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SMS Best Practices for Proactive Outreach
Quick Reference Keywords: SMS deliverability · Carrier filtering · Spam prevention · Follow-up best practices · Bulk outreach · Proactive texting · Message formatting
Overview
These guidelines help ensure your messages reach your contacts and avoid carrier filtering. They apply to:
- Initial messages to new leads
- Follow-ups with leads who haven't responded
- Bulk outreach for promotions, sales, or reactivation journeys
Following these practices improves deliverability and response rates, while protecting your reputation with individual carriers and your SMS trust score accross A2P.
Worth noting: in the A2P landscape, your reputation and trust score is tied to your EIN and follows you everywhere accross all messaging providers (i.e. Twilio) and technology providers (i.e. brayv.ai), so it's important to maintain to the best of your ability.
1. Write Messages Like a Real Conversation
SMS works best when messages feel like a conversation a real person would have, not a marketing blast.
Good practices:
- Write naturally and conversationally
- Ask a simple question to encourage a reply
- Focus on one clear purpose per message
Example:
Instead of:
"Schedule your consultation today!"
Try:
"Are you still interested in booking a consultation about that backyard redesign?"
Messages that encourage replies tend to deliver better and generate more engagement.
2. Avoid Spam‑Like Formatting
Certain formatting patterns are commonly associated with spam and can increase the chance of carrier filtering.
Avoid:
- ALL CAPS messages
- Excessive punctuation
- Words like FREE written in all caps
- Multiple emojis or symbols
Example:
Avoid:
FREE KITCHEN DESIGN!!! LIMITED TIME OFFER!!!
Better:
We're offering discounted kitchen remodels this month. Are you still interested? If you're no longer considering, just let us know.
3. Keep Messages Short and Clear
Shorter messages:
- feel more natural
- are easier to read
- are less likely to trigger spam filtering
Focus on one goal per message.
Example:
"Just checking in — are you still interested in discussing your deck project?"
4. Make It Easy for Contacts to Respond
Messages should make it easy for someone to reply quickly.
Examples:
"Are you still looking for help with an EV charger installation?"
"Would you like to schedule a time to discuss your design?"
Quick replies help turn outreach into a two‑way conversation, which carriers generally favor over broadcast‑style messages.
5. Be Thoughtful With Promotions
For promotions or reactivation journeys, avoid aggressive sales language.
Instead:
- Briefly describe the promotion
- Ask if they're still interested
- Offer an easy way to opt out
Example:
"We're offering discounted HVAC system installs this month. Are you still interested in moving forward with your project? If not, just let us know!"
(The system automatically includes required opt‑out instructions.)
6. Limit Bulk Outreach Frequency
Sending too many messages in a short period increases the likelihood of spam reports.
Recommended limits:
- 2–3 messages total for a promotion or reactivation journey
- Spread messages across about one week
- Wait at least one month before including the same contact in another bulk outreach journey
Example schedule:
- Day 1 — Initial message
- Day 3–4 — Follow‑up
- Day 7 — Final check‑in
7. Avoid Sending Scheduling Links in Initial Outreach and Agent Follow-Ups
Sometimes including calendar links in initial messages, can feel like a friction reduction for the customer, i.e. "... interested? book here now: [link]"
If you do decide to send calendar links, give a conversational option as well. "... or text us back here and I'll help you get scheduled. If you're not interested just let us know!"
As a general practice, we recommend not including scheduling links in the first message when reaching out to leads. Split testing shows a distinct advantage for conversational booking as opposed to links.
Mobile carriers monitor messages that contain links closely. If a recipient marks a message as spam, the carrier may begin blocking future messages from that number that contain the same link, even if the messages are legitimate.
Having calendar links trigger spam filters is especially common in bulk outreach scenarios where:
- the contact hasn't heard from the business in a while
- the message arrives unexpectedly
- their phone prompts them with "Report as Junk?"
Once a contact reports a message as junk, the carriers (AT&T is especially aggressive with this) will analyze the message to categorize why they think it's spam. If the reported message contains a link, they will start blocking all messages from you that contain that link (or similar).
This can happen with fresh lead outreach as well (but is less common).
Easy option? Just allow the AI to book appointments conversationally.
Example:
"Would you like to schedule a time to talk about your project?"
If the lead is interested, the AI can guide them through scheduling directly in the conversation.
Note, if you do send calendar links in initial messages, and follow-ups, and this leads to spam filtering, the system will warn you (automatic emails to account admins). You can catch it sooner, by checking the failure reason on messages that fail, just click the 'metadata' button on any message. If this happens we recommend removing calendar links immediately. Check all your journey initial messages and ai text agent follow ups.
If spam filtering reaches a certain level, the system may begin removing links from your messages to protect your A2P profile. If you encounter spam filtering on messages containing calendar links, remove the links proactively so the messages make sense.
assuming you have not started to experience carrier blocking/filtering, allowing the agent to send a calendar link after the contact responds positively is generally risk-free. Though it still generally will underperform conversational scheduling. (And takes away the possibility of advanced AI booking rules).
This can happen with any link, but we highlight calendar links as blocking these can inadvertently lead to blocking reschedule and cancellation links as well
8. Why Carriers Block Messages
Mobile carriers automatically filter messages to protect users from spam. This filtering happens outside of the brayv.ai's control (and even outside Twilio's control).
Common causes of carrier blocking include:
- Sending large batches of identical messages (include contact name for an easy way to make messages unique)
- Including links in cold outreach
- Recipients marking messages as spam
- Messaging contacts who haven't interacted with your business recently (this in-and-of itself is common practice and is not something to steer away from if they are properly opted in, just follow best practices - e.g. clear reason for outreach, non-spammy, easy conversational soft opt-out suggestions)
- Sending too many follow‑ups without a response (see above for best practice on follow up volume for older leads)
- Using formatting that resembles marketing spam
Following the best practices above helps reduce the chance of filtering and improves overall message deliverability.
Key Takeaway
SMS performs best when messages feel like a natural conversation, not a marketing campaign.
Encourage replies, keep messages simple, and allow the AI to guide the conversation when a lead is ready to schedule.
Related Features
- Follow-Up Sequences - Configure automated follow-up timing and content
- AI Text Agents Overview - Complete agent setup and configuration
- Customer Journeys Overview - Journey stages and automation
- Bulk Add to Journey - Enrolling contacts for bulk outreach
- Creating a Journey - Setting up journeys with AI agents