What is RCS for Business?

RCS for Business — also called RCS Business Messaging (RBM) — is the commercial, application-to-person (A2P) implementation of the RCS messaging standard. While consumer RCS upgrades person-to-person texting between individuals, RCS for Business is designed specifically for brands sending messages to customers at scale.

The key distinction is the verified business profile. When a brand sends an RCS Business Message, the recipient sees the company's name, logo, and a verification badge instead of a phone number. This verified sender identity is managed through the RCS Business Messaging platform and requires brand registration — similar to how verified accounts work on social media, but for your customers' default messaging app.

RCS for Business supports rich media (images, video, GIFs), interactive elements (buttons, carousels, suggested replies), and branded sender profiles. Messages are delivered to the customer's native messaging app — Google Messages on Android and iMessage on iOS 18+ — with automatic SMS fallback for unsupported devices.

To send RCS Business Messages, a brand registers through an RCS Business Messaging platform or aggregator. The registration process involves verifying the business identity, submitting brand assets (logo, colors, description), and getting approved by carriers. Once verified, the brand receives a verified sender profile that displays their name and logo on every message.

Messages are sent through RCS Business Messaging APIs, which support several content types: standalone rich cards (image + text + buttons), carousels (swipeable galleries of rich cards), suggested replies (tap-to-respond buttons), and suggested actions (tap to call, tap to visit website, tap to share location). These interactive elements make RCS Business Messages feel more like an app experience than a text message.

The A2P infrastructure handles delivery, read receipts, and fallback logic. If a recipient's device doesn't support RCS, the message automatically falls back to SMS or MMS — ensuring universal reach while delivering the enhanced experience where possible. Brands can track which recipients received the RCS version versus the SMS fallback.

RCS for Business solves a fundamental limitation of SMS marketing: plain text from a phone number doesn't feel trustworthy or engaging. With RCS Business Messaging, customers see a verified brand with a logo, rich product images, and interactive buttons — right in their default messaging app. This builds trust and drives engagement in ways SMS alone cannot.

For commerce specifically, RCS for Business enables in-message purchasing experiences. A brand can send a product carousel with images, descriptions, and "Buy Now" buttons. Customers can browse and purchase without leaving the message thread. Combined with text-to-buy payment infrastructure, this creates a visual, interactive shopping experience inside messaging.

The business case strengthens as adoption grows. Apple added RCS support in iOS 18, meaning RCS Business Messages can now reach both Android and iPhone users. For brands already using SMS, RCS for Business is an upgrade path — same channel, same audience, dramatically better experience. And with SMS fallback, there's zero risk of losing reach during the transition.