BNS Group is delighted to announce the rebranding of its Enterprise SMS Server, formerly known as msXsms, to better align with its tight integration with cloud architecture. 

The Enterprise SMS Server has been revamped from the ground up to offer businesses greater flexibility, scalability, and reliability in their communication processes. 

Built on state-of-the-art cloud technology with AWS, the Enterprise SMS Server enables businesses to send and receive secure SMS messages across various devices and platforms securely and efficiently. The product allows businesses to easily integrate the Enterprise SMS Server into their existing workflows and systems, providing a seamless communication experience. 

“Our rebranding to Enterprise SMS Server reflects our ongoing commitment to providing innovative, reliable, and effective communication solutions to our customers,” said Laurence Buchanan, CEO of BNS Group. “Our customers can now benefit from a cloud-based SMS communication platform that is designed to meet their specific requirements, helping them stay connected with their audience and driving business growth.” 

“We are excited to introduce our Enterprise SMS Server and believe it will be a game-changer for businesses seeking to enhance their communication processes,” added Buchanan. “We encourage businesses of all sizes to try our product and see for themselves how it can help them achieve their communication goals.” 

With its rebranded Enterprise SMS Server, BNS Group continues to lead the way in delivering enterprise communication solutions that help businesses streamline messaging and enhance cost management.

BNS Group, a communication solutions provider founded in 1989, is proud to announce that it will be attending the AWS Summit Sydney in April 2023 for the very first time. This exciting opportunity comes after the company was recently accredited as an AWS differentiated partner, placing it among the top 2% of AWS partners worldwide. 

Over the years, BNS Group has worked with some of the largest organisations in Australia, including the Australian Tax Office, Suncorp Group, and the Defence Force. These collaborations have allowed BNS Group to develop a deep understanding of the unique communication needs of businesses in various sectors. 

“We are thrilled to be attending the AWS Summit Sydney for the first time,” said Laurence Buchanan, CEO of BNS Group. “This is an incredible opportunity for us to not only thank the AWS ISV team for their help along this journey, but it provides us a chance to connect with other industry leaders who are also working to transform the way businesses operate.” 

As an AWS differentiated partner, BNS Group is now able to offer customers its Enterprise SMS Server solution, optimised for use with the AWS platform. “We are excited to demonstrate how the Enterprise SMS Server solution can help enterprises streamline messaging, reduce overheads and succeed in today’s fast-paced technology environment,” added Buchanan. 

BNS Group’s attendance at the AWS Summit Sydney underscores the company’s steadfast commitment to providing its customers with innovative, dependable, and efficient communication solutions that cater to their specific needs. As the company continues to grow and transform, it remains fully devoted to offering advanced solutions that empower businesses to flourish in the digital era.

BNS Group, a leading provider of enterprise communication solutions, is proud to announce that its Enterprise SMS Server software has been awarded the AWS Qualified Software badge. 

The AWS Qualified Software program is designed to help customers easily discover software solutions that are compatible with Amazon Web Services (AWS). This program recognises software products that have been tested and verified for security, architecture, and best practices on AWS infrastructure. 

The BNS Group Enterprise SMS Server product provides businesses with a reliable and secure messaging solution that enables efficient communication with customers, employees, and stakeholders. With this badge, customers can be assured that the software has been thoroughly tested and meets the highest standards of security and functionality on AWS. 

“We are delighted to receive the AWS Qualified Software badge for our Enterprise SMS Server software product,” said Laurence Buchanan, CEO of BNS Group. “This recognition underscores our commitment to providing our customers with innovative and reliable communication solutions that are built on the best-in-class cloud infrastructure of AWS.” 

The AWS Qualified Software badge is a testament to the BNS Group’s dedication to delivering software products that meet the highest industry standards. As a trusted partner of AWS, BNS Group will continue to provide its customers with cutting-edge communication solutions that are secure, scalable, and reliable.

Original Article published via AWS (Amazon Web Services)

When harnessed strategically, Short Message Service (SMS) can be an extremely effective marketing tool. According to Gartner, SMS open rates are as high as 98 percent compared to email’s 20 percent average. Companies looking to run scalable SMS applications often rely on commercial software from independent software vendors (ISVs) such as BNS Group to reach their target audience.

BNS is an Australian software provider focused on secure enterprise SMS and fax messaging. Its software runs on the Windows platform and is licensed to public sector organizations such as the Australian Taxation Office and to private firms like Suncorp. For Suncorp, BNS software handles between 2 million and 3 million monthly SMS messages.

Pursuing a Cloud-Based Deployment Model

The fax machine is an integral part of our past, but it still has a place in today’s world. Global statistics show that billions around the globe are sent every year, and many Millennials can’t think when they’ve ever needed to send one themselves! So why do we have this ancient device?

