What we know
Tools we've used properly, not just watched a demo of.
Anyone can list logos. Here's the same list with an honest opinion attached to each one, because knowing when not to use something is the useful part.
Email & SMS
Twilio
Twilio is the plumbing behind a lot of the messaging you receive without thinking about it. It does very little for you out of the box, and almost anything once you build on it.
What it's good at
- Reliable SMS, voice and WhatsApp from one place
- Sensible pay-as-you-go pricing at almost any volume
- Delivery reporting detailed enough to debug properly
- Two-way messaging that feeds straight back into your systems
Where it gets awkward
- It's a developer platform, so there's no ready-made campaign screen
- UK sender ID and compliance rules need doing properly
- Costs are small per message and add up quickly at scale
- Opt-out handling is your responsibility, not the platform's
Our experience with it
We use Twilio when messaging needs to be part of a process rather than a campaign: reminders, confirmations, alerts and replies that go somewhere useful.
Things we've built or connected
Appointment reminders that cut no-shows without nagging
Two-way messaging with replies landing back on the right record
Alerts to internal teams when something needs a person
Usually in the same conversation