New Texting Features, Worth it?

I’ve been hoping for a feature that allows me to text my client directly through the laptop app or phone app instead of me retyping the number in my sms.  Especially to use in a workflow.  Scenario:  send client a reminder text 1 day prior to their appointment.

 I also didn’t expect it to be an add-on paid service.  And I’m curious if it would send a notification to my business cell phone if a client responds to the text.  Is it worth it?  Know that it won’t be long before $8/mo turns into $10/mo and so on.  How are others receiving this new feature?

Yeah, I pay 30 a month for a texting feature outside of HB. So $8 a month is not too bad. It will not go to your phone message app for sure, never does with messaging apps either. I looks like it goes direct to your HB communication thread in the project. 

It sounds like you have not used it yet. 

From the info it does look like it can be used in your workflows. 

​@Kate Holt Photography - I haven't personally implemented the new Business Phone & SMS feature into my own workflows yet, but I did a little digging because I was curious about this too! I getting close to working it in but I am in the midst of overhauling my workflow.

It can be used within Automations 2.0, including a "Send SMS" action as well as the ability to send a Smart File via SMS. So your idea of incorporating a text into your lead follow-up workflow alongside your emails should be possible.

The two-way texting is also different from the SMS reminders we've had previously. With Business Phone & SMS, you receive a dedicated business number and client replies are stored within the project's communication thread in HoneyBook, so you can continue the conversation there rather than through your personal texting app.

For the appointment reminder example, HoneyBook already has automated SMS session reminders available on eligible plans, so depending on exactly what you're wanting to send, you may not even need to build that particular reminder through the new paid texting feature.

I'd really love to hear from someone who has started using the new SMS actions within their Automations though! I'm especially curious how it feels in a real lead follow-up workflow and whether you're seeing better response rates by combining email + text.

Sena suggests that instead of paying for the SMS service—which has always been included as part of our program—we should simply text clients directly from our phones. What a thoughtless response.

The entire reason I chose HoneyBook was to streamline my process and save time. Now, unless I’m willing to pay an outrageous additional fee, I’m expected to add yet another step to that process.

This feels like nothing more than a blatant money grab—plain and simple greed. I am currently looking for another CRM.