Introducing SMS in Close
Over the last decade, we’ve seen SMS emerge as one of the most common forms of communication used across the world. But until recently, it has not always been considered “good form” to use SMS in a business or sales context.
But nowadays, that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s clear that SMS has become a widely accepted form of communication between businesses and their customers. Whether you’re setting appointments with local business owners on the move or providing support updates to a customer, SMS is known to get the highest reach rates and quickest response. However, SMS is not a tool that’s always a good fit for every business. We expect you to handle SMS with care, so please do not use it in spammy or unnatural ways.
At Close, our goal is to build the best sales communication platform for inside sales teams. By listening to our customers and watching our own team’s behavior, it’s clear that SMS needs to be a part of the modern sales communication stack.
We’re excited to announce that built-in SMS is now available for all Professional and Business users.
Send an SMS with one-click, just like calls and emails
Just like our built-in calling and emailing integrations, you can send an SMS in one-click to any SMS-enabled number within the US/Canada using your existing Close number. Incoming SMS messages show up in the Activity feed and Inbox. Just like new emails, tasks, or missed calls.
You can even respond to an incoming SMS without leaving Inbox:
At this time, SMS is only available to SMS-enabled phone numbers in the United States or Canada. We intend to expand to more countries in the future.
Send / receive SMS via our API + Zapier integration
Our API documentation has been updated to include SMS activities. With our API, you can send SMS in bulk or pull in messages sent or received from other messaging apps.
We’ve updated our Zapier integration to include a trigger for when a New SMS is created. You can use this to create a Zap that will automatically forward new incoming SMS messages to another phone number. Here’s a step-by-step guide on forwarding an incoming Close SMS to your mobile phone.
Learn how HouseCall Pro increased their close rate by 15% using SMS
Have you been thinking about using SMS in your sales process? Roland Ligtenberg and his team at HouseCall Pro have been using SMS as a critical part of their sales process. We asked Roland to share some tips & tricks on how successfully add SMS to your sales process.
Learn more about SMS in Close
To help your team get the most out of SMS in Close, here’s a collection of resources and best practices:
- The SMS product page
- Register to attend a webinar on Wed 1/25 about SMS in Close + best practices
- SMS articles in the Close Support Center
- How HouseCall increased their close rate by 15% using SMS
- SMS API documentation
- How to forward incoming Close SMS to a mobile phone using Zapier
Are you new to Close? Start your 14-day free trial (no credit card required) and get 100 SMS to send for free!
