Automating Email and SMS Communication Systems with Real-time Tracking for a Lender

Benefits of Automated Communication System

Client Organization

The client is an installment lender based in the US with multiple branches in Georgia and Tennessee. Serving customers since 2007, the client makes personal financing easy by providing a wide range of loans for home improvement, debt consolidation, and more. As a flourishing financial institution, the client required automated communication with real-time interaction tracking.

Project Brief

The client engaged Sigma Infosolutions to build an automated communication channel for sending payment reminders and late fee warnings via SMS and emails to customers, tracking their interactions, managing opt-in and opt-out preferences, and gaining insights into customer engagement while ensuring real-time data updates across systems.

Key challenges that had to be addressed

Data Preparation Limitation: Email and SMS recipient lists were being managed manually or in fragmented systems, making them error-prone and time-consuming
Non-Automated Communication Workflow: Manual processes for sending emails or SMS messages lacking dynamic content capabilities.
No Real-Time Tracking: Owing to fragmented systems and manual processes, the client had limited scope for tracking email/SMS delivery rate, open rate, and click-through rate, leading to poor insights into campaign performance.
Inadequate Preference Management: Customer communication preferences were not tracked effectively, creating a higher risk of compliance issues.
Multiple repositories for storing SMS responses: Customer replies via SMS were not being logged or stored in a dedicated table, making tracking and analysis difficult.

Manual Updates to Customer Status: Manual intervention for updating customer subscription statuses, creating delays and potential message mismatches.
Unsubscribe process constraints: Glitches in handling unsubscription requests due to no real-time tracking of email responses.
Desynchronized subscription logic: The absence of a unified system for handling resubscriptions and status changes increased the risk of sending misaligned communication.
Unsynced sign-up data: Delayed communication to customers about newsletter subscriptions from the website was not immediately reflected in the client’s CRM systems.

Solutions

The client sought Sigma Infosolutions’ expertise for a robust electronic communication channel to improve on-time payments, reduce late fees, and recover delinquent accounts. These were the solutions pitched:

Azure data factory for database Preparation: SQL queries and components used to create email content and generate a list of recipients in Excel files to be stored in Azure Blob Storage. This ensures easy access to details necessary for sending out emails or SMS messages.
Azure Functions for SMS Tracking and Management: Azure functions are integrated to read the generated files from Blob Storage and send emails or SMS using SendGrid and Twilio, respectively. Multiple dynamic templates were created in SendGrid for varied email content.
Real-Time Tracking and Webhooks: Webhooks were configured to track SMS delivery status and click-through rate for each message sent, logging customer behavior in real-time.
Opt-in/Opt-out Management: Necessary amends were made to manage the customer’s opt-in or opt-out of SMS communication. A confirmation auto-response was configured in Twilio and tracked in an SQL database for record-keeping.
Repository of incoming SMS: All incoming SMS messages are stored in a separate table to track customer queries and responses.
Real-Time Updates: All interactions (opt-in, opt-out, subscription changes) are captured in real-time using Logic Apps, ADF, and webhooks, ensuring the database remains up to date without any scope for manual intervention.

Real-Time DB Updates: Logic Apps are used to continuously monitor Blob Storage for updates related to SMS delivery status, opt-ins/opt-outs, and incoming messages, triggering ADF pipelines to update the database in real-time.
SendGrid Email Tracking and Management: Webhooks are set up to track email delivery, open rate, and click-through rate, logging these activities in the database. A provision was made for a default reply email to be sent and tracked as well for better management of communication.
Unsubscribe Management: Unsubscribe links are included in all emails, allowing customers to opt out at any time. A provision was made to send out a confirmation mail to the customer upon unsubscribing and also to record the same in the SQL database in real time.
Subscription Updates: The subscribe or resubscribe status is tracked through emails and SMS replies, confirmed, and conveyed to the customer. The status is updated in the master contact table, eliminating the scope of unwanted or irrelevant communication.
Integration with Website for Newsletter Subscription: A webhook is configured to capture customers’ newsletter sign-ups from the client’s website. This data is further pushed to SendGrid for managing email subscriptions and is also updated in the SQL database.

Benefits

Automated Communication: Emails and SMS messages are sent automatically based on predefined templates and customer data.
Real-Time Interaction Tracking: Deliveries, opens, clicks, and replies are tracked in real time, enabling accurate reporting and analysis.
Opt-in/Opt-out Management: Easy management of customer preferences to ensure compliance with marketing regulations.
Customer Engagement Insights: Click and open tracking provides valuable insights into customer behavior.

Dynamic Content Delivery: The use of dynamic templates in SendGrid allows for personalized messaging, improving customer experience.
Scalable and Reliable: Leveraging Azure’s services ensures system scalability with minimal overhead while remaining reliable.
Data Consistency: Real-time data updates and synchronization ensure that customer preferences and interaction histories are always up to date.

Tools & Technologies

Twilio	SendGrid
Azure	Azure Functions
Logic Apps	Azure Data Factory (ADF)
SQL Server	Blob Storage

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Automating Email and SMS Communication Systems with Real-time Tracking for a Lender

Client Organization

Project Brief

Key challenges that had to be addressed

Solutions

Benefits

Tools & Technologies

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