Hey, it's Chase and Jimmy here.

Apple just dropped iOS 26, and it comes with major changes for SMS marketing. From inbox filters to smarter AI-powered summaries, this update will change how (and if) subscribers see your texts.

The good news? SMS is still one of the highest-ROI channels for ecommerce... if you know how to adapt.

Here’s what’s changing, what it means for your brand, and the quick wins to keep your texts landing where they matter.

Also inside:

✔️ How Lenny & Larry’s 11X Amazon Sales
✔️ Omnisend’s Q3 Feature Drop: Smarter personalization, faster SMS & more
✔️ Quick Clips: Instant Chat GPT Checkout, Oura’s latest launch, and Stanley’s step towards a circular product lifecycle

👉 Let’s dive in.

How Lenny & Larry’s 11X Amazon Sales

Sales stuck?

Lenny & Larry’s plateaued at 1K units until Stack Influence seeded 1,560 influencers - each bought the product on Amazon, shared content, and left authentic UGC.

The Result?

🚀 11× sales, ⭐ 525 reviews, 👀 2.3M impressions

📱 iOS 26 and the Future of SMS Marketing

Apple’s iOS 26 update is more than a software refresh. It’s a shift in how mobile messaging works. While texts will still deliver, how (and whether) subscribers actually see them is changing fast.

For ecommerce brands, this means one thing: your SMS strategy needs to evolve. Here’s what’s new and how to adapt.

What’s Changing in iOS 26

Apple’s updates center around privacy, message quality, and smarter inboxes. The five biggest changes:

1. Inbox filtering for unknown senders
Texts from unsaved numbers may get routed to an “Unknown Senders” tab if users enable the filter. The fix? Make it easy for subscribers to save your number. Using tap-to-text opt-ins (where customers initiate the first message) also ensures your brand is treated as a “Known Sender” from day one.

2. SMS spam folder
Apple is adding a spam folder to catch suspicious or unverified texts. If you’re using verified sending methods like short codes or branded sender IDs, this likely won’t affect you. In fact, cleaner inboxes could make your messages more trusted.

3. Smarter inboxes via Apple Intelligence
AI-powered summaries and smart replies are raising the bar. Messages need to be relevant, personalized, and valuable, not just blasts. This makes behavioral targeting and first-party data essential.

4. Broader support for RCS messaging
RCS (Rich Communication Services) is Apple’s answer to interactive messaging. Think images, buttons, and branded layouts inside a text. It won’t replace SMS entirely, but it’s a big opportunity for launches, promotions, and high-intent flows.

5. Stricter link tracking protection
Apple continues to block click IDs from ads like gclid and fbclid. UTM parameters still work, but branded links are now the safer path to reliable tracking.

What This Means for Marketers

The fundamentals don’t change: SMS still delivers strong ROI when it’s trusted, personalized, and well-timed. But the approach does.

Focus on these five areas to stay ahead:

• Inbox placement: Use tap-to-text to secure Known Sender status

• Trust building: Add downloadable contact cards in your welcome flow

• Personalization: Send behavior-based, customer-centric messages

• Orchestration: Coordinate SMS with email and push for a seamless experience

• Attribution: Expect less visibility from click IDs and lean on branded links

Quick Wins to Put in Place

This week

• Add a “save this number” step to your welcome flow and explain why it matters (“so you never miss a delivery update or exclusive offer”). Framing it as a benefit makes customers more likely to follow through.

• Audit your opt-in sources. If you’re still relying heavily on checkout-only opt-ins, test tap-to-text from your mobile site or social ads to drive stronger Known Sender status.

• Refresh your segmentation. Instead of blasting new subscribers, stagger early campaigns around browsing behavior, location, or first product interest. This reduces opt-outs right at the start.

This month

• Pair SMS with email for high-stakes flows like welcome and cart abandonment. Email does the heavy lifting with visuals and details, while SMS delivers urgency and quick reminders. Together, they plug revenue leaks.

• Test RCS-style creative in campaigns that naturally benefit from richer media, like product drops or seasonal promotions. Interactive buttons can shorten the path to purchase.

• Build a short series of “trust touchpoints.” For example, use SMS to send order confirmations and shipping updates. That sets a baseline of reliability before you push offers.

Ongoing

• Track branded link performance and build reporting dashboards around it. This gives you a clear view of engagement as click IDs become less reliable.

• Layer in predictive segments, like churn risk or VIP status, to time offers. High-value customers should get exclusivity, while at-risk customers should get re-engagement campaigns before they drop off.

• Run quarterly reviews of your SMS + email orchestration. Make sure flows aren’t cannibalizing each other, but instead laddering together for a consistent customer journey.

The Bottom Line

iOS 26 is pushing marketers toward smarter, trust-based mobile messaging. The brands that win will make their numbers recognizable, deliver personalized texts, and sync SMS with the rest of their retention strategy.

SMS isn’t going away. It’s leveling up. And if you adapt now, you’ll be positioned to thrive as consumer expectations rise.

Omnisend’s Q3 Feature Drop: Smarter personalization, faster SMS & more

Omnisend stripped out the clickety-click busywork so you can focus on marketing that actually moves the needle. Here’s what’s new:

• Personalized product recommendations & conditional content blocks → make every email feel 1:1.

• Branded shortcodes & links for SMS → shorter, cleaner, more trusted.

• Upgraded reporting → finally see who’s in, who’s out, and what’s working.

• Omnisend AI upgrades → forms that build themselves, reminders that save your BFCM sanity, and smarter automation suggestions.

✨ Bottom line: More conversions, less spiraling.

🗞️ Quick Clips:

• PayPal Honey integrates with AI chatbots: Honey’s browser extension now shows product links, prices, and deals alongside shopping recs from AI assistants (starting with ChatGPT). It's part of PayPal’s bigger move into “agentic commerce.”

• Oura Ring 4 gets a ceramic glow-up: The new collection ditches metallic finishes for colorful zirconia ceramic, plus a portable charging case and $99 in-app blood testing through Quest Diagnostics.

• ChatGPT adds Instant Checkout: Users can now buy directly from Etsy within ChatGPT, with Shopify brands coming soon. OpenAI’s goal: turn AI chats into shoppable moments powered by its new Agentic Commerce Protocol.

• Stanley launches a take-back program: Send in old tumblers, get $5 off your next purchase, and trigger a $5 donation to Ocean Conservancy. It’s part of Stanley’s push to build a circular product lifecycle.

Annnnd that’s a wrap for this edition! 

Thanks for hanging with Chase and me. Always a pleasure to have you here.

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Remember: Do shit you love.

🤘 Jimmy Kim & Chase Dimond

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