainly reliant on the information provided by the current SMS providers and such information and sites can change without notice. Should any of the information provided on this site be different from their sites, please let the authors know so that changes can be made as soon as possible.
The authors hope you will gain a wealth of information and assistance from this site.
Update on 10 March 2024