The message inbox will be your new app!

For years, businesses have tried to move more and more customer journeys into their own apps. The result is well known: high development costs, low adoption, and customers who simply don't want to download another app.

In parallel, one channel has continued to grow in importance – the message inbox.

With RCS (Rich Communication Services), the messaging inbox is evolving from a pure notification channel to a full-fledged interface for dialogue, action, and self-service . In practice: the messaging inbox is starting to resemble what many apps were intended to be.

This is not a vision – it is already happening

In markets ahead of Norway, RCS has reached 70–80% penetration, with messaging dialogs already used for everything from ordering and payment to customer service and onboarding.

In Norway, the situation is easy to summarize:

• Mobile operators are ready

• The platforms are ready.

• The use cases are well documented

• The last thing left is full support from Apple

Once it falls into place, adoption will happen quickly. Not because RCS is “new,” but because it builds on something customers already use every day.

From app coercion to action in the message

The difference between traditional messaging and RCS is not primarily design or richer content. The real change is what the customer can do – there and then .

With RCS, businesses can move entire micro-processes into the messaging dialog:

• Select, confirm or change

• Complete step-by-step processes

• Resolve discrepancies before they become problems

• Pay, sign or consent

  
  

All without logging in, passwords, downloading or changing channels.

The message becomes the interface.

What processes are suitable for the "message inbox as an app"?

Experience from mature markets shows that RCS provides the greatest value where:

• The customer must make one or more choices

• The process consists of several steps

• Timing and context are important

• Friction in the current solution creates churn

• Self-service can replace manual handling

  
  

Typical examples:

• Change of subscription or delivery

• Proactive customer service in case of deviations

• Onboarding in banking, insurance and SaaS

• Field missions, installations and sign-off

• Invoice, payment and payment deferral

• Preference management and consent

  
  

These are not new needs – what is new is where they can be solved .

SMS and RCS – one foundation, two strengths

RCS doesn't replace SMS. It builds on it.

SMS will still be the most robust choice for:

• Critical alerts

• OTP and secure authentication

• Universal coverage

  
  

RCS takes over where the dialogue becomes more complex:

• When the customer needs to do something

• When the process has multiple steps

• When structure and interaction provide value

  
  

A modern messaging strategy is therefore not about either/or, but about the right channel for the right dialogue .

Target365 is ready – technically, operationally and commercially

For us, RCS is not about waiting for a future opportunity. The platforms, integrations, and expertise are already in place.

We work daily with:

• Structuring dialogue-based processes

• Integration with existing CRM, ERP and business systems

• Interaction between SMS, RCS and other channels

• Security, sender verification and compliance

When Apple fully opens up, the question is not whether RCS will be adopted – but who is ready to use it correctly from day one .

Conclusion: The messaging inbox is becoming the new app

This is not about replacing apps, but about recognizing reality: Customers prefer to solve simple and medium-complex needs where they already are.

Your messaging inbox is always available, personal, and immediate. With RCS, it's also interactive.

The question is not whether this shift will come.

The question is which processes you should move first.

Get in touch if you want to see how RCS can be used in practice – and how you can be ready the moment the market is.

Contact us