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How to add an SMS link to your website

SMS link

What if when potential customers land on your website, they could click a button and immediately start texting instead of filling out a website form?

This is appealing for many people, especially if they’re browsing from a mobile device (which accounts for more than half of all internet traffic). Phone calls aren’t always convenient, and online Contact Us forms can feel like a chore. Texting lets you respond quickly and give the customer the information they’re looking for right away. 

Since many customers are willing to talk to businesses over text, you want to make it easy for them to initiate a conversation. The good news is this is really easy to set up. All you have to do is create an SMS link. 

Creating an SMS link on your company website is a lot like adding a regular hyperlink. In this article, we’ll take you step by step through what an SMS link is and how to add one to your website to improve your communication with customers.

What is an SMS link?

An SMS link is a way for your website visitors to immediately contact you via text message. It uses HTML code to launch the user’s messaging app with your business phone number already filled in. 

If you’re familiar with HTML, you’ll notice that an SMS link is nearly identical to a regular link or a click-to-email button. You’ll still insert an “href” attribute. But instead of directing users to another webpage or using “mailto:” to begin an email, you’ll use “sms:” to begin a text message.

Here’s an Illinois law firm with a Text Us button on its mobile website. Website visitors are likely eager to hire an attorney, so it’s an easy way to start a conversation with potential clients.

SMS link example from law firm
Text us button on a personal injury law firm site (Source: Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates)

How to add an SMS link to your website

Creating an SMS link for your website is as simple as adding any other kind of link. Follow these steps to add an SMS link to your website.

1. Write the link or button text

First, write the text for your link. Don’t overthink it — keep the text short and sweet. Try something like “Text us now” or “Click here to send a text message.” 

SMS link text example

If potential customers aren’t ready to reach out immediately, you can entice them with a click-to-text button offering a coupon code (“Click here for a discount”). This approach opens the line of communication and captures the person’s phone number. 

2. Decide where to put your click-to-text links

Your click-to-text button’s location should be natural — where the customer has reviewed some information, decided to reach out, and your link is readily available as a contact option. 

A click-to-text button works nicely with a lot of web page and landing page layouts, but that’s not your only option for an SMS link. A few other options are: 

  • An image
  • Your email signature
  • Your business contact page
  • Your site’s header or footer navigation

Basically, you can put an SMS link anywhere you can include HTML.

3. Create the default message

On some devices, you can populate your visitor’s text with a default message. Like the link text, this copy should be short and to the point. Don’t forget to make it relevant to the landing page or offer the customer is responding to.

SMS link message example

Here are a few sample default messages to get you started: 

  • I’m interested in learning more about your products and pricing plans. 
  • I’d like to book an appointment with your office. 
  • I’d like to set up a free demo of your product. 
  • I need technical assistance.

Keep in mind that some platforms, particularly some versions of iOS, will not support the autofill feature. Later on, we’ll give you some tips on how to manage this.

4. Choose the type of SMS link

Decide whether you’ll create a text link or a button link. This will depend on the layout of your landing page and your preferences. You’ll get the same benefits of an SMS link no matter which format you choose, but keep in mind that button links may require some CSS knowledge.

If you’re not sure how to code a button for your website, you can use a free tool like Button Generator. You add some basics about the button you want to create, and it will generate the code for you.

SMS link button

5. Add the HTML code

With your SMS link information in hand, build the HTML link as you would any other hyperlink or button.

In some website builders, you can simply type “sms:[phonenumber]” where you would normally insert a link to another web page.

If you don’t have that option, you can try adding custom HTML to your website. Here’s the basic setup for the HTML code: 

<a href=”sms:[phone number]&body=[default message]”>[link text]</a>

Copy to Clipboard

On WordPress sites, you may need to default to the raw HTML code. Alternatively, you can install an SMS plugin like Formidable Forms to connect your website to a business number.

6. Test your SMS link

Run a quick test on your SMS link to make sure it texts the right number with the right message. Visit your landing page on your mobile device, click the text button, and send the default text. 

Then, check your business text notifications to see if the text went through to the correct number. If everything shows up where you expect it to, you’re ready to start receiving text messages from your SMS link.

Check out our guide that includes customer service text examples to help you save time replying to incoming messages. 📖

Benefits of an SMS link

Not sure if an SMS link is worth the hassle? Here are a few ways your business can benefit from using an SMS link on your website: 

  • Give customers a fast, easy way to get in touch
  • Manage all your SMS messages in a single location
  • Use auto-replies and snippets to respond quickly
  • Cater to your consumer base with a high use of smartphones
  • Get customers to opt in to text messages
  • Give clients a more  convenient option than filling out a “Contact Us” form on your website

Best use cases for SMS links

Everyone has their own communication preferences, and some prefer texting. Because of this, SMS links can serve a lot of use cases — providing an easy way for customers to get in touch. Here are a few more reasons to use SMS links.

Customer service and support

Customers may land on your website looking for a way to contact support via phone or email. A “Text Us” button might be faster or preferable for some customers.

Promotions and discounts

If customers aren’t ready to buy, a promo code or discount might bring them back later. You can have them send a text and then reply with the code, which they can save for future use. 

