SMS Links: How To Create a Link That Sends a Text?

You might have clicked a link that diverts you to a website. But do you remember clicking a link that directly opens your text messaging with someone? 🤔 – That trick is called SMS Link, a brilliant way to start a conversation with a business or anyone else. 🤩

SMS links are powerful tools for increasing user engagement and improving communication. Whether you’re booking an appointment, making an inquiry, or subscribing to updates, SMS links allow you to easily move from a website or email to a text message.

In this blog post, we will guide you through the process of creating click-to-text SMS links and explain their benefits. We will also provide some pro tips for designing SMS links.

What are SMS links?

SMS Links, usually called click-to-text links, are clickable links (Hyperlinks) attached to your text SMS. The recipient is directed to a web page or other online content when they click those links. These messages including clickable links have a very high CTR (click-through rate). 

Usually, SMS Links refer to two things; let’s understand them one by one:

Links you include in SMS messages: These are links attached to your text messages. You’re headed to a web page or other online content when you click those links. These links are useful for increasing user engagement by providing a CTA option.

👉For instance, You received a text message with a link from a business. If you click that link, it takes you to the business’s website or sign-up page.

Links that automatically initiate a text message: When clicked, these links open your phone’s default messaging app with pre-written messages. Businesses can effectively encourage customers to text them with inquiries using this method.

👉For instance, if you run a coffee shop, you can create a “text us to order” link on your website. This link will open the customer’s messaging app with your shop phone number, probably a pre-written number like “I would like to place an order.”

✌️ You Might Like: Best SMS Forwarding Apps

When would you use an SMS link?

You can use an SMS link for several purposes. Here are some of them:

• For promotional marketing campaigns: When launching new products or deals, including a product link in your SMS is a great idea to encourage customers to click and view your products. This can help increase engagement and drive more sales.

• Appointment Confirmations: You no longer have to rely on phone calls to confirm your appointments. Instead, you can use a simple SMS link to verify or reschedule your appointments. This is a quick and easy way to manage your schedule without the hassle of phone calls.

• Important Updates: Whether you need to make an important announcement or share crucial information, Sending SMS links will be an effective way to communicate with your customers or team members. Adding a link to your message allows customers or team members to get details and take specific actions.

• Gather customer feedback: An effective way to collect customer feedback is to send them a text message with a link to a survey or feedback form. This allows you to gather customers’ opinions and insights and, based on the data collected, make necessary improvements.

• Make your customers reach you faster: When sending SMS links, it’s a great idea to include a link to your website or other channels. This will help customers find you quickly and access your information more easily.

• Text customers directly by clicking their numbers: SMS links can be incorporated into your marketing automation workflows when you use customer databases like Salesforce or HubSpot. By sending targeted text messages based on customer preferences or past interactions, you can reach specific segments of the customer base.

🔍 Have a look at: Best Practices for Customer Feedback Management

What are the benefits of SMS links?

SMS links offer numerous benefits, making them an essential tool for communication. Here are some benefits of SMS links: 👇

• Increase website traffic: SMS links are an excellent way to drive more traffic to your website. By including a link to a product page or a blog post in your SMS message, recipients can easily click the link to divert to the desired destination.

• High engagement rates: SMS Messages have a higher open rate than other marketing tools, which makes them a powerful way to engage customers. By creating engaging content and including a short link, you can effectively grab their attention and boost engagement rates.

• Improve conversion: SMS links are a great option for boosting conversions. SMS links can gently encourage users to take further action, whether you’re targeting sales, sign-up forms, or any other specific actions.

• Enhance click-through rates: Including text links makes it easy and convenient for users to take specific actions. They just have to click the link and are diverted to the landing page. This convenience increases click-through rates.

• Reduce employee time and work: Sending SMS links can be more efficient than calling individual customers. By including a link in a text message to a detailed FAQ or instruction page, customers can easily find the information they need on their own, saving both time and effort for both customers and employees.

How to create a click-to-text SMS link?