Security

Technology has always been a vulnerable target for hackers and cybercriminals. The Internet was not designed with security, meaning anyone can be hacked anytime – even if you think your account is secure!

What’s worse than having personal data compromised? Not knowing it until after the fact when there’s little chance of recovery or reversing those damages done because no one ever told us how much trouble our negligence caused others

Faxes are a popular method of communication for many reasons, including their ability to remain secure when compared with other methods. For these privacy-conscious individuals who have learned about hacking in the media and want nothing else can happen – they will continue using faxes even though there’s an easier way because, at least this way, their message gets delivered.

Reliability

Fax technology pre-dates the turn of the century and has not been completely replaced. Furthermore, in 1964, Xerox Corporation introduced LDX (Long Distance Xerography), an invention considered the first “commercial” version of today’s fax machine.

Signatures

The fax machine is still prevalent in countries where electronic or digital signatures aren’t yet recognised as legal. When physical signatures are needed, you can quickly receive a document via fax and sign it before scanning your signature onto the screen for sending back to whoever sent out this vital information! Businesses don’t just use faxes- they’re also employed within most industries that require authorisations such as finance (signing cheques), education (teaching courses) and more – that’s a lot of signatures needed per year.

The convenience of a fax machine is unparalleled in these places where people often need documents signed.

Internet access

The fax machine is a great way to communicate and share essential documents in areas where it would otherwise be extremely difficult or time consuming. The reliance on the telephone rather than Internet allows people who cannot access an online connection, such as those living off-the grid with no electricity supply for their home computers at all times of day (or night), can still get business done by relying upon this old technology that has been around since 1857.

Online faxing

Internet faxing has made it possible for people who want the security and convenience of a traditional office-based fax machine, but don’t live in an area surrounded by them or have access to one at all times. The same concept behind this old technology is utilised through online sending/receiving which allows you send or receive documents from your computer browser anywhere with internet connection.

The Bottom Line

Never have there been more options available to businesses to communicate internally and externally with stakeholders.

BNS’ msXfax Enterprise fax server is a virtual machine fax server with Cloud Connectors to allow it to connect to Exchange on-premises, Exchange Online (Office 365 email) or another email system, effectively managing outbound and inbound fax calls, delivering them efficiently to the correct destination.

It is an ideal solution for large enterprise customers or even small-sized businesses who understand the importance of maintaining privacy in fax communications with their customers and trading partners.

Cross-channel marketing allows online enterprises and retailers to use multiple communication channels to interact with consumers and build a unified shopping experience. In this post, we’ll look at the importance of SMS in cross-channel marketing and why it’s essential in a complete consumer journey experience.

Consumers today shift from one channel to another to engage with businesses via email inboxes, social media platforms, smartphones, and laptops. Google found that consumers shopping across multiple touchpoints have a 30 percent higher lifetime customer value than those who don’t.

In relation, Aberdeen revealed that 51 percent of marketers use at least eight channels in delivering customer experience. SMS is one of the touchpoints with increasing usage in online cross-channel marketing strategies. The latest data shows that 69 percent of marketers leverage it worldwide.

In 2020, the number of mobile messages sent increased by a whopping 400 percent. This is likely due to the SMS conversion rate experiencing year-over-year growth of 102 percent. When done correctly, SMS provides an easy way for brands to connect with consumers and convert them into customers. Here are some solid reasons why mobile messaging capabilities are now a must for online brands and retailers rather than simply being a nice perk.

Personalisation

Consumers check their phones about 80-150 times daily, making mobile messaging increasingly personal, immediate, and direct. However, this isn’t the only reason to utilise SMS to customise customer journeys. According to a Salesforce poll, consumers expect it, and those who don’t adapt their communications risk losing almost half of their customers.

Relationship Building

For 75 percent of consumers who already care about a brand, receiving text messages is something they’re open to. As a platform for boosting loyalty and retention, brands can keep shoppers in the loop with the latest updates on rewards.

Mobile messaging can be a great way to connect with customers and offer exclusive deals and offers. You can also use it to survey your customers, collect feedback, and get reviews.

SMS is a quickly-growing tool that brands use to improve customer interactions, loyalty, and retention. Not only is it personalised, accessible, and engaging, but it has also been shown increase conversions. With SMS conversations, you’re no longer limited to just emails and social media platforms. As a highly effective communication channel, SMS rounds out a successful cross-channel marketing strategy.

Enterprise SMS Server software security

BNS’s enterprise SMS server software runs in the customer’s cloud tenancy, shielding sensitive SMS data from service providers. The SMS Server software sends the necessary information to the SMS network provider via secure encryption protocols considered industry standards.

