Fewer customer issues
Everyone loses paper receipts. Often it doesn’t matter, but when it does it can cause problems – usually no proof means no returns and no refunds.
Positive environmental impact
In the US, over 12.4 million trees and 13 billion gallons of water are consumed each year for paper receipts, generating 1.5 billion pounds of waste and 4 billion pounds of CO2. SMS receipts help you and your customers be green.
Fewer customer issues
Everyone loses paper receipts. Often it doesn’t matter, but when it does it can cause problems – usually no proof means no returns and no refunds.
Getting started
Step one is getting customers onboard. You’re probably already capturing phone numbers as part of your onboarding process but explain the benefits of SMS receipts to customers and invite them to sign up.
Trigger automate receipts
Every receipt you send will need to be triggered immediately after a payment has been made. A good SMS API will let you integrate messaging into your payments process so this is all done automatically.
Turn receipts into CTAs
SMS receipts don’t have to be the endpoint of a customer journey. They can include a heap of calls to action such as social media sharing options, links to related products, delivery information, feedback requests and discount codes.
Capture valuable insights
SMS receipts make it a lot easier for customers to provide feedback. They don’t need to dial a number or type a URL into their browser. Send them a link to a feedback page or request a simple Y/N response to a key question and watch engagement soar.
Immediate savings
Every paper receipt costs between $0.015–0.05 on average. A merchant printing 1,000 receipts a day spends between $5,475 to $18,250 per year on thermal paper alone. Go paperless and this cost evaporates.
Satisfied customers
89% of consumers — regardless of whether they preferred paper or digital slips — would like retailers to offer digital receipts as an option.
Deliver value
Customers will feel appreciative in the moments they need their SMS receipts. Three quarters of paper receipts are thrown away unused, And 90% of consumers say when they do need to use paper receipts, they are usually lost, faded or have been thrown away. A third of consumers want companies to reduce the number of paper receipts they distribute.
A safe option
SMS receipts prevent human-to-human contact – protecting your staff and customers in virus-hit times.
Put privacy and security first
Make sure your customers know exactly what you’re using their number for, and that their data is safe and won’t be passed on to third parties.
Understand customer concerns
Some customers are uncomfortable sharing their phone numbers over the counter. Consider implementing a system that allows you to collect customer phone numbers without having to do so at the counter/point of purchase.
Add links
Make your email a call to action too – by including offers, surveys, and opportunities to engage. For example, if you’re sending a receipt for a delivery order, perhaps include web links that lets customers track packages online.
Stay legal
To address legal concerns, follow regulations, including explicit opt-in procedures, easy access to program terms and conditions, and simple mechanisms to opt out.
Do a contact audit to ensure deliverability
Set up an SMS confirmation message with customers to ensure you have complete, accurate and up-to-date contact data quality, so you can be sure all your SMS receipts (and other valuable SMS marketing messages) arrive at their destination. To ensure delivery, a strong global network is also key.
How we can help
Use our library of ready-to-launch campaigns
Create in low-code with our drag-and-drop campaign builder
Define custom logic with our flexible APIs