Messaging·Guide
Use text where a voicemail will be ignored — with consent.
Customers will not listen to voicemail but will answer a short text. Voice is for urgency; SMS is for confirmation and light follow-up. Texting without consent or quiet hours is a liability, not a growth hack.
Meet people on the channel they actually reply on. SMS follow-up is a Professional/Custom capability when the messaging path is connected — not a feature dumped on every plan.
Consent, quiet hours, opt-out
If you cannot say how you got permission to text, do not text. Quiet hours are configuration. Stop on opt-out. This page is not legal advice; it is the operational minimum we will not skip.
What texts are good for
“We missed your call — reply 1 to book a callback.” Quote check-ins. Appointment reminders when that workflow is in scope. Not medical advice. Not argumentative collections copy.
Where EXCEL fits
AI Messaging Agent and AI Follow-Up Agent run approved SMS threads when messaging is connected. That is a Professional-and-up conversation, scoped in discovery. Book a consultation; do not assume the Elliot demo is a texting product.
Relevant EXCEL services
The EXCEL services that match this problem.
- AI Texting / Messaging AgentSMS and messaging follow-up that uses approved copy, captures replies, and hands the thread to a person when the conversation needs one.
- AI Follow-Up AgentKeeps quotes, missed calls, and unfinished conversations from dying in a notebook — using the cadence and copy you approve.
Where this shows up
Industries where this problem shows up often.
Related guides
Questions for this intent
Is this on every EXCEL plan?
SMS follow-up is a Professional/Custom capability when the messaging path is connected.
Do we need consent?
Yes. We will not treat an inbound call as a blank check to text forever. Opt-out and quiet hours are part of a responsible build.
Is this a generic script or built around our business?
EXCEL builds around your hours, services, and approved answers. A shared operator book is a different product. Discovery exists to write your call types down.
Where do we see pricing?
Essential, Professional, and Custom plans are on the live pricing page. Fit depends on workflows, usage, and integrations — scoped in a consultation, not guessed here.
Do we have to replace the people who answer today?
No. The usual design is overflow, after-hours, or a first pass so people handle exceptions, walk-ins, and judgment. Replacement is your decision.
Can it use our existing phone number?
Usually yes. How calls arrive is reviewed in discovery. Do not assume a full phone-system replacement.
When does a person still take the call?
Whenever your rules say so: emergencies, billing disputes, anything the agent is not allowed to answer. Escalation is configuration.
Will this invent answers we did not approve?
It should not. Approved knowledge and hard stops are the build. Guessing a policy is how automation creates more work.
Texting is a channel with rules. The rules come first.
Bring the real call types. We will tell you what belongs in an agent and what should stay with people.