What SMS marketing budget to plan each month for a Moroccan SME

Sending messages via [SMS API] (/fr/api-sms-maroc/) is a highly predictable recurring expense (OpEx), provided you model it correctly. Unlike the Facebook Ads budget (where auctions vary), the price of a SMS in Morocco is mathematically fixed.

Before speaking in thousands of dirhams, always divide your expenses into two distinct “Pocks”:

1. The “Run” (Transactional/Incompressible SMS): These are the SMS that make the business run every day: the Check Code (OTP), the order tracks, the reminders for appointments for health professionals or craftsmen. - The volume depends only on the number of monthly transactions. - You should never cut this budget, otherwise the customer support explodes.

2. The “Push” (SMS Marketing/Variables): These are massive loyalty or promotion campaigns to generate traffic.

Let’s assume the Starter rate with a validated Sender ID (0.65 MAD / SMS) to illustrate.

Scenario A: Small SMEs (e.g. Dental Office, Small E-commerce) - Customer base size: 1000 active numbers. - Transactional: 300 appointment reminders or package shipments per month (195 MAD). - Marketing: 1 global campaign (promo/fidelization) per month for the entire base (650 MAD). - Monthly Budget Forecast: ~845 MAD/month. For the price of a dinner at the restaurant, this SME removes the No-Show and generates re-purchase.*

Scenario B: The Average SME (e.g. Network of 3 clothing stores) - Customer Base Size: 10,000 Opt-in numbers. - Transactional: (Not applicable if they do physical sales, or minimum through a loyalty program) - Let's say 0 MAD. - Marketing: The marketing agency recommends 2 campaigns per month maximum to avoid the exhaustion of the base = 20 000 SMS. - Monthly Budget Forecast: ~13 000 MAD/month. Here, SMS becomes a real engine of store traffic (Drive-to-Store).

Scenario C: The Big E-commerce Startup / Web Platform - Basic Size: 50,000 registered customers. - Transactional: 15,000 OTP/Delivery validation SMS (9750 MAD). - Segmented Marketing: The management rejects spam. They do weekly targeted micro-campaigns of 5,000 people (20,000 SMS/month) = 13,000 MAD. - Monthly Budget Forecast: ~22 750 MAD/month. (At this volume level, a higher plan brings the SMS price down to 0.48 MAD on the Enterprise plan, making the budget even more competitive).

Your annual budget shouldn’t be linear (e.g. divide 60,000 MAD into 12 x 5,000 MAD). In Morocco, the trade is experiencing gaps and violent peaks. Manage the platform account (the “Wallet”) as an accounting provision: – Load the account in January to smooth out payments. – Consume the minimum in August (the hollow period where people are on vacation and respond little). – Burn 40% of your annual budget in November (Black Friday) and during the 15 days prior to holidays (Aid Al-Adha, etc.) where reactivity and consumption are at the top.

Purchasing annual packs (non-perishable credits) at the beginning of the year is the best way for a Moroccan SME to block a volume rate (Tiering) and never find themselves "lack of credits" on the eve of a vital offer for its balance sheet.