Get ready for a game-changing shift in mobile marketing! With over a billion active users worldwide and Apple finally on board, Rich Communication Services (RCS) will transform how brands engage with customers across the globe. Is your marketing strategy ready for the next big thing in mobile communication? Read more to learn why RCS should be on your radar and how to make the most of it.

What Is RCS And Why Should You Care?

Rich Communication Services, or RCS, is an interactive communications channel initially developed for Android devices that has taken the world by storm! Currently boasting over a billion monthly active users, RCS allows you to send and receive text-like messages, voice calls, video calls, and multimedia files directly from your phone’s messaging app. With Apple’s support for RCS now in place, brands and retailers have even greater potential to engage customers and prospects. So, what does this mean for you as a marketer, and how can you prepare?

Enhance Your Martech Stack

Listrak clients are already seeing impressive returns of $1+ per text message sent on average, and RCS has the potential to bring even more revenue and engagement to your marketing strategy. RCS is more than just an upgrade to traditional SMS; it's a tool for delivering rich, interactive experiences that bring your brand to life in the messaging app. The nature of RCS is highly interactive and conversational, too – RBM, or RCS business messaging, allows marketers to send product carousels, ask multiple-choice questions, poll their customers, and more. It can be a great complement to Text Message Marketing depending on the goal of a given campaign, and it’s perfect for when further two-way communication is needed to close a sale.

Extend Your Reach Internationally

RCS has already made a splash globally since it's been readily available on Android devices for some time, which have the majority market share overseas by and large. Apple adding RCS support expands its reach further and can make a substantial impact on markets like the United States where Android vs. Apple users are evenly split. Traditional Text Message Marketing depends upon originator provisioning by country, so adopting RCS can help extend your global reach without needing multiple short codes, long codes, or Toll-Free Numbers. Instead, you can register the same branded sender ID across the countries you want to communicate with.

Apple’s support for RCS additionally allows for more flexible messaging, standardizing experiences across device types – which will allow marketers to plan for the same or similar content to extend internationally. Compliance rules and best practices still apply (including country-specific regulation), but the flexibility of messaging via RCS provides opportunities for longer campaigns, more media, and interactive elements. 

Start Preparing Now

Now that Apple is ready for RCS, the carriers are getting ready to implement and support RBM across their networks. It’s the perfect time for you to start strategizing! Start discussions about potential strategies with your marketing teams and leadership, including better understanding your prospect and customer base. Probe further into your international and domestic website traffic and purchase breakdown, check out your inbound text message activity, and establish benchmarks for your existing programs (if you don’t have them outlined already). 

Listrak: Your Partner in Cross-Channel Innovation

At Listrak, we’ve been an industry leader in cross-channel marketing automation for over two decades. We’re committed to staying ahead of trends and providing our clients the tools they need to succeed in an ever-changing landscape. As we work to support RCS, we’re excited to share updates on our roadmap that will help our clients leverage this powerful new channel. For more information on how Listrak can help you stay ahead of the curve with RCS, connect with us today!