Share
Share
Mobile messaging is undergoing a major transformation. For decades, SMS has served as the standard for business communication on mobile devices. But the way people engage on mobile has evolved. Today’s consumers want rich, real-time, and personalized interactions that go beyond static text.
Rich Communication Services (RCS) is redefining what’s possible in mobile engagement. As the next evolution of SMS, RCS supports verified sender identities, branded messaging, rich media, and interactive capabilities, all delivered through the user’s native messaging app, with no downloads required. As adoption accelerates, enterprises are increasingly looking for ways to modernize how they connect with customers.
Telesign’s RCS Messaging API provides businesses with a scalable, secure way to send verified RCS messages with built-in identity verification, rich content, and SMS fallback for RCS-incompatible devices. Through a single API, businesses can deliver seamless, real-time communication at global scale.
This blog explores how businesses can use the rich communication services API to enhance their customer experience, streamline communication, and support user trust.
Table of Contents
What is an RCS Messaging API?
An RCS Messaging API is a developer interface that allows enterprises to send and manage Rich Communication Services messages through programmable infrastructure. Unlike traditional SMS or MMS APIs, an RCS API replaces basic, character-limited text with media-rich, branded, and interactive content. It enables real-time engagement directly inside the user’s messaging app, without requiring additional apps or downloads.
Key features include:
- Verified sender profiles with brand logos, names, and color schemes
- Multimedia support including high-resolution images, video, and carousels
- Suggested replies and tappable buttons for guided interactions
- Delivery and read receipts to monitor engagement
The benefits for businesses are clear. Verified identity helps prevent phishing and increases user trust. Rich content boosts message effectiveness. Real-time engagement insights enable performance tracking. Together, these features transform basic notifications into strategic, app-like experiences.
Telesign’s RCS Messaging API: Rich messaging meets enterprise security
Telesign’s RCS Messaging API brings together rich messaging capabilities and enterprise-grade security. Built on the foundation of Telesign’s trusted Messaging and phone number verification API solutions, it enables organizations to deliver RCS business messaging that is secure, branded, and scalable.
RCS API for enterprises features include:
- Verified sender identity: Confirms the legitimacy of each message. Messages include your brand name, logo, and custom color schemes, which help mitigate impersonation and phishing.
- Support for dynamic content: High-resolution images, rcs files, carousels, and video.
- Delivery and read receipts: Offer real-time visibility into engagement for campaign optimization.
- End-to-end encryption: Helps ensure that communications remain secure.
Beyond these messaging capabilities, Telesign embeds advanced safeguards by integrating with its security stack. This includes phone number validation, SIM swap detection, and real-time fraud monitoring to help ensure messages reach the right person at the right time.
The platform is built for seamless integration into enterprise systems:
- RESTful RCS API architecture with flexible JSON payload support
- Global reach across RCS-supported carriers and devices
- Automatic SMS fallback for RCS for non-iOS users
These combined capabilities allow businesses to deploy secure, high-performance RCS business messaging strategies that support engagement while mitigating risk.
How RCS business messaging works: Step-by-step
An effective RCS business messaging strategy requires more than sending rich messages. It requires a structured process that ensures verification, compliance and continuous performance monitoring. Here’s how Telesign enables enterprises to deploy RCS messaging successfully:
1. Register your brand profile: Start by registering your brand and verifying your identity with participating carriers. This step enables businesses to create a branded sender profile—complete with name, logo, and colors—so messages appear trustworthy and instantly recognizable in the user’s messaging app.
2. Verify phone numbers: Before sending any message, it’s critical to ensure it’s going to a valid, reachable recipient. With built-in phone number verification, businesses can confirm number validity, detect inactive or recycled numbers, and safeguard against fraud.
3. Create and send rich messages: Use the send RCS message API to deliver content featuring carousels, images, videos, and suggested replies. Messages appear interactive, intuitive, and guide users to action.
4. Track performance: Monitor delivery success, read receipts, and engagement metrics to refine your messaging strategy.
5. Personalize at scale: Use segmentation and behavioral data powered by AI to tailor content to each user’s preferences and actions. This increases impact without adding manual effort.
Together, these steps help ensure that your RCS Messaging API deployment provides value through every stage of the customer journey.
Artificial intelligence and RCS messaging
To meet rising customer expectations, enterprises are combining RCS messaging API capabilities with Artificial Intelligence. An AI-powered messaging API enables dynamic, personalized interactions that adapt to user behavior and intent.
By integrating machine learning models, businesses can:
- Segment audiences and tailor messages in real time
- Trigger contextual replies based on behavioral signals
- Improve fraud detection and anomaly monitoring
With features like phone verify, predictive delivery, and real-time analytics, AI enhances every part of the customer messaging experience. RCS becomes more than a delivery channel—it becomes a strategic engagement tool.
