The best time to send business text messages

When to send business SMS for the best response: timing for reminders, offers, alerts and staff messages, times to avoid, and how to test what works for you.

Timing is part of the message

Because a text usually gets noticed soon after it arrives, when you send it matters almost as much as what it says. A useful message at the wrong moment can be forgotten, ignored or even resented. A text at seven in the morning or eleven at night feels intrusive, while an offer that arrives after people have already made their plans is wasted. Good timing makes your messages more effective and keeps customers happy to hear from you. It also reduces the number of opt-outs and complaints you receive, which protects your list over the long term.

There is no single best time that suits every business, because it depends on your customers and the type of message. A care provider's staff, a pub's regulars and a school's parents all have very different days. This guide gives sensible starting points for common message types, explains what to avoid and shows how to use scheduling and reports to find what works for your audience. Treat the suggestions as a starting point and adjust them based on your own results.

General rules for any message

A few principles apply whatever you are sending. Respect people's time, think about what they are likely to be doing when the message arrives and give them enough notice to act. There is no specific legal rule about sending times for SMS in the UK, but messages at unsociable hours are a common cause of complaints and opt-outs.

• Avoid sending before around 8am or after around 8pm unless the message is genuinely urgent.
• Be careful with Sundays and bank holidays for promotional messages.
• Consider your customers' routines, such as shift workers, parents on the school run or retired people.
• Allow enough time for people to act on the message, for example to rearrange an appointment.

Urgent operational messages, such as an emergency closure or a safety alert, are the exception. If people need to know before they leave home, send them early. Everything else can usually wait until a reasonable hour, when people are more likely to be able to read and act on it.

Reminders and service messages

Appointment reminders work best when sent the day before, ideally between late morning and early evening. That gives people time to check their diary and contact you if they need to rearrange, while your team is still around to take the call. For appointments booked weeks ahead, an extra reminder about a week before also helps.

Same-day reminders, such as for restaurant tables or classes, are best sent a few hours in advance. Delivery notices should go out on the morning of delivery, before the first drop. Payment reminders are best sent on a weekday morning, when people can deal with them and contact you if they have a question, rather than late in the evening or at weekends.

Marketing campaigns and offers

For promotional messages, aim to reach people when they are deciding what to do. For restaurants and bars, that often means late morning or early afternoon, when people are thinking about plans for the evening. For retailers, the morning a sale starts or a lunchtime break can work well. For salons and gyms, early in the week can help fill quieter slots. Charities often find that event reminders work best a day or two ahead, with a final update on the morning itself.

Avoid sending marketing too often. Even people who opted in will lose patience if they receive several promotions a week. Plan campaigns in advance, schedule them for the times that suit your audience and keep the content relevant. Every marketing message must include an opt-out, and a rise in opt-outs after a campaign can be a sign that the timing, frequency or content needs adjusting.

Staff and internal messages

Messages to staff need the same care. Shift offers and rota changes should be sent with enough notice for people to plan, and ideally during their normal waking hours. Many organisations have expectations about contacting staff outside working hours, so check your own policies and any agreements in place. Staff who feel messaged at all hours are less likely to respond when it really matters.

For businesses with early starts, such as logistics, hospitality or care, it may be appropriate to send messages early in the morning, but keep them to the essentials. Separate groups for different shifts or sites help make sure each person only receives messages that apply to them, which reduces disruption and keeps important alerts from being ignored.

Be clear with staff about which messages need action and which are for information only. If every text sounds urgent, people stop treating any of them as urgent. A short, consistent style for shift offers, cancellations and general updates helps colleagues know at a glance what they need to do, and when.

Using scheduling and reports to improve

Scheduling in Orbis SMS lets you prepare messages in advance and send them at the right time, without someone needing to be at their desk. You can write reminders, campaigns and updates when it suits you and have them go out when they are most useful to recipients. Scheduled messages also make it easier to keep timing consistent from week to week, which helps when you compare results later.

Once you have been sending for a while, use your reports and your own business data to compare results. Look at attendance after reminders sent at different times, bookings or sales following campaigns, and opt-outs after each send. Try small changes, such as sending an offer an hour earlier, and compare the outcomes over a few weeks. Over time you will build a picture of the times that work best for your customers.

Frequently asked questions