In an increasingly mobile-first world, SMS remains one of the most powerful channels for brands to reach customers. It delivers unmatched open rates, immediate visibility, and reliability, especially for time-sensitive, high-trust communications. 

Yet one long-standing challenge has remained: how do you share rich, contextual links in a channel traditionally constrained by character limits and lacking built-in analytics? 

This is where a shortened, trackable URL helps customers maximize the ROI of every message they send. It enables businesses to send more compact messages, better understand customer behavior, and drive higher conversions, all without using external link-shortening tools securely. 

By embedding secure, branded, and analytics-ready links directly into SMS workflows, OpenText helps enterprises turn simple text messages into measurable, trusted customer experiences without external tools, added risk, or complexity. 

Why secure, branded shortened URLs matter 

In SMS, every character and every click counts. Secure, branded shortened URLs help teams keep messages concise, measurable, and trusted across high-volume communications.

SMS character limits add cost and reduce clarity

Standard SMS messages are limited to 160 characters. When messages exceed that limit, they’re split into multiple segments, which drives up costs and increases the risk of broken or confusing customer experiences (CX). 

That leaves teams with two common tradeoffs:

• Send multi-segment messages (increasing cost) 
• Compromise on clarity by trimming content

Long URLs are often what push messages over the limit. Automatic shortening keeps messages compact without sacrificing the message. With automatic URL shortening built into OpenText™ Core Messaging, businesses can: 

• Keep messages concise and readable 
• Avoid unnecessary multi-segment costs 
• Preserve clarity without cutting essential information 

Short, clean links also make messages easier to scan and help build trust in high-stakes communications such as alerts, reminders, and confirmations.

Modern CX demands click-level insight, not just delivery receipts

Historically, SMS reporting has been limited to delivery-related metrics. Traditional SMS reporting tells you if a message was delivered, but not what happened next.

Today’s CX, marketing, and operations teams need deeper visibility: 

• Which links were clicked? 
• Who engaged and when? 
• Which campaigns, alerts, or journeys drive action? 

With shortened, trackable URLs, OpenText Core Messaging closes the analytics gap. Every click becomes a signal enabling teams to measure engagement, optimize journeys, and continuously improve outcomes across campaigns and customer touchpoints. 

Public URL shorteners increase the risk of SMS filtering

Carriers and regulators worldwide are tightening filters on generic URL shorteners such as bit.ly and tinyurl, which are often associated with spam or phishing, resulting in increased filtering. 

For enterprises, especially in regulated industries, short links must protect trust and ensure deliverability.

OpenText Core Messaging eliminates that risk by providing: 

• Branded, trusted, compliant short URLs 
• Reduced filtering and higher deliverability 
• Consistent brand identity inside every message 

The result? Customers trust the link, and carriers trust the sender. 

Embedded link shortening reduces tool sprawl

Shortened URLs in OpenText Core Messaging are fully embedded into your messaging platform. There’s no need for third-party tools that: 

• Break reporting continuity 
• Introduce security or compliance risk 
• Complicated governance and audit trails 

Everything is fully integrated into your messaging workflow, so you no longer need third-party URL shorteners, which can affect deliverability or disrupt continuity. 

High-volume messaging demands reliable link performance

A key advantage of this feature is that it is designed to support enterprise-grade traffic without compromising speed or reliability. Every shortened URL is generated and resolved through OpenText’s globally distributed infrastructure, ensuring:  

• High availability and low-latency redirects 
• Reliability during peak message volumes 
• Confidence for mission-critical workflows 

This means customers can confidently use shortened links for critical workflows, knowing that link resolution is robust, secure, and scalable with their business. Whether you’re sending millions of messages for billing, alerts, or customer engagement, link resolution remains fast, secure, and dependable. 

The CX takeaway: Every link is an experience 

In customer experience, the smallest details often make the biggest difference. 

A shortened URL may seem minor, but when it improves clarity, trust, analytics, deliverability, and cost efficiency, it becomes a powerful CX enabler. 

With OpenText Core Messaging, enterprises don’t just send messages; they deliver measurable, secure, and intelligent customer interactions, right down to the link. 

See how OpenText Core Messaging turns every SMS into a smarter customer experience with secure, trackable links built for enterprise scale.

The post Smarter links, smarter CX: Why shortened URLs are the hidden hero of secure messaging appeared first on OpenText Blogs.