Twilio is a San Francisco, California-based American startup that offers programmable communication tools for making and receiving phone calls, sending and receiving text messages, and performing other communication operations via its web service APIs.
It is a platform as a service for cloud communication (CPaaS). It assists software developers in creating consumer experiences by providing building blocks—APIs.
This simplifies the entire communication process. It is trusted by over 200,000 active business clients, including Spotify, Twitter, Netflix, and Airbnb.
Because of the epidemic, it acquired a lot of traction in 2020.
What is Twilio?
It is a customer engagement platform that is used by hundreds of thousands of businesses and over ten million developers around the world to create unique, personalised experiences for their consumers.
Through APIs, we’re recognised for democratising channels like as phone, text, chat, video, and email, making it simple for any business to develop meaningful connections with consumers on the channels they choose.
But that’s only the start. We now enable organisations to record first-party customer data in real time, analyse it in a single view, and utilise it to accelerate interactions at scale with Segment, the world’s premier customer data platform.
What is Twilio Console?
It is used by developers to manage their apps and accounts, and it is an essential aspect of any developer’s experience with our platform.
It has evolved from a handful of products to more than we can count in the 12 years since its inception (and toes).
What Does Twilio Do?
It has several applications.
Here is how it may help you:
Twilio Flex
It is a contact centre platform in the cloud. It is programmable, which means you can change things like channels, processes, and UI design.
It provides customer care via messaging platforms such as WhatsApp, SMS, Facebook Messenger, and WebChat. The tool also aids in performance tracking and counselling.
Twilio Frontline
It enables any sales staff to make contact with clients.
It interacts with any customer database or CRM and aids in the development of connections through message, audio notes, voice, and other means.
Marketing Campaigns
It also assists your company with email marketing initiatives.
Large contact lists may be synchronised in minutes thanks to its sophisticated segmentation engine.
You may also improve email effectiveness and engagement by tracking the statistics that are relevant to you.
Lookup
The Lookup API provides access to phone number information such as validity and formatting, as well as carrier information and caller names. It assists you in improving message delivery and reducing fraud.
Verify
Through user identification and phone number validation, the Twilio app eliminates fraud. SMS, audio, email, TOTP, and push are all used for verification.
Authy
This API improves your security by using push authentications and makes your login experience more customizable by using soft tokens. It enables clients to securely login via email, SMS, and voice rather than simply a password.
Twilio Conversations
It enables you to create cross-channel communications across SMS, WhatsApp, and Chat.
It may be used to maintain archives as well as evaluate interactions.
Studio
Its app has a visual communication process builder. A drag-and-drop visual editor allows you to create interactive voice response systems, notification routines, and messaging bots.
Because it does not involve the usage of code, this is a platform that is available to all divisions inside a company.
Taskrouter
An API that allows you to route any sort of interaction and allocate tasks to agents who are most suited to handle them. It keeps track of the status of all tasks and staff.
Trust Hub
Its “Know Your Customer” tool assigns a level of trust to customers. It demands information about its clients’ enterprises, such as their name, headquarters address, representative, and so on. Following that, the information is evaluated and either authorised or refused.
Because your company has been authorised, it may be trusted, and you will have access to Trust Products.
Event Streams
This API allows developers to create a single integration for all of their data. It can help with:
- Visibility into system performance,
- Workforce optimization,
- Understanding customer engagement, and much more!
Twilio Programmable Messaging
This is an SMS, MMS, and OTT messaging API. It enables you to set up an automatic messaging system to respond to your clients’ inquiries. If necessary, it can also route them to your team.
Twilio Programmable Voice
This functionality allows you to embed VoIP, PSTN, or SIP phone calls into any website or application. The voice experience may be scaled and customised.
It also supports interactive voice response, recording transcriptions, and speech recognition.
Twilio Programmable Video
You may now create your own video platform!
You may send an invitation to a video call by SMS, combine live chat and phone dial-in, and so on.
Some such uses include:
- Scheduling online appointments
- Holding video conferences
- Offering client service
And even more.
Twilio SendGrid Email API
It is yet another completely customizable alternative.
It enables you to send, receive, and route emails while guaranteeing that they always get in the inboxes of your clients.
It makes your marketing activities easier in this way.
WhatsApp Business API
Using their Messaging APIs, you can quickly send messages over WhatsApp.
Phone Numbers
It provides local, national, mobile, and toll-free phone numbers in over 100 countries.
Programmable Wireless
T-Mobile USA is collaborating on the development of programmable wireless. It gives IoT devices cellular connectivity and allows you to manage them.
