Accented characters aren't very common in English but they can make all the difference when reaching audiences in other languages. Companies and organizations with French- and Spanish-speaking audiences need confidence that their marketing efforts will reach native speakers in an authoritative, accurate way.

The Swift SMS Gateway gives decision makers options when they draft messages that require accent clarity:

  • For regular messages, accented characters are "translated" into the flat or unaccented version of the symbol. In some cases, this conversion is sufficient for our users, making use of our 7-bit encoding that allows up to 160 characters per message.
  • The other option for marketers and communications leaders is to employ out 16-bit encoding system. While this shortens the total number of characters per message to 70 characters, writers have greater dexterity to use non-standard characters with accent marks. This improves the precision of short messages when approximating a character isn't an option.

The choice is yours: The good news, however, is that either way, you're in control of the message. Some encoding platforms are flummoxed by accented characters. Rather than simplifying an "é" to an "e" in 7 bits, users may see a strange "null" placeholder that disrupts the message you're trying to send. This can look unprofessional and even resemble spam that a recipient will be less inclined to engage with. That's why Swift SMS Gateway provides deliberate control over how messages will look, whatever characters or symbols they contain.

There are many reasons why organizations might send texts that require accented characters. A powerful SMS gateway can help you leverage the engagement power of your SMS subscribers in their language of preference. This maximizes impact and allows organizations to reach audiences with courtesy and precision.