If a picture is worth a thousand words, how many SMS is an MMS worth?
If you want to send images to your customers, or other kinds of media beyond a simple text, how should you do it?
For a long time the answer was MMS. Now there are many options to choose from.
In this Telerivet article, we’ll look at:
- What is MMS messaging?
- How is MMS different to SMS?
- What are the downsides and limitations to MMS?
- MMS vs RCS vs iMessage
- When would you use multimedia messaging in business?
- MMS alternatives for business: WhatsApp
What is MMS messaging?
MMS is a messaging protocol used to send multimedia messages over a cellular mobile connection.
It lets you send photos, video, audio, or files from one mobile device to another using a mobile internet connection. It stands for multimedia messaging service, which is an evolution of SMS, which stands for short message service.
MMS as a protocol and technology has been around and in use by a mass audience for 20 years. True MMS could be argued to have been one of the foundational technologies of the smartphone era. The abilities to send media over the internet made the use of the smartphone's killer features such as a stable internet connection and much better visual capability in both screen size and resolution.
The popularity of the multimedia messaging service is still high globally, but its proportion of the market where messages are sent is much lower than it would have been perhaps 15 years ago.
Today, many multimedia messages between mobile devices are sent either on other protocols or on other services such as Messenger or WhatsApp. Telerivet supports them all. How is MMS different to SMS?
SMS, or Short Message Service, is the original "killer app" of the mobile phone.
SMS is the protocol that allows mobile devices to send 160-character text messages to each other. Despite its age, SMS is still seen as an incredibly popular and useful technology.
The modern SMS, as we use it today, has been improved over time, augmented with new capabilities, and incorporated into new workflows, structures, and business systems.
The core difference between SMS and MMS lies in their utility. MMS, or Multimedia Messaging Service, is simply a more capable form of SMS, allowing for the sending of media files, such as images, videos, and audio clips.
In terms of day-to-day applications, SMS arguably has a more varied range of use cases beyond simply the text messages you might send to another contact in your phone. For example, SMS is widely used in verification flows.
Two-factor verification via SMS has long been the standard verification option for many software products and businesses. For a large number of years, it has remained a more widely used method of verification compared to biometric approaches, authenticator apps, and other advanced technologies.
Additionally, SMS serves as the default fallback technology for a range of other protocols, such as RCS (which powers Android messaging) and iMessage (which powers iPhone messaging). When messages are sent through these services when the phone doesn't have an internet connection, they are sent as SMS instead.
Ultimately, SMS remains "king" when it comes to utility.
What are the downsides and limitations to MMS?
MMS was an important technology in advancing the usability and range of use cases for mobile devices. It definitely helped solidify mobile phones as a key vehicle through which we conduct our social lives. However, MMS is built on an older paradigm of technology and, as such, does have its limitations.
Its weaknesses are part of the reason why MMS holds a less significant position within the messaging ecosystem compared to SMS. Its core technologies have largely been replaced by newer protocols or services.
One weakness of MMS is that the size of MMS messages is typically limited to about 1 MB, which often requires sending images and videos in lower resolution.
Another weakness of MMS is its inability to send multimedia files over Wi-Fi. The way MMS is built relies specifically on cellular data to send its files.
In practice, many phones are designed to receive these files as long as cellular data is turned on, regardless of whether Wi-Fi is enabled or not. And, in the modern era, cellular data services have improved dramatically in terms of speed, capacity, and geographic coverage.
That said, if you find yourself in a remote location where you're connected to Wi-Fi but have no cellular data, you may be unable to send or receive MMS. Similarly, if you're traveling abroad and don't have network coverage in the country you’re visiting but are using the internet via Wi-Fi, you will likely be unable to send or receive MMS. The same issue can arise in areas with poor network coverage.
Another key weakness of MMS lies in security. MMS messages are not encrypted by default, which is a significant disadvantage compared to other similar products and services.
MMS vs RCS vs iMessage
If we think of MMS as the first mainstream attempt to enable people, on a large scale, to send media files to each other through a specific protocol, then its natural successor currently on the market is RCS, which stands for Rich Communication Services.