Creating a click-to-text SMS link doesn’t require vast knowledge. Even if you’re a beginner, you can easily create an SMS link. Kindly follow these simple steps: 👇

Step 1: Open the HTML Editor where you’re working on your webpage

Step 2: Start with an anchor tag(<a>) for the link <a href=””> </a>

Step 3: Insert “sms:” into the URL section of the href attribute to indicate it’s an SMS link <a href=”sms:”> </a>

Step 4: Add your phone number in the international format (e.g., +1 for the United States): <a href=”sms:+15153755550″> </a>

Step 5: Enter your call to action text within the anchor tags to be displayed as the clickable link: <a href=”sms:+15153755550″>Text Us!</a>

And you’re done! You’ve successfully created a click-to-text SMS link.

📖 Also Read: Best Business Texting Apps

Where to Place SMS URLs on Your Website?

When placing the SMS URLs on your website, it’s crucial to strategically place them within your content for improved engagement and user accessibility. 

Here are some places where you can integrate SMS URLs on your website: 

• Call to Action: Including an SMS URL in your Call to Action is an additional way for your visitors to get in touch with you. This can prove especially useful for those who prefer text messaging over phone calls or emails.

• Contact Us Page: Adding an SMS URL to your Contact Us page can benefit your visitors. This feature allows them to contact you directly via SMS, which can be particularly useful for customers who do not have access to smart devices or who prefer to communicate via text messages.

• Website Footer: Many visitors scroll down on websites to find the contact or about us page. Adding SMS information to the website footer can increase the probability of visitors clicking on the SMS URLs.

• Email Signature: You can also send text messages using your email. You can add a text message link in your email signature. This is like giving out a digital business card—a professional, easy, and gentle reminder for people to text you.

Best Practices for creating an SMS links

Before sending links to your recipients, there are a few key points and practices you need to remember while creating SMS links: 

Keep SMS messages short and clear

Avoid lengthy messages, as they don’t attract readers and can confuse them. Craft messages that are short and easy to read. Use appropriate words and phrases for your target audience, and ensure your message is relevant and appealing.

Add a clear call to action

Let your visitors know what exactly you want them to do. This could include a link to your website, a button to click, or a text link. Make it easy for visitors to take action with clear instructions.

Limit one link per message

It’s important to keep in mind that when sending messages, it’s best to stick to one link per message. Using too many links can confuse the recipient and affect the click-through rate.

Use URL shorteners

Long URLs can take up too much space on your device. Consider using URL shorteners, which make the URLs more compact, tidy, and easier to share and remember.

Use SMS tracking parameters

It is important to track the number of users who have clicked on a link to monitor the success rate of your message or campaign. Fortunately, some link-shortening tools allow you to monitor this data, which can help you improve your messaging and overall strategy.

Add the link in an appropriate place

Add links in relevant areas to ensure your audience sees them. Placing them at the end of the message can also encourage engagement, allowing your audience to read the message first before clicking the link.

Make your landing pages mobile-friendly

When customers use your link to visit your web pages, it is important to ensure that your website is mobile-friendly and has a user-friendly landing page. This will help provide a better user experience and increase the chances of them returning.

Test links before sending

Before sharing a link, it’s always a good idea to test it yourself. Make sure that it’s intact and performs well. There’s nothing more frustrating than clicking a broken link that takes forever to load.

Conclusion

Adding SMS links to your strategy streamlines communication, improves user experience, boosts engagement, and improves conversion rates. You can also connect your website with potential customers by sending SMS links. 

SMS Link makes it easy for people to text your business. To use SMS Link effectively, you should create a clear call to action, write a helpful prewritten message, and strategically place the link on your website.

In addition, Keep the message concise and test it to ensure it works. SMS links can save you time and effort, improve communication, and build stronger relationships with your customers.

FAQ

Are SMS links safe?

SMS links aren’t 100% safe. Just for your safety, you should avoid clicking on links in SMS messages from unknown or untrusted sources.

How can I send SMS link online?

To send an SMS link online, you can create an SMS link that opens a new text message with a pre-filled recipient when a user clicks on it. This can be done by adding a hyperlink to your website or email that triggers the user’s messaging app with your business phone number already filled in.

Why am I getting texts with links?

The texts you are receiving with links are promotional texts or spam texts. Spam texts are usually unwanted and used by scammers to obtain personal or financial data from unsuspecting victims.