What is Attentive and who is it for?
Attentive is a messaging platform used by ecommerce and retail brands to reach customers through SMS and email. It helps brands grow a subscriber list, send automated messages triggered by shopper behaviour and run campaigns to targeted audiences. It suits direct-to-consumer brands that sell online, have a steady flow of new products or offers and want a personal, immediate channel alongside email to drive repeat purchases.
What does an Attentive agency do?
An Attentive agency helps you set up, improve and run Attentive so it contributes real revenue without wearing out your subscribers. At Vertical that covers audits, sign-up strategy, journeys, campaign planning, copywriting, segmentation, integrations, compliance and reporting. Because we also run email, paid media and ecommerce for brands, we make sure SMS fits into a wider plan rather than working in isolation.
How do you grow an SMS subscriber list?
We design sign-up experiences that work well on mobile, test the offer and timing and make it easy for shoppers to subscribe at natural moments such as their first visit or checkout. Paid social and email can also encourage existing customers to opt in. Throughout, we capture consent clearly and set honest expectations about what subscribers will receive, because a smaller list of engaged people is worth more than a large one that quickly unsubscribes.
Which automated journeys should we start with?
Most brands see the biggest early impact from welcome, abandoned basket, abandoned checkout and browse journeys, followed by post-purchase, win-back and replenishment messages. We build these around your products and buying cycle, coordinate timing with your email flows and test each step. Once the core journeys are performing well, we add more specific ones such as back-in-stock or price-drop alerts where they suit your range.
How often should we send SMS campaigns?
It depends on your brand, products and audience, but most brands should send texts less often than emails. We look at engagement, revenue and opt-out rates to find a rhythm that drives sales without fatigue, and we use segmentation so your most engaged customers hear more while quieter ones hear less. Campaigns are planned around launches and trading moments so each one feels relevant rather than routine.
Can Attentive work alongside Klaviyo?
Yes. Many brands use Attentive for SMS while running email in Klaviyo. The key is connecting the two properly so customer data, events and suppression lists stay in sync, and planning both channels together so customers do not receive the same message twice. We set up the integration, agree which channel leads for each journey and report on the combined performance, so you can see what each one contributes.
How do you keep SMS marketing compliant?
SMS is regulated and permission-based, so we treat compliance as part of the work rather than an afterthought. We make sure consent is captured clearly, opt-out requests are honoured immediately, messages are sent at sensible hours and frequency stays reasonable. We review your setup against the rules that apply in the markets you send to and advise where your legal team should confirm anything specific to your business.
How do you measure the success of Attentive?
We look at revenue per subscriber and per message, journey performance, list growth, click rates and opt-out rates, alongside the effect on repeat purchases and customer lifetime value. Platform attribution is useful but can overstate impact, so we compare it with your store data and wider tracking. That gives you an honest view of what SMS adds, and where the next improvement is most likely to come from.
Should we move to Attentive from another SMS platform?
Sometimes, but not always. We look at your current platform, your list, your integrations and the cost before recommending a move. If switching makes sense, we plan the migration carefully, carrying consent records and subscriber data across, rebuilding journeys and testing everything before launch. If your current platform is capable, improving how you use it is often the quicker and cheaper route to better results.
How do we get started with Vertical?
Start with a conversation about your brand, your customers and how SMS fits your marketing today. If you already use Attentive, we usually begin with an audit of your list, journeys, campaigns and data, then share a prioritised plan. If you are new to SMS, we scope the setup and agree a realistic timeline. Either way, we will tell you plainly what we think will make the biggest difference.