Service providers in Australia and a few other nations are obligated to keep the data safe after it has been transmitted to the SMS network. All metadata supplied by the customer’s applications through the SMS Server software is securely stored in customer’s SQL databases in the customer’s cloud tenancy and isn’t accessible to any SMS service provider. The SMS Server software offers comprehensive analytics tools that allow customers to analyse how well their services perform.

SMS, or text messaging, has been used mostly for personal conversations up until recently. A2P, or application-to-person messaging, is for business purposes to send texts from software directly to mobile users. It allows brands to send many automated business messages at once to customers. Smartphone usage is increasing steadily lately, and businesses have started to notice SMS’s scope and importance in their marketing strategy.

SMS marketing is one of the most straightforward ways to communicate with consumers. However, it has yet to be fully utilised. Furthermore, SMS may not only be used to interact with existing clients but also to target new consumers. The ability of Transactional Messaging to deliver timely information is also useful.

The benefits of text messaging for businesses are too good to be ignored.

The major advantage of text marketing is that it is constantly present in our lives, thanks to the widespread use of mobile phones. As a result, sending a message to the device nearest to the individual is simply a matter of convenience.

The low price of bulk text messaging and the wide reachability of the right audience are two of its advantages. Furthermore, you may employ SMS short codes and long codes for a variety of marketing goals.

• Almost 60% of users reply to a text message within 1-2 minutes
• 45% of prospects choose a brand after getting an SMS.
• 67% of users prefer texting with a business about scheduling an appointment to email or phone communication.

Why use SMS in business?

High open rates

Bulk SMS messaging is greatly beneficial because text messages have higher open rates in comparison to phone calls or emails. For example, 98% of the messages sent are opened, making SMS services a fantastic asset to any enterprise needing quick and effective customer service.

Better conversion rate

Many people think that SMS is outdated because of the high usage of instant messaging apps, but there are plenty of advantages to using SMS in business. For example, SMS has a better conversion rate than all its new-age counterparts. People are more likely to visit your business and take action on promotions or offers shared through SMS than any other marketing service.

Enterprise SMS Server software security

BNS’s enterprise SMS server software runs in the customer’s cloud tenancy, protecting sensitive SMS data from exposure to service providers. The SMS Server software only sends the minimum amount of information to the SMS network service provider using secure encryption industry standards protocols. Once the data is sent to the SMS network,  service providers in Australia and some other countries are required to keep the data secure.  All other metadata provided by the customer’s applications to the SMS Server software is securely stored in the customer’s SQL databases in the customer’s cloud tenancy and not exposed to any SMS service provider.  The SMS Server software comes with rich analytics capabilities allowing the customer to examine SMS delivery performance to their customers.

Greater audience reach

Many businesses are moving to SMS as a method of communication because it does not require the internet, and nearly everybody has a working phone. With the high usage of phones, SMS is nothing less of a goldmine. As a result, businesses can use this opportunity to reach customers right where they are by email, giving them the advantage of getting more people involved.

Instant delivery

In order to see the advantages of text messaging for businesses, you must make sure you are associated with a good Cloud telephony provider that has strong network operator connections all over the world. This network-operator relationship can come in handy when businesses need to deliver time-sensitive OTPs.

Campaign success visibility

When analysing the success of bulk SMS campaigns, businesses need insights into how they’re performing. After that, they may use this data to develop their text advertising plans and target the correct audience to gain more attention.

Cloud telephony providers offer real-time data and detailed graphical analytics, including the number of messages delivered, timestamps, message status, whether the customer has read it, which browser was used to visit the site, geolocation data, and much more. Such insights help businesses better understand their target audience, assess a campaign’s success, and plan future campaigns for greater reach.

Easy Opt-in/Opt-out

The major advantage of SMS compared to email marketing is that messages may be stopped if clients don’t want to hear from the business. Shortcode and long-code numbers allow consumers to choose whether they wish to Opt-in or Opt-out of communications. Customers may respond instantly, and businesses can set simple keywords that allow customers to reply quickly. This simplicity enhances customer pleasure and loyalty since they have a way out if they decide they no longer want to receive messages.

Flexible and reliable

SMS services are helpful for businesses- they can announce sales, provide coupons and discounts, remind customers of appointments, share online order status, and more. However, because SMS messages are limited to 160 characters, businesses need to be mindful of how best to utilise this restricted space to most effectively reach their customer base.

msXsms Enterprise SMS Server for Office 365 & Microsoft Exchange

24 June 2022

BNS Group Achieves 100% Cloud Migration and Saves 50% On Ongoing IT Costs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Canberra, Australian Capital Territory – Australia’s leading Enterprise SMS text messaging software developer has left the world of physical data centres behind and partnered with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to fully migrate both the business and its technology solutions into a cloud environment.