However, there’s also an argument to be made for iMessage, which, in practice, delivers much of the same experience, especially for the Apple ecosystem’s markets and audiences.
RCS is the protocol that powers Android messaging from one Android phone to another. But given the relatively limited use case of sending messages only to Android phones, RCS hasn’t seemed poised to become a protocol that would "take over the world."
In 2024, however, Apple released updates to the way iMessage works. These updates opened the door to a new wave of interoperability between iMessage and Android, using RCS as the protocol to carry the messages.
This move may have been made with an eye toward antitrust concerns, ensuring a free and open market for messaging, particularly given Apple’s extremely large market share in the U.S. and iMessage’s dominance in that space.
Both of these technologies—RCS and iMessage—provide much of what MMS offers, and much more, with RCS potentially emerging as the "heir apparent" to MMS.
When would you use multimedia messaging in business?
There are a variety of ways you can leverage MMS for your business. Some of these are general strategies, while others apply to much more specific use cases.
One of the most general approaches to using Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) for business purposes is in the realm of advertising. MMS allows you to send images or videos directly to someone's phone to promote a product or service.
The benefits here are clear—virtually everyone in your target market is capable of receiving these messages. Plus, recipients will typically get a push notification, ensuring your advertisement is delivered in all its visual glory.
However, it’s important to approach this strategy carefully. For starters, you need to ensure your outreach doesn’t violate local spam and data protection laws, such as the EU GDPR and ePrivacy regulations. If you operate with customers in Europe, regardless of whether your firm is based in Europe, keep in mind that your firm could be prosecuted under the GDPR if you fail to comply with its requirements.
The key consideration when using MMS for advertising is that it can feel highly intrusive. People generally do not want to receive cold advertising, such as a business dropping unsolicited flyers into their mobile inbox. You have to carefully weigh whether this approach might cause more harm to your brand than the net new revenue it could generate.
It’s useful to consider this within the framework of communication best practices, where you only send messages that provide clear value to the end user. For example, instead of just sending an image with promotional text, you could include a QR code in the image. This QR code could be scanned at one of your retail locations to redeem a discount on a specific product line. This is an example of using MMS in a way that adds value to the user and creates a less intrusive experience.
That said, I can’t stress enough the importance of ensuring you have permission from the recipient to send them these messages.
MMS can also be used for more niche purposes, such as sending a map or directions. However, in most cases, there are better ways to deliver that type of information than via MMS.
MMS alternatives for business: WhatsApp
Comparing MMS to RCS is essentially comparing protocol to protocol. However, messaging systems don’t necessarily need to be open protocols in order to add value—either for you as a business or for the end user receiving the messages.
If you’re looking for alternatives to sending richer messages than SMS, you might consider using products that your users are already familiar with and actively using. WhatsApp is a globally popular messaging application that supports much more and is in many ways the right channel for enterprises looking to expand into rich messaging.
Read How to build Whatsapp into your communication strategy.
Probably the two most popular private messaging platforms for reaching users or customers are Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, though there are plenty of other messaging alternatives that operate in different markets, which you could also consider. Telerivet is an official Meta Partner and supports all these channels from a single command center.
These platforms are typically accessible either directly via API or through third-party products. Telerivet, for example, provides access not only to SMS and MMS providers worldwide but also to platforms like WhatsApp, Viber, and other more niche communication methods, in addition to voice and other services.
Using Messenger or WhatsApp offers a consistent and fully interactive way of engaging with your customers, while delivering a richer, more media-friendly experience.
The key to leveraging these platforms is to use them with the right people, in the right places, at the right times. For instance, you wouldn’t want to build a system that relied solely on WhatsApp to communicate with customers in the U.S., because WhatsApp is not a widely popular tool in the U.S. For U.S. customers, you might be better off using SMS and augmenting it with other methods, depending on your specific needs.
The best way to ensure you’re reaching the right people via the right platforms is through effective segmentation. If you manage customer data in a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system, you can connect your CRM to Telerivet, which allows you to integrate any provider or API to access all the different communication channels you might need.
By constructing your system this way, you can automatically reach the right person through the optimal channel, including WhatsApp. This represents best practices that go far beyond simply relying on MMS.
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