Appointment reminders

SMS link: Appointment reminder

If customers are scheduling an appointment online, give them the option to sign up for reminders via text. Text messages may reduce the number of no-show appointments

Customer feedback and surveys

An SMS link that says “Click to Provide Feedback” can allow you to send customers a text with a link to take a survey. You can use this information to make improvements — or even collect testimonials for your website! 

💡Pro Tip: You’ll want to use a branded URL shortener if you’re including a link in the text message. (Public link shorteners such as bit.ly can be marked as spam.) A long URL can make the text message harder to read. You’ll also want to make sure any links you send are clickable.

Bringing email subscribers into text lists

While an email list is one way to contact customers, many emails get buried in people’s inboxes. If you have a “Sign Up for SMS Updates” button on your site or email signature, you can give people the option to sign up for texts instead. Text lists can bolster your overall marketing efforts. 

Event reminders

Hosting an event? Give people the option to get text reminders with an SMS link from the landing page. 

Order updates and tracking

After placing an order, offer a button that lets customers opt in to receive order updates via text message. 

8 tips for creating SMS links

Because creating an SMS link for your website can be a bit tricky, we’ve rounded up a few tips to help you implement this handy tool as easily as possible.

1. Know what devices your customers use

SMS links are only supported on mobile devices, so you’ll need to keep an eye on the most common devices and operating systems your customer base uses. 

You can do this with an analytics platform like Google Analytics (shown below):

SMS links tracking Google Analytics

With this information, you can optimize your SMS link for the most common devices.

2. Offer multiple ways to contact your business

Since SMS links don’t work on every device, you’ll want to offer a few other options for customers to get in touch.

Consider adding a click-to-call button to allow users to get in touch from smartphones of any kind. You’ll use the same process as you did for adding an SMS link, but the HTML code is a little different. Here’s what it should look like:

<a href=”tel:[phone number]”>[call to action]</a>

Another option is to include a chatbot or live chat option to stay in touch with desktop users.

3. Get a dedicated phone number for your SMS link

If you’re including an SMS link on a landing page for a new product or campaign, consider adding a dedicated business phone number to manage the influx of SMS messages.

Number options OpenPhone

With OpenPhone, you get one phone number for free with each user on our Starter plan ($15 per user per month). You can use these numbers as the destination for your SMS link, or you can add an additional phone number dedicated to SMS for just $5 per month.

You can even share your phone number with your team so everyone can respond to incoming messages from a team calling and texting inbox.

4. Use auto-replies outside of business hours

When you and your team can’t answer your SMS right away, use OpenPhone’s auto-reply feature to let customers know when you’ll be in touch.

Auto replies OpenPhone

You can write your own “away” message to give customers peace of mind that you’ve received their request and set expectations about when they can expect to hear back from you. Check out our guide to texting auto-replies for specific examples.

5. Set up snippets

When you’re answering SMS messages from customers live, you want to be fast, accurate, and on-brand. That’s where snippets come in. 

Snippets are prewritten bits of text saved in your OpenPhone account. As you text customers, drop a snippet into the conversation when answering a common question to save time composing repeat text messages.

Snippets OpenPhone

For example, you might have one snippet explaining your pricing plan and another that shares your business hours. 

Essentially, snippets are business text message templates you can use to respond to more customers faster.

6. Use texts in moderation

Like overflowing email inboxes, your customers can quickly become overwhelmed (or annoyed) if you send too many text messages. Make sure your texts are reserved for moments when you really want to capture the customer’s attention, such as an announcement or special promo. 

7. Ask for feedback from customers

You can send a text asking for feedback about your text messages. Ask your customer something straightforward: “On a scale of 1 to 5, how helpful do you find our texts?” You can tweak the types of texts you send and the frequency based on the responses you receive. 

8. Be mindful of compliance

To comply with laws, you must obtain customers’ consent to send text messages. If a customer texts you first using an SMS link, you have implied consent, but that only applies to the conversation at hand. If you want to send other types of messages, you’ll want to get SMS consent first.

You’ll also want to avoid spammy language, such as “Only today,” “Don’t wait,” or “Free” in your SMS links. 

Text your customers with OpenPhone

OpenPhone offers a ton of business texting tools to help you stay in touch with your customers. By adding an SMS link to your website, you can create a seamless experience for your users as they move from reading about your product or services to texting your team.

With OpenPhone, you can even set up a new phone number dedicated entirely to your SMS link messages. Then respond with SMS and MMS messages.

To learn about staying compliant with all your text message campaigns, check out our SMS compliance guide.

FAQs

How can I set up tracking for an SMS link?

If you include a link in the text message to your customer, you can add a UTM tag and use Google Analytics to track the click-through rate.

Where should I place click-to-text links on my website? 

You should put the SMS link where it naturally makes sense for the customer to reach out. This might be a landing page, a product page, or a Contact Us form (as an alternative to filling out the form).

Are there any legal considerations for using SMS links?

Yes. You must comply with laws, including A2P 10DLC registration for sending text messages from local numbers. With registration, you’ll need to provide examples of your marketing campaigns and other types of texts you plan to send. Failure to comply can result in carriers blocking your text messages.

Can I customize the pre-filled message in the SMS link?

Yes. A standard format is with the HTML code: <a href=”sms:[phone number]&body=[default message]”>[link text]</a>. You can change the text in the [default message] section.

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