Does RCS Messaging Hold A Big Future In Retail?
RCS also enables media-rich messages and more engaging two-way interactions with consumers via chatbots.
Rich Communication Services, or RCS, is not a new term for marketers. Businesses have seen success in their mobile marketing campaigns with Rich Communication Services, and it has efficiently replaced SMS and MMS for many. RCS goes beyond basic communication like messaging, and offers an interactive and well designed layout for customers at the receiving end of mobile marketing campaigns.
Sending mobile marketing campaigns via RCS lets brands use features like rich media, interactive carousels, maps, suggested replies, and interactive buttons to drive meaningful interactions. In fact, a new whitepaper commissioned by global communications platform Infobip shows Rich Communication Services (RCS) traffic will quadruple over the next five years.
Data from tech analyst Omdia shows RCS Application to Person (A2P) and Person to Person (P2P) traffic will increase from 1.5 trillion messages this year to more than 6 trillion messages in 2029. As a result, A2P RCS will generate revenues of $4.2 billion by 2029.
RCS is the next iteration of SMS, enabling consumers and businesses to send and receive rich messages via a data connection or Wi-Fi using the standard SMS inbox. Following Apple’s adoption of the telco messaging service in its latest iOS 18 update, Omdia expects RCS to have a cross-platform reach of an estimated 2.5 billion monthly active users by end-2024.
The study says that as a business-to-consumer messaging channel, RCS delivers significant benefits for enterprises. The most important feature for both enterprises and consumers is the verified sender, where each message is branded with the enterprise’s logo, and the sender (the enterprise) is verified by the carrier, enhancing consumer trust in the message.
RCS also enables media-rich messages and more engaging two-way interactions with consumers via chatbots. The RCS feature set means it can more effectively compete with messaging apps as a business-to-consumer (B2C) communications channel, with the extra advantage of being a trusted telco messaging service.
The research shows that the Americas and Asia & Oceania will be the primary drivers of A2P RCS traffic and revenue over the coming years.
RCS in Retail
A loyalty scheme run via RCS can prompt an entire user journey from initially approaching the customer with an offer right through to the review process. The user can browse products via a carousel and ask questions in the chat. That advice can prompt a sale, with order updates, review requests, and eventually more personalised offers.
Knowing what a customer has ordered, a retailer can send proactive guidance on how to use a product. Abandoned carts can be followed up not with an email but with a selection of offers tailored to the customer, who can then order directly in the conversation.
The guide offers the following journey for RCS in the retail sector:
Marketing:
- Coupons, Sales alerts
- Loyalty Program offers
Researching
- Comparing products on offer
- Personalised product suggestions
Purchasing
- Order directly in the conversation
- Deal with customer questions
Post-purchase Care
- Shipping notifications
- Order updates
- Manage returns
- Product guides
- Customer support
Reviewing
- Request reviews
- Submitting a review
Charlotte Palfrey, Senior Analyst, Advanced Messaging and Communications at Omdia, said, “RCS offers significant benefits for enterprises and telcos. Enterprises should leverage genAI to enhance RCS experiences, making campaigns more personalised, engaging and effective in driving conversion. At the same time, telcos must work with the messaging ecosystem to raise RCS awareness among enterprises and consumers. Additionally, telcos should utilise RCS internally for marketing and customer care functions to demonstrate RCS’s capabilities and benefits.”
Ivan Ostojic, Chief Business Officer at Infobip, said, “RCS has many benefits, and with the Apple upgrade, it now has universal availability. Consumers do not need to download a chat app to send and receive photos or videos. Meanwhile, enterprises can take consumers through the entire customer journey from initial marketing pitch to purchase and support. This is also a significant opportunity for telcos to seize the benefits of RCS Business Messaging and deliver rich conversational messaging for customers.”
