Key RCS metrics to track
Now that you’re up and running, you should consistently monitor your metrics to understand your performance and identify opportunities for change.
RCS performance is measured using many of the same core metrics as SMS (including subscribes and unsubscribes, delivery rates, clicks, and conversions) with one key differentiator: RCS also enables open tracking, providing an additional layer of engagement visibility.
Klaviyo tracks RCS opens in 2 ways:
- Open rates: shown in campaign and flow reports as an aggregated percentage.
- Opened Text event:a profile-level event that can be used in segmentation, conditional splits, and is visible in the activity feed."
Learn how to track RCS opens in Klaviyo.
Analyze the performance of your first few RCS messages
When you’re ramping up on sending RCS, analyzing performance is key. Here are a few places in Klaviyo you should reference to understand the impact of your RCS messages.
Deliverability hub
When you’ve only sent your first few RCS campaigns, the Deliverability Hub can help you understand how your messages are performing early on and whether you’re building strong sending practices from the start.
By reviewing this report, you can:
- Filter by RCS messages
- See if your messages are being successfully delivered
- Understand how recipients are engaging with your campaigns
- Spot early warning signs like high unsubscribe or failed delivery rates
- Compare your performance against industry benchmarks
Checking these insights regularly after your first sends can help you improve campaign performance, protect your sender reputation, and make smarter decisions as you scale your RCS program.
Campaign and flow performance data
When you head to your Campaigns and Flows tabs within Klaviyo, you can find performance for individual campaigns and flows, as well as overall metrics across all campaigns and flows over a specific time range.
Filter specifically for your RCS messages and track:
- Deliveries
- Opens
- Clicks
- Conversions
Multi-metric report
Head to Custom reports in Klaviyo, and create a new Multi-metric report. Multi-metric reports allow you to review multiple metrics across your entire account at once.
You can create a multi-metric report that provides data across your text message metrics, and you can filter the message type to RCS.
Compare key formatting differences
With RCS, you have more flexibility in interactive opportunities; with this flexibility comes opportunity for comparing how different formats best communicate your message.
Let’s go over some common elements you may experiment with when analyzing performance. Click through the tabs to explore each element.
Try sending the same campaign type (product launch, time-sensitive update, sale announcement) both as a Basic RCS and Single RCS to understand if rich media is a significant differentiator in how subscribers interact with your messages.
You may find that some campaign types only need a basic RCS to drive conversions, while others benefit largely from an added product image or video.
Running and iterating on these tests can help you protect costs and send more impactful messages.
Rich media in your RCS messages, such as images, swipeable carousels, GIFs, and videos, can make your messages more engaging and bring your content to life.
Testing is key. Experiment with sending:
- Rich card vs. carousel
- Still image vs. video vs. GIF
This can help you understand what media resonates most with your audience per message, and adjust your usage of rich media elements accordingly.
Quick actions in RCS messages help you direct a recipient to the next desired action.
Try testing the:
- Format of quick actions (either Visit URL or Quick replies).
- Number of quick actions in a single message.
- Language of each quick action label (e.g. “Shop now”, “Save for later”, “Visit website”).
See which variations drive more clicks and conversions, and tailor your strategy accordingly.