The Programmable Wireless SIMs provide your devices with 2G, 3G, or LTE cellular access.
Short Codes
These are unique phone numbers designed for high-volume, two-way texting.
Twilio provides them if you need to send a large number of messages in a short period of time.
Super SIM
Super SIM is a cellular connection platform that connects you to exclusive worldwide carriers.
You may select which networks to connect to.
Another fantastic enhancement to the Twilio phone system.
Elastic SIP Trunking
Global PSTN access and communication agility are provided.
The calls are routed over Twilio’s Super Network, which increases their reliability.
Narrowband
This Twilio service allows you to connect to T-US Mobile’s Narrowband Network.
It reduces the energy usage of devices that deliver little or infrequent data packets.
Interconnect
It requires a network connection to function. It can be routed through either the public internet or a private connection.
Interconnect is a preferable choice because the first option does not ensure quality or security. It provides secure and high-quality connectivity between your network and Twilio.
Runtime
That is, in essence, a serverless environment for your Node.js code and static assets. It allows you to create and execute apps while also handling server scalability, hosting, and maintenance for you.
Runtime provides you error messages when they occur, allowing you to swiftly resolve any issues or defects.
Sync
Twilio provides yet another tool.
It is a service that allows you to sync application state across applications and websites.
How Does Twilio Work?
Here’s how the software works:
Everything is built around the Twilio Super Network. It connects the Internet to traditional communication infrastructure.
A worldwide operations centre is manned around the clock to assure the greatest performance of the carrier networks.
The software programmers are continually receiving input from carriers and working on improving traffic patterns.
How to Use Twilio?
The following are the steps you must take to get started with the Twilio software:
1. Obtain Twilio credentials.
2. Make an account. Because its cost is decided by your usage, pricing is set by use case. You may also begin with a free trial.
3. Obtain the API. To do so, go to “Account Details.”
4. Select a Twilio phone number.
5. Obtain a messaging SID.
6. Go to the Twilio Package Page or search for its API on RapidAPI.com.
7. Use your credentials to make connections.
8. Log in to RapidAPI to get Code Snippets.
9. Change the fields and language, and then enter the code.
What is Twilio Segment?
Segment, which was bought by Twilio in November 2020, is a consumer data platform that assists engineering teams at organisations such as Tradesy, TIME, Inc., Gap, Lending Tree, PayPal, and Fender, among others, in saving time and money on their data infrastructure.
According to the vendor, they also provide access to 200+ products (Mixpanel, Salesforce, Marketo, Redshift, and so on) to better understand and optimise consumer preferences for growth—all connectors are pre-built and available through a common dashboard.
Twilio News: Twilio hacked by phishing campaign targeting internet companies
They acknowledged that hackers gained access to client data after successfully duping workers into handing over their corporate login credentials.
In a blog post published Monday, the San Francisco-based company, which allows users to build voice and SMS capabilities — such as two-factor authentication (2FA) — into applications, said it became aware on August 4 that someone gained “unauthorised access” to information related to customer accounts.
Twilio stated that hostile actors obtained the data of 125 customers in an update made on August 11, but has yet to specify what data was accessed.
According to Twilio’s privacy policies, the data it gathers includes addresses, payment information, IP addresses, and, in certain situations, confirmation of identification. It serves over 150,000 business clients, including Facebook and Uber.
According to the firm, the as-yet-unidentified threat actor persuaded many of their workers to hand up their credentials, granting access to the company’s internal systems.
The attacker utilised SMS phishing messages that seemed to be from Twilio’s IT department, claiming that the workers’ passwords had expired or that their schedules had changed, and advising the victim to check in using a faked web URL controlled by the attacker.
According to Twilio, the attackers sent these communications to appear official, using terminology like “Okta” and “SSO,” which allude to single sign-on, which many businesses employ to safeguard access to internal apps.
(Earlier this year, Okta experienced a breach in which hackers gained access to its internal systems.) It stated that it collaborated with US carriers to block the fraudulent messages, as well as registrars and hosting providers to disable the malicious URLs used in the campaign.
However, the firm stated that the threat actors appeared unafraid. “Despite this reaction, threat actors have continued to shift across carriers and hosting providers in order to repeat their assaults,” according to Twilio’s blog post.
“We have reason to assume the threat actors are well-organized, smart, and meticulous in their operations based on these indicators.”
Since then, it has been learnt that the same perpetrator has put up phishing pages imitating other firms, including a US internet company, an IT outsourcing company, and a customer care provider, but the impact on these enterprises, if any, is unknown.
