SMS vs Email Marketing: Which is Best for Indian E-commerce?

Have you ever wondered why some brands in India seem to effortlessly drive repeat purchases, while others struggle with customer engagement despite having great products? The answer often lies not in what they’re selling but how they’re communicating.

Today’s digital innovation has transformed the e-commerce ecosystem. With attention spans shrinking and customer expectations soaring, your message needs to land fast and with impact. That’s why the debate around SMS vs Email marketing is more relevant than ever.

Whether you’re a D2C founder, growth marketer, or part of a retail giant scaling your business, choosing the right communication medium be it SMS, WhatsApp, or Email can significantly elevate your customer experience. But which one truly delivers better results in the Indian e-commerce context, given that each channel comes with its unique set of advantages and challenges?

This blog dives deep into the effectiveness of SMS and email marketing in India, which one of these marketing channels can stand out for your business and which approach can best suit your ecommerce business.

What is SMS Marketing?

SMS (Short Message Service) Marketing is a direct communication strategy that uses text messages to reach customers on their mobile devices. Brands typically use SMS to send promotional offers, transactional updates, alerts, and reminders. In Indian e-commerce, SMS marketing is particularly effective due to high mobile phone usage even in rural areas and its ability to deliver messages without requiring internet access.

Key features of SMS marketing:

• Exceptionally high open rates: SMS boasts an open rate of approximately 98%, with most messages read within 3–5 minutes. This immediacy makes SMS a powerful tool for brands seeking fast customer action especially during flash sales, last-minute reminders, or urgent delivery updates.
  
  
• Concise and direct communication: With a 160-character limit, SMS forces brands to be precise and impactful. This brevity aligns well with the mobile-first Indian audience, especially in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities where attention spans are shorter and message overload is common.
  
  
• Ideal for time-sensitive scenarios: Whether it’s a one-time password (OTP), order dispatch notification, payment failure alert, or coupon reminder, SMS ensures timely delivery that email or push notifications may not match.
  
  
• Personalization at scale: While SMS doesn’t support rich media, it still allows for personalization through merge fields like customer name, order ID, or location. This makes it effective for creating contextual, one-to-one communication even within a mass campaign.
  
  
• Works without internet connectivity: Unlike email, SMS does not require internet access, making it highly effective in regions with limited or unstable data coverage- a common scenario in parts of rural and semi-urban India.
  
  
• Regulatory oversight in India: TRAI mandates strict compliance for SMS marketing, including registered sender IDs, time-bound delivery (no promotional SMS between 9 pm–9 am), opt-out options, and Do Not Disturb (DND) filters. While this adds complexity, it also ensures cleaner, more trusted communication environments for recipients.

What is Email Marketing?

Email marketing is a digital communication strategy used by businesses to connect with their customers through personalized messages delivered directly to their inbox. In e-commerce, email is used for everything from onboarding and promotional campaigns to transactional updates and long-term loyalty nurturing.

Its versatility, scalability, and low cost make it a core pillar of any e-commerce brand’s marketing stack when paired with smart segmentation and automation tools.

Key features of email marketing:

• Rich content and branding flexibility: Unlike SMS, email supports text, images, GIFs, product carousels, and even videos. This makes it ideal for brand storytelling, showcasing product catalogs, or delivering educational content.
• Highly personalized and automated: With advanced CRM and marketing automation tools, brands can create behavior-based email flows such as cart abandonment recovery, welcome journeys, re-engagement campaigns, and more. Dynamic fields allow for deep personalization based on user profile, past purchase history, or browsing behavior.
• Cost-effective at scale: Email has an incredibly low cost per send, which makes it perfect for brands engaging with large subscriber bases. ROI can be as high as ₹30–₹45 for every ₹1 spent, especially when campaigns are properly segmented.
• Detailed performance tracking: Marketers can track open rates, click-through rates, bounce rates, heatmaps, and more. These insights allow for continuous optimization of content, timing, and segmentation.
• Easy compliance and opt-out management: Most email marketing tools offer built-in compliance features for CAN-SPAM and GDPR regulations, including clear unsubscribe options and preference centers.
• Dependent on internet connectivity: Unlike SMS, email requires a working internet connection and is more likely to be consumed by urban, tech-savvy audiences with reliable mobile data access.

According to stats, SMS marketing has a significantly higher open rate, averaging around 98%, compared to email's 18-20% open rate, which leads to higher customer engagement, increased customer loyalty, and potentially more profits in the long run​​. SMS marketing is more comfortable compared to email marketing”.

The Impact of SMS and Email Marketing on E-commerce Business

SMS and email marketing have become foundational to e-commerce growth, each playing a critical role in driving engagement, conversions, and customer retention. Their impact goes beyond just communication, they directly influence how customers perceive a brand, how often they return, and how satisfied they feel throughout the shopping journey.

