RCS for Business is transforming how brands communicate with customers by bringing app-like experiences and conversations right into their native messaging box — no third-party app download required. At the core of the RCS ecosystem are RCS Agents, the digital identity behind an RCS message. These agents allow businesses to send verified, highly visual and interactive messages designed to engage customers and increase conversions.
Read on to explore how RCS for Business works, including how to get started, the role RCS Agents play in message verification and delivery, the different RCS message types you can send and how RCS interactions determine the price you’ll pay.
RCS for Business: how to get started
There are five steps to getting started with RCS for Business: the initial setup with an RCS provider, RCS Agent asset preparation, testing and submitting your Agent for launch, brand verification and review, and finally, your Agent goes live. Let’s explore these steps in detail.
Step 1: Initial setup with a provider
The first step to getting started with RCS for Business is to choose a messaging partner — either an aggregator or a communications platform that offers RCS messaging as a service. Your messaging partner will provide an API to send RCS messages, manage the technical carrier connections and offer expertise to help you create impactful campaigns. Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to determine the intent of your RCS for Business ‘Agent’.
But first…
What is an RCS for Business Agent?
An RCS for Business Agent is a verified digital profile that forms your official branded identity — it’s displayed as a contact on customers’ phones. It basically shows them who you are, what your brand looks like, that your business is legitimate and verified and that your messages are trustworthy.
There are four use cases that RCS agent can fulfil:
Authentication / one-time passwords (OTPs) - for 2FA account logins, password resets and transaction confirmations.
Transactional - order confirmations, boarding passes, or shipping notifications — non-marketing messages that relate only to the customer’s existing products or services.
Promotional - sales and marketing messages designed to increase brand awareness, engagement, conversions and customer retention. Examples include flash sale notifications, special discounts, product recommendations, seasonal offers, and retargeting campaigns.
Multi-use - a combination of transactional and promotional messaging within the same conversational flow. An example would be a hotel booking confirmation that includes a special offer to use the hotel spa at a discounted rate.
After choosing the use case, you’ll select a billing category based on the message type: conversational or non-conversational. Conversational messaging is two-way and is ideal for customer service support or product discovery. Non-conversational messages are one-way messages that don’t require the customer to respond.
Step 2: Agent asset preparation
Next, you must gather up-to-date business assets which will be displayed to message recipients via your RCS Agent. These include a display name, company logo, a banner (hero) image, business contact details, and publicly accessible links to your company’s privacy policy and terms of service. When you’ve got those assets together, you’ll need to prepare for brand verification and test your Agent ready for ‘launch’.
Step 3: Testing and submitting an RCS Agent for launch
Launching your RCS Agent involves a review process managed by Google and, in some cases, by individual carrier networks. Before attempting a launch request, your Agent must be fully built and tested. This means all required Agent information is filled out, the Agent's functionality is tested, an ‘opt-out’ (STOP) flow is created, and you’ve captured a screen recording of your Agent demonstrating your use case and the STOP flow.
You’ll also need to prepare specific details about your intended RCS campaigns, which will form part of the review. This information includes:
A list of the countries and carriers where you want your Agent to operate.
The contact details for the person in your workforce who’s responsible for the Agent.
Details on the types of interactions your Agent will have and what ‘events’ will trigger messages to users.
The exact message the Agent will send when a user opts out.
Getting your brand verified for RCS for Business
Brand verification with mobile carrier networks is mandatory and happens at the same time as when you ‘launch’ your Agent. It ensures that an authorised brand representative confirms the Agent’s information and grants the messaging partner the right to manage the Agent on your behalf. To do this, you’ll supply the contact information (name and business email) of an employee within your business who can verify the brand. Including a brand authorisation letter in PDF format can help speed up the verification process.
Brand verification needs to be completed only once per Agent, and your messaging partner can guide you through the necessary steps.
Step 4: Brand verification and review
Once the Agent launch request is submitted, the brand verification process is initiated. For Google-managed launches (where Google handles the entire approval process on behalf of the carrier), your brand representative will receive an email from rbm-support@google.com. They must reply to this email to officially approve the Agent with Google.
You may need to launch your RCS Agent with individual carriers —not Google — if the carrier doesn’t use Google’s launch process or offers additional features that Google-managed flows don’t include — like special business messaging programmes or priority routing. For carrier-managed launches, the carrier runs the review and approval process, which can take a bit longer than Google's process and may involve extra compliance steps. (Note that you’ll need a direct business contact with the carrier for a carrier launch.)
Step 5: RCS Agent goes live
After a successful review, Google or the individual carrier(s) you’re working with will grant access and give final approval. You can monitor the progress of the RCS Agent approval process via your messaging partner’s application.
What types of messages can be sent with RCS for Business?
RCS for Business supports several message types based on your business goals, the content you want to share, and how you want customers to engage. There are two main ways to classify RCS messages — by format and content type, and by interaction style.
