Put every booking update where guests will see it

Restaurant communication is most useful when it arrives before a guest or team member needs to ask what happened. The SMS messages add-on lets Resos send booking information by text as part of the same workflow that already handles online reservations, email notifications, reminders, and changes.

SMS is an additional delivery channel, not a separate marketing inbox. You keep managing the booking in Resos. The system sends the relevant message when the booking event occurs, and the recipient gets the update on their phone.

Send booking confirmations and status updates to guests

When a guest provides a phone number and you have enabled SMS messages, Resos can send a text when the booking is created. This gives the guest a record of the restaurant, date, time, and party size without requiring an app or a Resos account.

SMS can also follow important booking events. If the restaurant accepts, changes, or cancels a reservation, the guest can receive the corresponding status update. A link in the message takes them back to the guest-facing booking page when an action or more context is available.

This is different from the Booking Confirmation feature. SMS messages control whether booking communication can be delivered by text. Booking Confirmation controls the later re-confirmation process that asks guests to confirm they are still coming and can automatically release an unconfirmed table.

Add SMS delivery to automatic booking reminders

The Booking Reminders add-on controls what reminder is sent, when it is sent, and who receives it. The SMS messages add-on makes SMS available as one of the delivery channels.

That separation gives you practical control. You might send an email confirmation when the booking is made, then add a short SMS reminder on the day of service. A tasting menu could use an earlier reminder, while a casual weeknight service could send one closer to the booking time.

Reminders can be sent to:

• The guest who made the booking
• The restaurant team
• A custom email address and phone number

Each reminder can also use a minimum party-size rule. For example, you can alert a manager about a large group without sending the same internal message for every table of two.

Keep guest messages and staff alerts clear

Guest SMS messages and restaurant SMS alerts use the same paid SMS capability, but they solve different jobs.

Guest messages explain what has happened to a reservation and help the guest prepare or respond. Staff alerts tell the restaurant about a new booking so someone can review it quickly. If you need new-booking alerts on your own phone, see SMS and email booking notifications for restaurant staff.

Keeping those settings separate also prevents unnecessary messages. The guest does not receive an internal alert, and a staff member only receives the restaurant notifications or reminders assigned to the relevant number.

Use your restaurant name and keep texts concise

You can set the SMS sender name under Menu → Settings & add-ons → Communication → SMS messages. A recognizable sender helps the guest understand which reservation the message belongs to.

Resos supplies the essential booking information in the standard notification. Under Communication → Texts, you can add extra text before or after the default content for booking confirmations, status changes, new booking messages, and reminders. You can create a shorter SMS version when the longer email wording does not fit a text message well.

SMS billing is based on message segments. A longer message or certain characters can split one visible text into multiple billable segments. The exact behavior depends on the length and character set, so review the guide to SMS length and message segments before adding long custom copy or emoji.

Use SMS alongside automatic email notifications

Email remains useful when a message needs more space. SMS is useful for concise, time-sensitive information that a guest or staff member should see on a phone. Resos lets the two channels work together rather than forcing every booking message into one format.

The contact details collected with a booking determine which channels are available. A guest needs to provide a phone number for SMS and an email address for email. You can configure the required contact information for online bookings and collect the appropriate details when staff create a manual booking.

For instructions on guest and staff delivery preferences, follow the guide to receiving and sending booking notifications. To change the guest-facing wording, use the guide to customizing booking notification texts.

Pay only for the SMS segments sent

SMS messages are a usage-based add-on charged separately from your Resos subscription. Rates vary by destination and billing currency, and longer messages can count as more than one segment. We keep those values in the live pricing source instead of hardcoding a rate on this page.

Check the current SMS prices by country and currency to estimate your usage. The pricing page also explains when SMS is sent and how message segments appear on your invoice.

Enable SMS messages in Resos

You need a paid Resos plan to use the SMS messages add-on. Go to Menu → Settings & add-ons → Communication → SMS messages, enable the add-on, and choose the sender name.

After SMS is enabled, review the individual communication features you want to use:

• Configure which guest booking events should send notifications.
• Create and schedule booking reminders.
• Choose whether restaurant staff receive new-booking alerts by email, SMS, or both.
• Add optional short text for SMS under the Texts settings.

Start with the messages that remove a real point of confusion for guests or staff. You can add other SMS events later without changing how bookings are managed in Resos.