RCS Messaging API use cases across industries
From regulated industries to real-time services, the rcs messaging api supports high-value use cases where speed, security, and interactivity are critical.
Fintech
For banks, lenders, and digital wallets RCS enables secure 2FA codes, transaction alerts, fraud warnings, and account updates with verified RCS messaging and phone number verification API integration.
Retail
Retailers use the send rcs message api to deliver product promotions, carousels, and discount codes to increase conversions and reduce cart abandonment.
Healthcare
With rich communication services, providers can send appointment confirmations, reminders, and test results with higher delivery confidence.
Travel & Hospitality
RCS helps streamline customer experiences across the travel journey. The rcs business messaging api supports interactive messages that deliver real-time updates and critical information, like gate changes or check-in reminders.
On-Demand Services
For ride-hailing, delivery, and other real-time apps, RCS provides a better alternative to SMS to share delivery statuses, driver updates, or support replies in real time, with SMS fallback for RCS for broader coverage.
Across industries, RCS unlocks a new standard of communication that is richer, more secure, and tailored to how today’s customers expect to interact with brands.
Best practices for deploying an enterprise-ready RCS Messaging API
To maximize the value of your rcs messaging api deployment, businesses should follow a core set of best practices that improve deliverability, engagement, and security.
1. Verify phone numbers before sending
Use a phone number verification API to confirm that numbers are valid, active, and not recycled to reduce delivery failures and minimize risk.
2. Enable fallback to SMS for non-RCS devices
Ensure continuity and consistent message delivery, regardless of user device or carrier compatibility.
3. Maintain brand compliance
Use a verified RCS messaging profile to protect your identity and build trust.
4. Design for mobile UX
Optimize media and layout, and use short focused copy and CTAs, for easy navigation and action.
5. Test before launch
Use an rcs tester to preview and preview your file RCS content across networks and devices.
6. Monitor performance
Track key performance indicators like delivery rates, read receipts, and CTA clicks to improve your rcs business messaging api.
By applying these best practices, enterprises can ensure their rich communication services API not only functions reliably and supports performance at scale.
Why RCS adoption is growing
Adoption of Rich Communication Services (RCS) is growing rapidly, with backing from carriers, Android OEMs, and now Apple (beginning with iOS 18). As businesses evaluate RCS vs SMS for business, the benefits of verified, interactive messaging are clear:
- Over 1.2 billion users are RCS-enabled as of 2024, projected to reach 2.9 billion by 2028
- RCS is live in at least 60 countries—including Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and India—with rollout across 90+ mobile operators and ongoing expansion
- RCS business messaging revenue reached approximately $15 billion in 2025, with continued growth projected through 2033
- Google continues expanding RCS on Android, with the June 2025 feature drop introducing enhanced messaging features in Google Messages and broader support for RCS across devices
- The rich business messaging market is projected to grow at a 15–20% CAGR, with RCS traffic expected to surpass 600 billion messages by 2027
With broader compatibility, better deliverability, and richer content, RCS is becoming a strong option for new enterprise messaging standard.
Why choose Telesign’s RCS Messaging API solution
Telesign’s RCS Messaging API stands out for its focus on security, scale, and trust. It integrates directly with phone number verification APIs, SIM swap detection, and digital identity tools to help ensure every message is authenticated and actionable.
Built with enterprise-grade reliability, global routing, and compliance expertise, Telesign supports:
- Verified sender identity
- End-to-end encryption
- Delivery optimization across channels
- Seamless multi-channel communication
Whether you’re addressing fraud risk, increasing engagement, strengthening customer identity verification or supporting omnichannel strategy, Telesign provides a reliable, enterprise-grade solution.
Future-proof your messaging strategy with Telesign
Relying on SMS alone is no longer enough. Consumers demand secure media-rich communication that adapts to their preferences. The RCS Messaging API from Telesign helps businesses meet that demand through verified, scalable, and engaging mobile messaging.
Rich Communication Services (RCS) when combined with phone number verification, fraud protection solutions, and delivery analytics, provide a smarter, more trusted customer interaction.
Telesign helps enterprises to transition from outdated workflows to smarter, multi-channel engagement. Organizations interested in evolving their messaging infrastructure can explore Telesign’s RCS Messaging API.
Talk to our experts to start your messaging strategy upgrade today with RCS.
Frequently asked questions
RCS (Rich Communication Services) supports multimedia, real-time interactions, and verified sender IDs, unlike basic SMS which is limited to text and links.
No. Messages are delivered via the native messaging app on compatible devices. No downloads needed.
Telesign uses a phone number verification API to help ensure messages are sent to valid, reachable users, helping mitigate fraud and improve delivery.
Messages automatically revert to SMS through SMS fallback for RCS, supporting universal delivery.
Yes. Telesign supports end-to-end encryption, verified sender identity, and digital fraud prevention to protect your communications.
Customers can delete RCS messages from their device just like SMS, but delivery reports and security records remain available to the sender.