Starting its business in 1989 developing fax server software, BNS added enterprise SMS text messaging server software to its product offering in 2009.   Today BNS Group provides enterprise SIP based FAX and SMS communications cloud based software solutions to some of Australia’s leading government agencies and corporations.

In a significant restructuring of the business operations and client infrastructure, BNS Group has achieved what many similarly placed organisations have not; 100% migration to a cloud-based environment.

Following months of research and discussion, Co-Founders Laurence Buchanan and Clive Pereira focused on simplicity and efficiency in their move to AWS, opting to build new virtual machines and relicensing software development tools rather than what other organisations appeared to be doing, in migrating, lifting, and shifting.

What appeared to be a significant obstacle in replacing their physical Optus SIP trunk in the data centre was made easy with Switch Connect CEO Rohan Milne, who commissioned a hosted session border controller supporting T.38 Fax protocol, resulting in BNS Group’s AWS-based fax technology being able to talk directly to Switch Connect.

“Replacing the Optus SIP trunk in the data centre was probably the most complex part of our migration. We had to find a reliable cloud based T.38 service to the PSTN for our fax server technology to use. As Switch Connect was handling our MS Teams PSTN calling already, this was just an easy addition to our monthly service plan” said Laurence Buchanan CEO BNS.

About BNS Group:

BNS Group is a privately owned company based in Sydney and Canberra focused on secure enterprise FAX and SMS messaging. BNS manufactures commercial software products on the Windows platform which are licenced to customers and reseller partners globally.

BNS’s customers include Australian Taxation Office, Defence, Computershare, Panalpina Freight, Suncorp Group: Suncorp Bank and Insurance, AAMI, GIO & Shannons.

BNS has been a certified Microsoft developer partner since the early 1990’s.

To learn more about BNS Group, visit

https://www.bnsgroup.com.au/about/

About AWS ISV Accelerate Program:

The AWS ISV Accelerate Program is a co-sell program for organisations that provide software solutions that run on or integrate with AWS. The program helps you drive new business and accelerate sales cycles by connecting participating independent software vendors (ISVs) with the AWS Sales organisation.

To learn more about AWS ISV Accelerate Program, visit https://aws.amazon.com/partners/programs/isv-accelerate

Media Contact:

Laurence Buchanan
Tel. +61 412 869 531
Email: ceo@bnsgroup.com.au

1 February 2022, BNS and Switch Connect announce the availability of a cloud-based T.38 fax service to solve the issues customers face when migrating away from legacy telephony to solutions such as Microsoft Teams PSTN Calling.

BNS first identified the problem customers were facing in 2020 when customers were fast-tracking Microsoft Teams for remote working and collaboration. Some of those customers decided to implement PSTN calling for Teams but found no fax capability and could not completely replace their old PBX systems.

Customers, particularly in: healthcare, finance, banking, insurance, and government, need to ensure that fax data handling complies with privacy and data sovereignty laws in Australia, so outsourcing fax to a provider is not allowed.

The solution was for BNS to find a suitable service provider who could deliver a SIP service to any cloud provider specifically designed for enterprise faxing;  then couple that with the BNS Fax server technology within the customer’s cloud tenancy.

“We selected Switch Connect because they offered a Ribbon Software-based SBC in their cloud, which was co-located at a tier 1 telecommunications provider in Australia,” said Laurence Buchanan, CEO of BNS.

BNS being a Ribbon partner for many years with SBCs, which it had deployed in large accounts over the years, was confident that the solution would work.

The design allows the customer to implement the BNS Fax server in their own cloud tenancy (AWS, Azure, etc) and utilise reliable SIP communications to Switch Connect, who can deliver fax over the service with minimal jitter or latency.

“BNS has been a Teams Calling customer of ours for a while, and we were constantly discussing the issues with fax and Microsoft Teams; we got to a point of saying we just need to build something that works and is reliable for our customers and also for BNS’s legacy on-premise customers,” said Rohan Milne Switch Connect CEO.

The solution allows:

• The customer to maintain complete control and security of their fax images because nothing is stored at Switch Connect (SC).
• SC can host existing 1800\1300 fax numbers
• SC can host existing normal fax numbers subject to porting capabilities at the customer end.

Switch Connect can also provide Teams PSTN calling as a service for customers wanting a PSTN service for their Teams implementation.

Technical information is available at https://msxfaxkb.bnsgroup.com.au/switchconnectt38service

BNS Group website:  www.bnsgroup.com.au

Switch Connect website: www.switchconnect.com.au