Text message marketing succeeds or fails on the message itself: a few dozen words that have to earn a reply from someone who did not expect to hear from you today. This article answers one specific question. How do you write and send marketing text messages that people act on, store the best ones as reusable templates so the quality holds when several people send, and fit them with email, images and video inside the levelpartner.ai platform? Searches for SMS messages marketing usually mean exactly this job. If you want the wider overview of consent and programme design, start with the guide to text marketing for established firms.
The anatomy of a marketing text that works
A good marketing text has four parts, in this order. Who it is from. Why you are writing now. The one thing you want them to do. How to stop hearing from you, where the rules require it.
Take this example: "Hi Dan, it's Lucy from Northfield Estates. Two flats on your road have sold this month. Want a free valuation of yours? Reply YES. Text STOP to opt out." It names the sender, gives a timely reason, asks for one action and closes the loop on consent. It also fits in one segment.
What it avoids matters as much. No capital letters for emphasis, no vague promises, no link the reader cannot place. Every extra word lowers the chance the reader gets to the ask.
Length and segments
A single SMS segment holds 160 standard characters. Go over that and the message is split into several segments that the phone reassembles, and each segment is billed. Some characters, such as curly quotes, emoji or certain symbols, switch the message to an encoding that holds far fewer characters per segment, so copy pasted from a word processor can triple your cost without anyone noticing. Write in the platform's message box, use straight quotes and check the segment count before saving.
Before, at 214 characters: "Hi there, we hope you are well. We are excited to share that our team has launched a brand new quarterly planning service for all our valued clients. Click here to find out more and book your session today." After, at 117 characters: "[Agency name]: Sam, your Q1 plan is due. Book a 30-min planning call before 20 Dec: [link] Reply STOP to opt out" The second names the sender, the person and the deadline, and costs one segment instead of two. Names and dates are placeholders.
Writing for the four industries
Agencies text business owners who are busy, so lead with the result the meeting will produce. Consultants text senior people who dislike being sold to, so be plain and offer something useful, such as a briefing slot. Mortgage brokers text clients about time-sensitive decisions, so lead with the date that matters. Real estate firms text people in the middle of a move, so lead with the property or the time.
SMS, MMS and video text message marketing
Standard SMS carries text only. MMS adds an image, a GIF or a short video clip, and it is supported mainly in the US. In the UK, picture messages are less reliable and often arrive as a link instead.
Video text message marketing works best when the video is personal: a 30-second clip from the adviser who will handle the case, or a walkthrough of a property. Host the video on a landing page on your Sites and send the link, rather than attaching a large file. The page loads on any phone, and you can see who watched.
Email and text message marketing together
Email and SMS do different jobs, and the strongest programmes use both on purpose. Email carries the detail: the proposal, the market update, the guide. The text makes sure the email gets seen, or asks for the one quick action the email made possible.
A common pattern is email first, then a text 24 hours later to anyone who did not open or click. The platform can branch on that in a workflow. Our page on running email and SMS marketing as one programme shows how to plan the split.
Before you start
- Mobile numbers held against contacts, with a consent field or tag showing they agreed to marketing texts.
- A sending number enabled for SMS, plus US carrier registration before you text American mobiles.
- A short list of approved sender names and sign-offs, so every text sounds like your firm.
- Somewhere to send people: a booking calendar, a form or a landing page on your Sites.
How to send marketing text messages
- Go to Contacts.
- Select the contacts you want to message, using a saved smart list.
- Choose the Send SMS Bulk Action.
- Select the sending phone number when required.
- Enter your SMS message or insert a snippet from the library.
- Review the recipients and message.
- Choose Send immediately, Schedule for later or Use Drip Mode.
- Configure any additional delivery settings.
- Review the campaign before confirming the send.
Send a test to your own phone first, and open Conversations after the send so every response gets a reply the same day.
How to build a template library
When five salespeople each write their own follow-up text, you get five standards of grammar, five ideas of what is appropriate and no way to learn which wording works. A shared library of approved texts, stored as snippets, gives the team a known-good starting point and makes results comparable.
- Go to Conversations.
- Select Snippets.
- Click + New Snippet.
- Select Add Text Snippet.
- Enter a descriptive name, such as "Event invite, past clients", and the message.
- Add Custom Values where personalisation is needed.
- Review the character count and SMS segment information.
- Click Save.
A snippet can then be inserted from the message composer in Conversations, and the same reusable text appears under Templates in a workflow's Send SMS action. Name snippets by purpose and audience, keep them current and retire the ones nobody uses.
Automated text message marketing for the repeatable parts
Most marketing texts should not be one-off sends. Welcome messages, follow ups after an enquiry, nudges before a renewal date: these are the same every time and belong in Automation. You write them once, test them and let workflows send them when a contact reaches that point. The automated text message setup guide covers the build.
One-off sends are for news: a new office, an event, a change in rates. Keep the split clear and your team will not send the same message twice by accident.
Suppose the firm has 900 past clients with consent to texts and emails an invitation on Monday. On Wednesday, the 720 who did not open get a text: "Hi Alex, Ruth at [firm name]. We're hosting a short briefing on cash flow planning on the 14th, 8am. Want a seat? Reply YES." If 61 replied YES and 44 attended, the text would have filled a room that email alone left half empty. The figures are hypothetical.
What it replaces and what it costs in time
For a firm with stalled growth, the text message channel usually replaces phone chasing. Instead of an assistant spending two days ringing past clients about an event, a single send and a morning of replies does the same job with a written record of every answer.
Plan on 30 minutes to write and approve a one-off send, and an hour or two of replies afterwards. Automated messages take a few hours to build and then very little ongoing time.
The mistake most people make
They write the text like an advert. Text message campaigns marketing copy borrowed from social media, full of claims and urgency, reads as spam on a phone. People respond to texts that sound like a person they know. Write as the adviser, not the brand.
Read every marketing text out loud before it goes. If it sounds odd said to a client across a desk, rewrite it.
When not to use it
Do not use SMS text message marketing for anything a reader needs to study, compare or sign. Do not send to contacts whose consent you cannot show. And avoid it entirely for audiences you only reach once a year, because an unexpected text after twelve months of silence reads as cold outreach, whatever your records say. For the rules that keep a programme healthy, see SMS marketing best practices.
Troubleshooting
The first name shows as blank. Some contacts have no first name stored. Fill the field before the send, or write that text so it reads naturally without a name.
Images do not arrive in the UK. MMS support varies by network. Send a link to a page with the image instead.
Recipients reply asking who you are. The sender name is missing or unfamiliar. Lead with a person's name and the firm name, every time.
Replies arrive after hours and sit unanswered. Set an AI agent to acknowledge out-of-hours replies and promise a response the next working morning.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best time to send a marketing text?
Weekday mornings between nine and eleven work well for most service businesses. Avoid evenings, weekends and early mornings, and check the contact's time zone if you serve more than one country.
Can I send marketing texts to clients who never opted in?
In the UK, existing clients may fall under a soft opt-in for similar services, if you offered an opt-out when you collected the number. In the US, written consent is the safe standard. When in doubt, ask for permission first.
Should every marketing text include a link?
No. A reply request often works better than a link, because answering YES is easier than opening a page. Use a link when the action genuinely needs a page, such as booking a slot. A text message campaign can combine both.
How do I stop the team writing their own messages?
Make the snippet library easier than typing. Name snippets clearly, keep them current and review a sample of sent messages each month.
How is text message marketing billed on the platform?
SMS and MMS usage is billed as used on top of the platform licence. Longer messages and picture messages use more segments, so keep messages short where you can.