Close more deals with AI-powered SMS automation

These days, many businesses deal with inbound SMS, and with good reason. They have an average open rate of 98% and 90% are read within three minutes of delivery. This marketing and customer management tool capitalizes on its immediacy. As a founder, I’ve experienced the frustration of endless text responses. I’ve spent hours sifting through which were actual leads, which needed more nurturing and which just wanted to opt out. Before I started building tools like Textdrip and PositiveIntent.ai, I ran service-based businesses that relied heavily on texting. We used SMS to reach customers fast, but the back end was chaos. We’d get flooded with replies every day; some were hot leads and others were dead ends. Manual sorting just wasn’t sustainable.

It wasn’t just inefficient. It was disheartening. We were spending more time in spreadsheets and inboxes than in real conversations with ‌people who‌ wanted to hear from us.

That experience was a turning point. It became clear that if we wanted to scale and serve people better, we needed smarter systems. That’s where the idea of intent-based SMS automation was born: not to replace people, but to help them spend more time doing the work that matters.

Benefits of SMS marketing

It’s not just about engagement and open rates. There are a few other key benefits that inspired me to develop my businesses and help others tackle the challenges of this marketing channel.

• Personalized communication: by leveraging the rich customer data within a customer relationship management system (CRM), businesses can craft highly personalized SMS campaigns. Tailored messages that reflect individual customer preferences and behaviors significantly boost engagement and response rates. ​
• Cost-effective outreach: SMS marketing is a budget-friendly channel, offering a high return on investment. The low cost per message, combined with high engagement rates, makes it an efficient tool for reaching customers without substantial expenditure. ​
• Automation and efficiency: integrating SMS with CRM systems allows for the automation of messages based on specific triggers, such as purchase behavior or important dates. This automation streamlines communication processes, ensuring timely and relevant interactions with customers.
• Enhanced customer experience: Timely and personalized SMS communications contribute to a positive customer experience. Whether sending appointment reminders, order updates, or exclusive offers, SMS keeps customers informed and engaged, fostering loyalty and satisfaction. ​

Overcoming the challenges of SMS marketing

Despite the benefits, one of our clients’ sales teams used to struggle with these issues daily.

Their manual process reduced their overall efficiency and they missed many opportunities. But when they implemented AI-driven intent-based SMS automation, everything changed. It helped them engage with their customers faster, close deals more efficiently and free up time for high-value conversations.

I'll show you how they transformed their workflow and how AI-driven SMS automation helped them get more customers and make more sales.

First, let’s start with the problem they were facing.

Their sales team was spending countless hours manually sorting through thousands of inbound SMS responses. Then they tried to distinguish them as potential leads, neutral prospects and uninterested contacts.

This process wasted their time, delayed responses and they lost a lot of opportunities.

They weren’t engaging with leads in a timely manner. Their high-intent prospects often had to wait too long, which reduced conversion.

One incident is still fresh in my mind. I remember a client’s team member saying, “By the time I finish sorting through yesterday’s messages, I already have a new flood of texts waiting. It feels like a never-ending cycle.”

That’s when we realized they needed a more intelligent solution—an AI-driven intent-based SMS automation that automatically classified incoming messages based on intent. It helped them overcome the challenges I’ve mentioned.

Customers don’t care if a human or AI initially sorts their message—they just want a fast and relevant response.

How intent-based SMS automation works

Our system classifies SMS responses into one of three categories:

• Interested: AI finds strong buying signals and prioritizes these leads for immediate follow-up
• Neutral: messages are classified as neutral when they require nurturing or additional engagement
• Opt-out: uninterested contacts are instantly removed from the system to maintain compliance and efficiency

This tool allowed our client’s team to focus on meaningful conversations instead of administrative tasks. Our client told us, “Now, instead of spending hours filtering messages, I’m actually having productive conversations that lead to real sales.”

And the results they achieved were every entrepreneur’s goals—improved productivity and sales. They experienced:

• 40% faster response time: their sales representatives engaged leads quickly, making interactions more timely and relevant.
• 25% faster deal closures: they could prioritize high-intent leads, which significantly reduced sales cycle times.
• Improved customer engagement: personalized and timely responses helped them build stronger relationships and increased trust

I’ll never forget the moment one of our clients’ sales representatives shared a story about closing a deal in minutes. A potential customer had sent an inquiry, and our AI system classified it as high-intent. This was a clear signal, and their representative responded within minutes. This quick response built immediate trust and the deal closed within an hour.

Without implementing the AI system, this was not possible. This conversation would have been buried under hundreds of other messages, and they would have missed the golden opportunity.

Automation that amplifies human connection

A common concern with automation is that it will make interactions feel robotic. However, our client’s experience was totally the opposite. AI has not replaced human interaction, but it has improved it. Let me explain how.

AI handles sorting and humans handle conversations; automation handles the SMS response classification, allowing sales representatives to engage in more meaningful discussions.

In fact, AI can help craft relevant replies. However, a human representative ensures each interaction feels genuine and tailored to the customer.

Faster responses enhance customer experience. Customers appreciate quick replies, and by using AI, businesses can respond instantly without compromising quality.

One of our client’s sales representatives put it this way, “Customers don’t care if a human or AI initially sort their message. They just want a fast and relevant response.”

AI-powered customer engagement is the future of marketing

AI-driven SMS automation is not only improving efficiency, it’s empowering teams to work smarter, not harder. Businesses that use intent-based automation will see improved customer engagement through faster and more relevant responses, experience shorter sales cycles by prioritizing leads and focus on strategic conversations rather than tedious sorting. Striking the perfect balance between automation and human interaction is the future of customer engagement. Through AI-driven SMS automation, businesses can improve efficiency, deepen customer relationships and close deals faster—all while ‌keeping the actual communication personal and manual.