• Sales Enablement: Timely SMS reminders for flash sales or email campaigns for new launches help drive traffic and boost conversions during critical sale periods.
• Customer Retention: Post-purchase email workflows and satisfaction survey SMS campaigns help maintain consistent brand interaction, encouraging repeat purchases.
• Cart Recovery: Abandoned cart messages via SMS or email nudge customers back to complete their purchases — a proven tactic that reduces drop-offs and increases average order value.
• Reduced WISMO Queries: Proactive shipping and delivery updates via SMS reduce “Where is my order?” support requests, lowering operational costs and improving trust.
• Brand Recall: Emails allow detailed branding and storytelling, while SMS ensures you're always top-of-mind during urgent customer moments.

Together, these channels not only improve operational efficiency but also strengthens the overall customer experience, making them indispensable tools for modern Indian e-commerce businesses.

SMS vs. Email Marketing: Which Channel is Right for You?

When it comes to choosing between SMS and Email, performance data can offer helpful insights but the numbers only matter when tied back to real e-commerce outcomes. For Indian brands navigating diverse audiences, regional challenges, and budget constraints, understanding how each channel works in practice is more valuable than just surface-level stats. Here’s how SMS and Email really perform when it comes to engaging Indian e-commerce customers:

How ConvertWay Empowers SMS & WhatsApp Marketing for E-commerce Business

As SMS continues to lead in immediacy and WhatsApp excels in engagement, a modern marketing tool needs to support both intelligently. ConvertWay, built by Shipway for e‑commerce, ticks both boxes — and more. Here’s how it helps brands get more from these channels.

Unified Automation for SMS + WhatsApp

ConvertWay allows marketers to build multi-channel automation flows: from abandoned cart reminders via SMS to follow‑up sales nudges on WhatsApp. This means you can combine SMS-driven visibility with WhatsApp’s richer, two‑way conversational capabilities seamlessly. Smart segmentation ensures messages go via the best channel for each user. 

Personalization & Smart Segmentation

The platform taps into billions of behavioral signals each month to segment users based on activity, value, or language preference. Whether it's a flash sale reminder via SMS or a personalized offer through WhatsApp, campaigns stay relevant and targeted, driving up conversions and minimizing message fatigue. 

Pre-built Flows That Drive Real Results

ConvertWay includes pre-configured campaign templates for:

• Cart recovery sequences (SMS + WhatsApp follow-ups)
  
• Win-back automation for one-time buyers
  
• Feedback & review request triggers
  
• Order confirmation, shipping updates, scratch‑reward loyalty drives.

These flows enable high-impact messaging without needing to build logic from scratch. 

Two‑Way Engagement With Chatbots

WhatsApp marketing on ConvertWay isn’t just broadcast — it’s conversational. Brands can engage with customers using chatbots directly from the platform, enabling support, up-sell prompts, or instant feedback. This two-way interaction enhances trust and keeps customers in the loop. 

Built for ROI and Easy Reporting

• Local sender IDs and pre-approved templates improve deliverability and compliance for both SMS and WhatsApp.
  
  
• Real-time analytics track revenue-per-sender, clicks, conversions, and campaign costs — helping brands scale what works and eliminate what doesn’t. 

Brand-Native Experience

Trusted by 3,000+ Shopify merchants across India (Bluestone, Rage Coffee, Amante, and more), ConvertWay helps brands of every size from small D2C sellers to enterprise players—run high-impact cross-channel campaigns. It delivers automation sophistication without coding complexity on a Shopify interface.

Why ConvertWay Works for Indian Brands

• Best-of-both-channels: Leverages SMS for urgency, WhatsApp for rich engagement
  
  
• Smart automation flows: Pre-built sequences that require minimal setup
  
  
• Segmentation-first personalization: Sends the right message at the right time
  
  
• Scales across segments: From value-conscious Tier‑3 users to urban repeat customers
  
  
• ROI-focused reporting: Optimize spend and conversion metrics easily
  
  

If your brand is exploring SMS vs WhatsApp vs Email strategy, ConvertWay lets you deliver contextually- not just broadcast, improving both acquisition and retention outcomes.

FAQs

1. Which channel has a higher open rate in India- SMS or Email?

SMS has a significantly higher open rate in India, often exceeding 90%, compared to email, which typically sees 15–25% open rates. This makes SMS more effective for urgent or time-sensitive messages like flash sales, order updates, or payment reminders.

2. Is SMS marketing more expensive than email marketing for D2C brands?

Yes, SMS is generally more expensive per message than email. However, the ROI is often higher due to better visibility and faster response times. For transactional or high-intent campaigns, SMS can justify the cost with higher conversions.

3. When should I use SMS instead of email in my marketing strategy?‍

Use SMS for:

• Urgent alerts (delivery updates, OTPs)
• Time-bound offers (flash sales)
• Abandoned cart nudges

Use Email for:

• Newsletters
• Long-form product education
• Lifecycle campaigns and order summaries

Combining both channels ensures full funnel coverage.

4. Does SMS marketing require user consent like email?

Yes. Under TRAI and DLT regulations in India, businesses must register sender IDs and obtain explicit user consent for promotional SMS. Consent is equally essential for email but relatively easier to manage through opt-ins during checkout or sign-up.

5. Can I automate both SMS and email campaigns together?

Absolutely. Platforms like Convertway allow Indian e-commerce brands to automate SMS and email flows from a single dashboard — enabling personalized, omnichannel engagement based on user behavior, order status, or cart activity.