Text and SMS automation has become an invaluable tool for businesses to engage customers, drive growth, and scale operations. Instead of manually sending text messages one by one, automation platforms enable you to set up triggers and workflows to send targeted, personalized messages automatically.
In this comprehensive guide, we will compare the top 8 text and SMS automation platforms available today and help you determine the right solution for your business needs.
What is a Text/SMS Automation Platform?
A text or SMS automation platform allows you to pre-define messages and triggers to automatically send text messages to customers and prospects. Once configured, the platform handles sending messages at the right times without any additional work on your end.
Text automation is commonly used for:
- Appointment reminders and confirmations
- Alerts and notifications
- Surveys and feedback requests
- Abandoned cart/browse abandonment messages
- Event announcements and reminders
- Alert subscription and unsubscription confirmations
- Status updates and reports
- Personalized special offers or coupons
- Customer service and support
Benefits of text automation include:
- Increased efficiency – Automate tedious manual tasks
- Improved customer engagement – Send timely, relevant messages
- Higher conversions – Capture more sales with triggered offers
- Expanded reach – Text broader subscriber lists
- Lower costs – Reduce manual labor expenses
- Valuable insights – Analytics to optimize campaigns
Now let’s dive into the top text and SMS automation platforms available today.
Omnisend
Omnisend is an automation-focused platform built for ecommerce brands. It enables you to set up comprehensive SMS workflows and campaigns.
Key Features
- Drag-and-drop workflow builder
- Pre-built automation templates
- SMS and email integration
- Global messaging to any country
- Real-time order and customer data
- SMS open & click analytics
Use Cases
Omnisend is a great choice for ecommerce stores wanting to boost conversions. Typical use cases include:
- Abandoned cart recovery
- Automated order updates
- Customer win-back campaigns
- Email subscription promotion
- Birthday/loyalty promotions
Pricing
Omnisend has two main plans:
- Standard – $16/month
- Pro – $59/month
Pro supports higher volumes and additional features like predictive intelligence.
Pros
- Specialized for ecommerce use cases
- Powerful visual workflow builder
- Tight integration with platforms like Shopify
Cons
- More focused on ecommerce vs generalized use cases
- Can get more expensive for high volumes
Overall, Omnisend is one of the top text automation platforms designed specifically for ecommerce stores. It makes it easy to set up beautiful customer journeys with SMS.
TextMagic
TextMagic offers robust automation tailored more for general business use cases. It provides both MMS and SMS messaging capabilities globally.
Key Features
- Keyword auto-reply triggers
- Two-way messaging
- Contact management system
- Schedule messages in advance
- Send over 450 message types
Use Cases
Common ways businesses utilize TextMagic include:
- Event & appointment reminders
- Alert subscription confirmations
- Customer surveys & polls
- Lead nurturing campaigns
- Alerting customers of new promotions
- Shipping/order notifications
- HR updates to internal teams
Pricing
TextMagic has volume-based pricing:
- 500 Messages – $10/month
- 5,000 Messages – $39/month
Overall fairly affordable, especially for lower volumes.
Pros
- Easy-to-use
- Excellent deliverability
- Affordable pricing plans
- Flexible API & integrations
Cons
- Interface less intuitive than some alternatives
- Features can be pretty broad vs specialized
TextMagic excels as an affordable and flexible SMS automation solution for general business purposes like notifications and alerts.
Textline
Textline differentiates itself by providing phone numbers with each region to facilitate two-way global conversations.
Key Features
- Toll-free regional phone numbers
- Visual workflow builder
- Automation templates
- Auto-reply bot triggers
- Bulk messaging
- SMS scheduling
Use Cases
Textline shines for use cases that require back-and-forth conversations, including:
- Customer service bots
- Event & appointment confirmation
- HR updates to remote teams
- Lead nurturing sequences
- Quizzes, contests, and votes
Pricing
Textline has two main plans:
- Limited – $59.97/month
- Pro – $249.95/month
The Pro plan supports higher capacities for contacts, messages, keywords, and toll-free numbers.
Pros
- Local phone numbers provide better deliverability
- Conversational messaging capabilities
- Generous amounts of included messages
Cons
- 2-way texting requires some development work
- Keyword triggers take more customization
- Steeper learning curve than some platforms
With its two-way messaging numbers, Textline can enable some compelling conversational text automation.
SlickText
SlickText is another top-rated simple but powerful text automation solution used by leading brands.
Key Features
- Drag-and-drop workflow builder
- Bulk messaging
- Autoresponders
- Automated appointment reminders
- Two-way messaging capabilities
Use Cases
Typical use cases where SlickText delivers value:
- Customer service bots
- Appointment reminders
- Application lifecycle notifications
- Lead nurturing campaigns
- Alert subscription management
Pricing
SlickText keeps pricing simple with one plan:
- $29/month includes 500 texts
Additional texts are a flat $0.03 per message above the included 500.
