10% increase in business messaging traffic

2020 has required businesses globally to change the way that they communicate with customers. Regular changes and government restrictions have impacted opening hours, stock levels, promotional campaigns, and more. And, with many local businesses forced to pivot and offer digital services, we've seen a shift in marketing. As a result, there has been a big rise in mobile business messaging traffic.

Mobile business messaging consists of three main channels: SMS, RCS (Rich Communication Services), and OTT (Over-The-Top) messaging. While SMS needs no introduction, both RCS and OTT are relatively new messaging channels that allow businesses to communicate with customers.

A recent study by Juniper Research found that mobile business messaging traffic will increase by 10% in 2020. This is a jump from 2.5 trillion last year to 2.7 trillion. The study found that the main contributor to this growth is due to the rise in e-commerce sales this year. Stores have been sending updates for things like order confirmations, promotional codes, delivery notifications, and more.

The study also found that SMS has seen the most growth out of the three channels. With RCS and OTT messaging slowing, text marketing will collect roughly 98% of the mobile business messaging traffic. We're not entirely surprised, considering the results that it can deliver. For example, Gary Vee is getting 98% open rates and up to 90% engagement by texting customers. Those numbers just can't be replicated by using other channels.

Juniper Research also states that mobile messaging traffic will increase by 20% in the retail sector in 2020. The number of messages that will be sent in 2020 is set to rise to 408 billion, up from 336 billion last year. For retailers that are new to SMS marketing, you can check out our guide on how retailers can use text marketing right here.