Salesforce is one of the dominant software services on the market today, so it makes sense that there are dozens of SMS solutions designed to integrate with it. What you might not know, though, is that not all these solutions are created equal.

To make sure you find the one that’s right for you, always ask these five critical questions:

1. Where does the conversation begin?

The first step to finding the right software solution is to understand the literal first step. Where do conversations with customers originate? Does the sales team send out targeted account update messages to certain customers? Or do clients automatically get a text from your team right after they sign up for service?

While there’s no one-size-fits-all “right approach,” you do need to ensure that the initial point of contact offered by the SMS software works for your company, your prospects, and your pipeline. Bonus points if the solution you choose offers multiple origination options. 

2. What Salesforce processes does the solution support?

Now that you’ve identified your ideal entry points, and double-checked that the solution in question supports optimizing them, the next step is to identify which Salesforce processes take place when. 

Here’s an example: If a new customer reaches out via text message for the first time, does your system….

• Enter the new lead into Salesforce?
• Or create a new case for your support team?

What if that lead already exists? How does the system sync that conversation with the lead’s profile? If your team is creating messages within Salesforce, is there a “batch create” function, or are they limited to creating everything manually?

These are important questions to ask, regardless of your company’s size or industry. Ultimately, whatever configuration you decide on should be easy to integrate and deploy with your SMS provider. 

Textey, for example, minimizes setup complexity to accelerate implementation time. The solution also offers an intuitive user interface to reduce end-user training and improve adoption. 

Translation? 

We make it easier for your team to work smarter, not harder, right from day one. 

3. What happens after a customer replies?

Customers right now are 134% more likely to respond to a text than an email. That’s great news, but what happens when they write back? 

You already know that a prompt reply on the part of your company is essential. What you need to figure out now is how your potential SMS solution will allow you to configure notifications that alert the appropriate party quickly.

For example, your SMS solution may provide notifications via browser or email notification, or even through a platform like Slack. If a customer sends a message outside your normal operating hours, your SMS solution should offer an “office hours” feature that responds automatically and helps set expectations around your availability. 

Likewise, if team members are out of the office, the SMS solution should offer functionalities to reassign conversations appropriately. 

Fortunately, Textey supports texting from both Standard and Custom Objects and allows for automations using native Salesforce tools like Process Builder, Flows, Apex Triggers, so you can build a customized solution that works for your team.

4. How will the solution track opt-outs?

No matter how great your SMS strategy is, some customers are bound to opt out. A critical part of choosing the right SMS solution, then, is understanding how the software you’re considering will track these opt-outs. 

The right solution for your team will go the extra mile to respect customer preferences. If a customer texts back “Stop” or communicates that they no longer wish to receive SMS from your company, your texting software should have a function in place to track that opt-out status and sync it back into Salesforce accordingly. 

From there, the software should also allow you to analyze the opt-out stats. This will enable you to pinpoint which customers are opting out and make sure you’re adjusting your strategy accordingly. 

At Textey, all text message data is stored directly in Salesforce. This provides you and your team with full reporting and auditing capabilities, so you’ll have total visibility at all times. 

5. How does the system track and report SMS activity?

Most SMS solutions have blind spots when it comes to tracking what’s already happening inside your team’s communication with customers. 

With this in mind, it’s critical to ensure that the SMS solution you ultimately choose provides easy access to messages your team is already sending. For your ease, the solution should allow you to import that information into Salesforce to create breakdowns by customer demographics and segment.  

Textey’s “Conversations” feature makes this process easy. Since the solution supports provisioning multiple phone types  – including 10-digit long codes, toll-free numbers, and short codes for various use cases, it’s easy to view all text message history in a single, convenient platform.