RCS for Business message formats and content types
RCS messages come in a range of formats, from simple text messages to fully interactive rich cards and carousels that include media, buttons, and suggested replies. They let brands combine text, imagery, video, and interactive actions to create more engaging, app‑like conversations inside the user’s native messaging app. Let’s look at some of these message formats in more detail:
Text messages: Simple, text-only messages that can be up to 3,072 characters in length. These are ideal for sending straightforward information — like appointment reminders or purchase confirmations.
Multimedia messages: RCS supports high-resolution images (e.g., JPEG, PNG, GIF), videos (e.g., MP4), audio files, and PDF documents. Common use cases include sending product brochures, invoices, event tickets and informational videos. The total size of all attachments in a single message can be up to 100 MB.
Rich cards: A bit like mini landing pages, rich cards are a cohesive, rectangular unit that can combine several components such as an image or video, title text, a description, and up to four interactive ‘suggested replies’ (such as calling a number, opening a map, or saving a calendar event). Rich cards can be horizontal or vertical and are available in different sizes. They are ideal for spotlighting products, explaining a service, detailing an appointment summary, or promoting a general offer with a call to action.
Carousels: A horizontally scrollable array of up to 10 rich cards — great for displaying multiple products, comparing product options side-by-side, or guiding a customer through a multi-step journey like onboarding, booking or troubleshooting.
Related reading: RCS vs SMS: What’s the Difference?
Interaction styles for RCS Business messaging
RCS for Business falls into one of three structural message types — one-way basic, one-way rich media and two-way conversational. The interaction style is important as it determines the pricing model (see the common questions below for more information on RCS for Business costs).
Basic message (one-way): This is a simple, text-only message up to 160 characters, just like an SMS. It can include a clickable URL and a message preview and is best used for simple tactical promotions, such as flash sale notifications, alerts, and OTPs. No interactive elements are included.
Single rich media message (one-way): These can include images, video, carousel buttons, long text, and suggested replies designed to drive a quick action (not a conversation). The point of these is to encourage recipients to take a specific step outside the chat, such as tapping a button to complete an abandoned cart purchase. Even though single rich media messages are primarily outbound, they are more interactive than basic messages.
Conversational (two-way): An immersive and dynamic back-and-forth exchange between the RCS Agent and the end user. It’s effectively a guided chat experience, perfect for customer service, bookings management, troubleshooting and product advice.
RCS for Business: common questions answered
This section breaks down some FAQs about RCS for Business, particularly conversations, the RCS Agent approval process, and RCS pricing models.
How are RCS conversations initiated?
RCS for Business conversations begin the moment a recipient replies to a basic or rich media message you’ve sent. That single reply instantly opens a 24‑hour “session window,” during which both you and the user can exchange unlimited messages without being charged per message. Instead, you’ll pay a flat session fee. Because the billing model shifts the moment a reply is received, the session essentially transforms the interaction from one‑way messaging into a guided, two‑way conversation. If the user doesn’t reply within 24 hours, no session starts, and the exchange remains a non‑conversational interaction.
How long does it take for a brand verification and the launch of the agent?
For Google-managed Agent launches, the review process is relatively quick, taking around one to three business days. This is on the basis that the brand representative promptly replies to the Agent approval email and that all business assets (logo, business contact details, privacy policies, and the screen recording demo) are accurate and accessible. For carrier-managed launches, the timescales vary by carrier and can take between two and three weeks.
How is RCS for Business pricing calculated?
RCS for Business pricing is based on whether the message is non‑conversational (one‑way) or conversational (two‑way). Non‑conversational pricing is billed per individual message, with the cost depending on whether the content is simple text (no more than 160 characters) or rich media. If the recipient doesn’t reply within 24 hours, per-message pricing applies. When a user does reply, a 24‑hour conversation window opens, and all messages exchanged during that session are charged at a single, fixed conversational fee, making it more cost‑effective for true back‑and‑forth interactions. Note that costs for both models can vary across countries, regions and mobile network carriers.
RCS for Business: a smart way to engage customers
The RCS for Business setup process can be somewhat complicated, involving Google or carrier approvals, Agent verification, technical configuration and administrative steps. However, it’s most definitely worth the legwork for most organisations, especially when you bring a trusted messaging provider on board as they’ll handle much of the process on your behalf.
RCS is already proving its worth across industries, including retail, travel and hospitality, financial services, automotive, telecoms and healthcare, by enabling richer journeys, more personalised engagement and smoother self‑service experiences.
As the messaging landscape evolves, RCS offers a powerful opportunity for organisations ready to modernise their communication. Adopting RCS for your business could lead to stronger customer responses, higher conversion rates, and more intuitive interactions than you can achieve with traditional channels like SMS or email.
Related reading: What is RCS Messaging?