They said it has removed access to the hacked employee accounts and boosted security training to guarantee staff are on “high alert” for social engineering efforts after the breach.
The business stated that it has begun contacting impacted consumers individually.
Consider These Twilio Alternatives
The following are the finest Twilio alternatives:
- MessageBird
- Vonage API
- Sinch
- Plivo
- Bandwidth
- Telnyx
Twilio Pricing
Calling rates begin at 2 cents per minute. Receiving calls costs $1 per month per phone number and 1 cent per minute.
Receiving Two-Way SMS and MMS Messages with Twilio
Twilio two-way SMS and MMS messaging enable you to keep a conversation going by sending and receiving text and multimedia messages.
This allows a contact centre representative to engage in an SMS-based discussion with a customer, or it allows consumers to reschedule appointments through text message and receive automated answers.
How do I check my Twilio Status SMS?
If you wish to follow the status of your outgoing messages, use the StatusCallback argument to get notifications when it receives a delivery status update.
FAQs
Is Twilio APIs free?
Twilio provides a free trial so you may become acquainted with the platform and try its many possibilities.
Is Twilio owned by Amazon?
The two businesses signed an agreement shortly after Amazon revealed its investment in the San Francisco cloud communication platform startup Twilio: Software developers utilising the AWS platform would now have access to its real-time messaging service and notifications.
Who are the Twili?
The Twili are depicted as “interlopers” who used strong magic to conquer the sacred world but were exiled to the twilight realm by Hyrule’s three light spirits.
What’s going on with Twilio Stock?
Shareholders in Twilio (NYSE: TWLO), a cloud-based communications management platform, have had a difficult 18 months, with share prices down over 83% from highs hit in February 2021.
The firm went public six years ago, but it is still losing money, and Wall Street looks to be fed up with waiting for earnings.
Twilio Careers – Is it a good company to work for?
It has been named one of the 2021 Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For by Fortune Magazine and Great Place to Work®, the global authority on workplace culture.
Why use Twilio WhatsApp API?
The Twilio API for WhatsApp is the easiest way to integrate WhatsApp two-way chatting into your online application.
You can simply add WhatsApp features to your application by adding only two lines of code using the same Twilio API you use for SMS.
Can you trace a Twilio Phone Number?
Twilio Lookup can determine the carrier and kind of phone based on a phone number (landline, mobile, or VoIP).
Lookup can also discover the name of the person or business linked with a phone number in the United States (if available).
Twilio WhatsApp Pricing: How much does it cost?
A messaging session begins when a user sends a message to your application and lasts for 24 hours from the most recently received message.
It charges a set rate of $0.005 each Session Message sent or received, which will not fluctuate.
What does Twilio Inc do?
The quick answer is: It is a customer engagement platform that is used by hundreds of thousands of businesses and over ten million developers around the world to create unique, personalised experiences for their consumers.
Is Twilio Flex Pricing expensive?
There are two price points: It charges a fixed monthly subscription of $150 for per seat for named users.
Active user per-hour pricing: It charges a flat fee of $1 per hour for active users.
What is Twilio messaging?
Messaging Services is a free feature that allows you to send messages at scale and across multiple countries.
A Messaging Service, in short, is a container for numerous Twilio message senders (e.g. phone numbers, WhatsApp senders).
Is Twilio costly?
Origination starts at $0.0045/min and termination at $0.007/min.
Create and manage cross-channel SMS, WhatsApp, Chat, and MMS conversations.
Prices begin at $0.05 per active user each month.
Can I use Twilio send SMS to send SMS?
You may send outbound SMS messages from your Twilio phone number to mobile phones all around the world using Twilio’s REST API.
Twilio SMS Cost-Is it free?
By choosing “Acquire a Trial Number,” you may get a free Twilio phone number after signing up for a free trial and verifying your contact details.
It will recommend a free number for testing your applications.
Twilio Subsidiaries: What companies does it own?
It announced the acquisition of Core Network Dynamics GmbH, a virtual evolved packet core startup situated in Berlin, Germany, in November 2018.
In July 2020 it also announced that it has acquired Electric Imp, an internet of things platform business, for an unknown sum.
Conclusion
Twilio is extremely reliable, and it is designed to assist you in developing an excellent bespoke communication system for your company. It offers goods that cover all essential modes of communication as well as answers to potential challenges.
The programme is continually adjusted, and you only pay for the time you use it actively. It may help you build your business in the same way that it has benefited many large corporations.
