What is Virtual SMS?

Virtual SMS enables you to send and receive SMS text messages over the internet without having to use a physical phone. This is especially useful when you want to use software to communicate with telephone networks that would be impossible on a physical phone, e.g. Uber notifying a customer that their car is outside or to have local phone numbers in different countries.

Virtual SMS enables you to use local virtual phone numbers to send messages, enabling recipients to reply to you without incurring international charges.

There are two main ways to send Virtual SMS text messages:

• API: Using software you write, send text messages to a REST API over the internet to an API vendor like Twilio. This approach enables you to deeply integrate Virtual SMS into your systems to achieve the use cases below.
• Software: Using software you purchase that includes messages and phone numbers, typically with a graphical user interface (GUI).
• Software + API: This is when you purchase software that sends Virtual SMS text messages via an API not provided by the software vendor.

Sending SMS text messages via software is the new normal for companies to get hold of their customers. SMS has 5x the open rate of email and much greater reach than apps so Virtual SMS is used for things like:

• Appointment Reminders- confirming appointments to help people remember to show up

• Arrival Alerts- to let customers know that their service is arriving, e.g. Uber

• Order Notifications- Keep customers in the loop about the status of their orders

• Shift Scheduling- Update staff on upcoming shifts and changes

• Text Marketing- Send offers to your customers

• Two-Factor Authentication- send a One Time Passcode to increase account security

• Phone Verification- Verify who people say they are