Text-back

Text-back is the SMS sent automatically to a caller whose call wasn't answered: a few words in your business's name, an apology without servility, one simple question — "this is about Sunday's leak, right?". The goal isn't to close, but to open: the caller still has the phone in hand, they read, they reply, and the written conversation takes over from the phone conversation that never happened.

Its effectiveness lies in timing: sent in under ten seconds, the message lands inside the decision window — that moment when the caller hasn't yet dialed the next business. Practitioners routinely report 30–50% response rates on well-written text-backs, nothing like the message-left-on-voicemail rate. Its writing rules: one short message, a single question, no wall of text; and clean compliance — business identification, no solicitation, STOP processing, and a clear opt-in obtained as soon as the conversation automates beyond the first reply.