Pros
- Simple and intuitive platform
- Excellent deliverability
- Very affordable pricing
- API integrations
Cons
- Lacks some advanced automations
- Best suited for under 10k contacts
SlickText hits the sweet spot combining ease of use with the essential text automation capabilities most businesses need.
MessageMedia
MessageMedia provides enterprise-grade text automation catered for large businesses.
Key Features
- Trigger-based automation rules
- Two-way messaging
- Media messaging (MMS)
- CRM integrations
- Conversational bots
Use Cases
Common MessageMedia uses:
- Event reminders
- Customer service bots
- Content downloading
- Appointment confirmations
- Alert subscription management
- Shipping delivery updates
Pricing
MessageMedia has two plans:
- Basic – $49/month
- Pro – $249/month
Pro supports much higher volumes along with additional professional services.
Pros
- Scales to very large volumes
- Flexible rules and automation triggers
- Supports rich messaging (MMS)
- Integrates APIs easily
Cons
- Potential overkill for small businesses
- Requires more technical expertise
- Premium pricing at higher tiers
MessageMedia brings true enterprise-grade power and scale to automating text messaging.
JustCall
JustCall combines text automation capabilities with a cloud phone system.
Key Features
- Drag-and-drop workflow builder
- Two-way messaging
- CRM, calendar, & voice integrations
- Bulk messaging
- SMS analytics dashboard
Use Cases
JustCall provides value for:
- Multi-channel customer journeys
- Customer service conversations
- Bulk promotional blasts
- Event & webinar reminders
- Appointment confirmations
Pricing
Pricing starts at:
- $19/month per user
Typical plans cost $35-$65/month depending on features. Volume discounts available.
Pros
- Unified platform including voice
- Strong third-party app integrations
- Dashboards to optimize messaging
Cons
- Steeper learning curve
- Overkill if only needing text automation
JustCall brings the combined power of texting, calling, and CRM integrations together seamlessly.
Sender
Sender makes it easy to add text automation capabilities to your existing business system or software.
Key Features
- Custom integration options
- Drag-and-drop workflow builder
- Text-enabled web forms & landing pages
- Automated data triggers
- Two-way conversational bots
Use Cases
Sender adds value for:
- Transactional notifications
- Appointment reminders
- Alert subscription management
- HR updates to remote teams
- Quizzes and voting
Pricing
Sender has one straightforward plan:
- $8.33/month includes 1,500 texts
Additional texts are a flat $0.005 per message.
Pros
- Developer-friendly integrations
- Affordable flat-rate pricing
- Delivers globally
- Easy-to-use workflows
Cons
- Less out-of-box automations
- Steeper learning curve for custom builds
If you have in-house development capabilities, Sender makes it easy to embed text automation anywhere.
DialMyCalls
DialMyCalls offers a proven SMS broadcasting solution trusted by over 40,000 organizations globally.
Key Features
- One-time & recurring broadcasts
- Trigger-based messaging
- Contact lists and groups
- Open/click reporting
- Multi-user account options
Use Cases
Common examples where DialMyCalls provides value:
- Event reminders
- Store or office closure alerts
- Emergency notifications
- Appointment confirmations
- Promotional broadcast blasts
Pricing
DialMyCalls has volume-based pricing:
- $29/month includes 150 texts
- $85/month includes 500 texts
Upgrades available for more contacts and texts.
Pros
- Very simple interface
- Scales to huge databases
- Excellent long-term client reputation
- Available two-way messaging
Cons
- Broadcast-focused platform
- Limited automation features
DialMyCalls can send an enormous number of SMS broadcasts reliably through an easy web interface.
Key Factors to Compare Text Automation Platforms
When evaluating text automation platforms, here are the most important factors to consider for your needs:
Features
Prioritize platforms that provide the specific types of automations, triggers, reports, contact management and other tools that best align to your anticipated use cases.
Integrations
If supporting certain apps or sending SMS updates based on actions in other systems, review which platform APIs and existing connectors enable the best integration options.
Deliverability
To maximize deliverability and response rates across all major mobile carriers, examine testing data and reviews on reliability.
Scalability
Understand expected future message volumes and subscriber growth to pick a solution capable of easily scaling up.
Pricing
Compare pricing models across shortcodes vs long codes and per-message costs of both transactional and promotional messages to accurately forecast total costs.
By carefully evaluating your text automation requirements against solution strengths in these areas, you can determine the optimal platform fit.
Conclusion
Text automation provides a powerful channel to engage customers in timely, relevant messaging at scale. Solutions like Omnisend, TextMagic, Textline, SlickText, MessageMedia, JustCall, Sender and DialMyCalls make it easy to configure triggers to send the right messages automatically 24/7.
From appointment reminders to order notifications to special offers and more, text automation delivers results. It enables more meaningful customer conversations, reduces costs of manual processes, and provides data to optimize messaging effectiveness over time.
Review your specific use cases and volumes to select the best-fit text automation platform today. The personalized, optimized nature of text interactions outperforms most other marketing channels. By automating mundane tasks, text automation let’s you focus on business growth while continuously engaging customers however they prefer to message.