SMS content and templates

A small message. Every word matters.

Turn a campaign brief into concise, reusable SMS content. Draft with AI, refine the voice and personalize with customer data. Preview real examples before sending: a long name, an emoji or a missing property can change both the message and its segment count.

Prepare SMS content Discuss this workflow

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Part of the Bird SMS platform

Campaign brief

Invite returning customers to explore the autumn collection. Keep it concise and include an opt-out.

FIELDNOTES

Hi Ada, our autumn collection is here. Explore it: fieldnotes.example/autumn. Reply STOP to opt out.

Review before publishingContent + segments

Illustrative personalization. Preview the final text for representative contacts before using it in a send.

Write once. Review what each person receives.

Personalization is useful when it makes the message more relevant. It also changes length, which matters for a channel billed in segments.

Keep a clear purpose

Give the recipient one reason to care and one next action. Identify the brand and include the opt-out route appropriate to the campaign.

Use meaningful defaults

Choose fallback values for missing properties. Preview a short name, a long name and an empty value before using the content with an audience.

Check the rendered text

Review encoding and segment boundaries after substitution. An emoji can switch the message to Unicode; some GSM-7 characters consume two units.

AI drafts. Your team sets the standard.

Use AI to turn a brief into alternatives, shorten a draft or adapt the language. Review the offer, link, brand voice and local meaning before publishing the version you want to send.

Draft alternatives

Ask for a concise launch announcement, reminder or follow-up. Compare the intent of each option rather than accepting a longer list of generic copy.

Adapt by market

Prepare the language and sender experience for the destination. A translation still needs a review of its meaning and segment length.

Publish deliberately

Separate work in progress from the version selected for a campaign. Keep reusable content connected to the campaign that used it.

Make message length a visible decision

SMS length calculatorInspect encoding and segment boundaries for a draft.Character limits guideUnderstand GSM-7, Unicode and multipart messages.Smart encodingSee which substitutions Bird applies and when the original text is preserved.

Questions about SMS templates

Does personalization change the segment count?

Yes. Segment counting applies to the rendered message for each recipient. A longer name or another substituted value can cross a segment boundary.

Does AI-generated copy send automatically?

Drafting content and sending a campaign are separate actions. Review the draft and audience, then authorize the send through your team’s workflow.

Can I reuse the same content on email, WhatsApp and SMS?

Reuse the intent and shared customer properties, then prepare a channel-specific message. SMS length, WhatsApp template requirements and email layout are different constraints.

What is smart encoding?

Smart encoding replaces supported characters with GSM-7 equivalents when that lets the whole message use GSM-7. It is opt-in; if the result still needs Unicode, Bird preserves the original text.

Keep building your SMS program

SMS marketingReturn to the complete campaign workflow.SMS APIBuild application-triggered notifications.Delivery analyticsUnderstand each delivery outcome.SMS resource libraryFind a guide, answer or diagnostic tool.

Put it into practice.

Continue with the documentation, guides and examples for this topic. Resources are in English.

Watch the guideSending an SMS with a template Implementation guideSMS templates Follow the learning pathBuild your first integration

Try the practice and get an implementation brief

Write the message. See it in context.

Create reusable SMS content, preview real personalization cases and review the rendered segments before your next send.

Prepare SMS content Discuss your content workflow