SMS marketing in Canada

SMS marketing in Canada falls under CASL, the same anti-spam law that covers email. A promotional text generally needs the recipient's consent, must identify your business, and must give an easy way to opt out. On top of the law, carriers and texting platforms have their own rules, and customers are quick to block numbers that text too often. Done well, SMS is one of the most direct channels a local business has: short messages, read within minutes, about things people actually care about, such as appointments, availability and timely offers.

Here are the rules in plain English and the habits that keep texting effective. This is general information, not legal advice. If SMS is central to your business, have a lawyer review your consent wording and process.

Service texts vs marketing texts

The first thing to sort out is which of your texts are commercial.

Usually service or transactional:

• Appointment confirmations and reminders.
• "Your order is ready for pickup" or delivery updates.
• A reply to someone who texted or called you asking for information.
• A text-back after a missed call, about that call.

Usually commercial:

• "Fall tune-up slots are open this week, book now" style offers.
• Announcements of new services or products.
• Invitations to book or buy when the customer did not ask.

CASL has exemptions and specific treatment for messages that facilitate a transaction or respond to a request. Once a reminder includes a promotion, it typically becomes commercial and needs consent. Keep the two kinds separate.

What CASL requires for a marketing text

1. Consent. Express consent is the strongest: the person actively opted in to receive marketing texts from you. Implied consent can apply for a set period after a purchase (two years) or an inquiry (six months).
2. Identification. Your business name and contact information. Because texts are short, CASL allows the identification details to be on a web page linked from the message, as long as the link is clear and easy to reach.
3. Unsubscribe. A simple way to opt out, such as replying STOP, that works and is honoured within 10 business days. In practice, good platforms process it instantly.

Keep a record of when and how each person consented. A CRM or texting platform should store the date, source and wording.

How to collect consent for texts

• At booking: an unticked box, "Send me occasional texts about openings and seasonal services. Reply STOP to opt out."
• At the counter: a sign with a keyword to text, followed by an automatic confirmation message explaining what they signed up for.
• On your website: a separate SMS opt-in field, not bundled with email or terms.
• After a service: a text asking if they would like to receive updates, with a clear yes or no. Be careful here: under CASL, a message requesting consent is generally treated as commercial, so only send it while you still have implied consent.

Always send a confirmation text after someone opts in, including how often you will text and how to stop.

Carrier and platform rules

Canadian carriers and texting platforms set their own requirements, especially for higher-volume and short-code messaging: documented opt-in, support for keywords like STOP and HELP, and limits on certain content. Platforms may also require you to register or describe your use case. Messages that look like spam can be filtered even when you have consent. Using a reputable business texting platform, rather than a personal phone or a cheap bulk sender, avoids most of these problems.

Eight best practices

1. Text less than you think. For most local businesses, a few marketing texts a month is plenty. Reminders and service messages do not count against that patience in the same way.
2. Send at sensible hours. Daytime and early evening in the customer's time zone. Canada spans six time zones, from Newfoundland to Pacific.
3. Lead with your name. "Sunrise Dental: ..." in the first words, so nobody wonders who is texting (the clinic name here is made up).
4. One message, one point. Long texts get split, cut off or ignored.
5. Make the action easy. A short link to book, or "Reply YES to hold a spot".
6. Personalize lightly. First name and last service are enough.
7. Respect French. For Quebec customers, offer French first or at least equally.
8. Watch replies. People text back. Someone must answer, or you have built a one-way loudspeaker.

Good uses of SMS for local businesses

• Appointment reminders to cut no-shows. See automating bookings and reminders.
• Last-minute openings for salons, clinics and trainers, sent to opted-in customers.
• Missed-call text-back, so a caller you could not answer still gets a reply. More in missed calls are lost customers.
• Seasonal reminders: tire changes, furnace checks, pool closings.
• Re-engagement for customers who have not booked in a while, within your consent window. My guide on winning back past customers covers this.

SMS vs email

Most businesses get the best results using both: email for content and regular contact, SMS for timely, short messages. My article on CASL and email marketing covers the email side.

Tracking results

Use a short link with UTM parameters in marketing texts so bookings and sales appear in your analytics. Watch opt-out rates per campaign; a jump means the message missed the mark or arrived at the wrong time.

How I can help

I set up SMS marketing as part of an email and CRM setup: consent fields, opt-out handling, reminder flows and campaign templates. SMS and email work is quoted individually after a short call, since volume and integrations vary a lot. Platform and message fees are paid directly by you to the provider, and every account is registered in your name.