Bulk text messaging is managed differently with cellular carriers than consumer texting. So let's do an overview on Text Messaging for business to point out the differences.
There are two main types of text messages, SMS & MMS.
SMS - This is your traditional text message with up to 160 text characters. Most texting services only support Alpha, Number and standard keyboard characters like @, #, $, etc. LoyalShops takes it a step further and also support emojis. Emoji's count as two characters, so if you have 160 characters you can use in an SMS and have 5 emoji's included in your SMS, that counts as 10 text characters, so you have 150 for other text content.
MMS - This is a multimedia text that allows you to include a picture as well as 1600 characters. So, you can just send a picture or you can send 1600 characters or you can do both.
LoyalShops includes an MMS Wizard that allows you to quickly create an MMS with a Headline, Picture, Subheading, your Retailer name as well as up to 1600 characters. Please be advised that MMS messages count for roughly 2X the cost of an SMS message.
The carriers charge LoyalShops for each message we send to your Customers. So if you send 50 messages to 1 customer or 1 message to 50 customers, both instances are 50 messages. As part of a Loyalty Rewards Standard and Loyalty Rewards Pro Subscription, we offer 50 free messages per month. After that 50 in a subscription month, we will begin you out on our first paid tier that is currently 2 Cents per message. So using the above example, if you sent messages to 50 people, the 50 messages would be free, but once you have used up your first 50 messages, and sent another 50 messages, that second set would cost $1. That is 50 x .02 = $1.00 (50 people times 2 Cents = $ 1 Dollar). Below is our pricing chart. Looking at the chart you can see the first 50 SMS messages are free (or 25 MMS or a mixture of the two). Once you cross over the first 50 messages sent, you are in our Teal colored 2nd price tier at $.02 / Msg for SMS. Then, if you keep sending messages during that subscription month and cross over 1,000 SMS messages, your messages would now cost only $.018 cents a message for all the messages you sent as paid messages for the Subscription Month. For example, if you only sent 999 messages in the month, those 999 messages would be at 2 cents a message, thus $19.98 cost. But as soon as you hit 1,000 messages (cyan blue section), your pricing would drop to $.018 per message and 1,000 messages would cost you $18.00 instead.
So as you increase your volume of texting for the subscription month, you can get new lower cost volume pricing for that month. So this gives you a pay as you go plan, that still delivers volume pricing.
At the end of your Subscription period, you will be charged for the number of messages you have sent, minus your 50 free messages at the final tier pricing you hit. We will then reset your sent SMS, MMS messages and you start back with 50 free messages for the following month.
To make it a bit clearer, here is a second pricing chart. This chart just shows you example amounts of message levels sent and what that cost would be. You only get charged for the exact messages you send (less your 50 messages free), but this just gives you some ideas on cost for 1,000 messages, or cost if you did 3,000 or 10,000 messages.
Example 1 - How to calculate my own target costs:
If you wanted to do your own calculation on how much a different level would cost you, pick your level, like 5,000 messages. That would be in the Green section on the price tiering ($.015 or 1.5 cents a message). Subtract your 50 free messages, so 4,950 is your message amount. Thus 4,950 X .015 = $74.25 texting cost for 5,000 SMS messages.
Example 2 - Some SMS, Some MMS Messages:
If you sent 2,000 SMS Messages and 1,000 MMS messages in a subscription month, that would be a total of 3,000 messages, thus putting you in the Green $.015/Msg price tier.
Deduct your free 50 messages for the month, thus it's 1950 SMS (1950 X $.015 = $29.25 for SMS) and 1,000 MMS (1,000 X $.030 = $30). The total bill for that Subscription month for texting would be $29.25 SMS and $ 30 MMS thus $59.25 Months Texting Charge.
For an Apple to Apples comparison charge vs. competition, here are our monthly Pay Per Text Charges versus our competitors. We include an Annual amount if you pay ahead for one competitor as well.
