One Bone tested Gorgias against Klaviyo: Conversational SMS won by 81%
The experiment: A one-week split test to measure the impact of AI-powered conversational SMS in Gorgias AI Journey vs. traditional broadcast messaging in Klaviyo during a 20% sitewide sale.
The results:
- AI Journey outperformed Klaviyo, delivering 81% higher revenue uplift and 83% higher order conversion rates.
- Personalization drives revenue. Referencing past purchases makes shoppers feel the brand knows about them and portrays familiarity.
- Two-way beats one-way. Answering questions and sending product links capture nuggets of insight and turn them into a conversion opportunity.
- Discounts get attention while conversations close sales. Marketers have always relied on promotions to drive action. Now they can also guide shoppers through their buying journey in real time, answering questions and removing hesitation before it turns into abandonment.
About One Bone
One Bone is a premium men's apparel brand known for its obsessive focus on fit. For decades, clothing has been built around one body type: standard. One Bone challenges the status quo with apparel designed for men whose bodies fall outside the traditional standards.
The brand uses a unique sizing system with various distinct cuts, each designed for different body types and preferences. With over 50,000 5-star reviews, One Bone successfully helps its customers find their fit and their confidence.
A head-to-head SMS comparison
When One Bone ran a one-week sitewide promotional sale offering 20% off, they paired it with an experiment. “Everything we do at One Bone is data-driven,” shared Greg Gorzkowski, Head of Digital and Ecommerce at One Bone.
To measure the impact of AI-powered SMS against traditional broadcast messaging, they split their list 50/50:
- Half received Klaviyo's standard SMS blast
- Half received AI Journey's personalized, conversational SMS
Both groups got the same offer and the only difference was the approach.
AI Journey is Gorgias’s conversational marketing platform that engages shoppers across their lifecycle using two-way AI-driven messaging. Think of it as everything you love about your store’s personalized AI Agent or virtual shopping assistant, delivered right to your customer’s SMS inbox.
“We wanted to see how our standard SMS compared to conversational SMS. The results weren’t even close.”
—Greg Gorzkowski, Head of Digital and Ecommerce at One Bone
AI Journey delivers tailored wardrobe recommendations
Traditional SMS treats every customer the same. AI Journey doesn't.
For example, one customer who recently purchased the Airflow Yacht Shirt received a message suggesting the Outwork Bomber as a natural next piece to build a complete outfit.
Instead of a noisy test blast, it's a recommendation that feels like it came from someone who actually knows their wardrobe. Customers are far more likely to click when the message reflects what they've already bought rather than a generic "Shop New Arrivals."
The conversation doesn’t end after a single message
But personalization alone isn't enough. The real difference was what happened after the first message.
With Klaviyo, the conversation ends at send. With AI Journey, it continued as customers could text back asking about sizing, colors, or what pairs well. The AI answered in real time, sent direct product links, and kept the conversation going until they were ready to buy.
“AI at scale is a challenge for every online business today,” Greg tells us. “At One Bone, we’re obsessed with customer experience, so the quality of conversations is crucial for us to make sure our customers get the best experience possible.”
This is the difference between broadcasting and conversing. Even with segments, Klaviyo campaigns simply push a message out and hope for clicks. AI Journey conversations meet customers where they are, answer their questions, and guide them to a purchase.
"We used to manually vet every message being sent when we started this program and now completely trust Gorgias to handle these conversations at scale on our behalf.”
—Greg Gorzkowski, Head of Digital and Ecommerce at One Bone
What One Bone is testing
One Bone is now exploring how RCS messaging can take conversational commerce even further. RCS (Rich Communication Services) is the next generation of SMS, transforming text messaging into an interactive shopping experience with rich media, carousels, branded messaging, clickable product cards, and real-time conversations directly inside the customer’s native messaging app.
For ecommerce brands like One Bone, RCS unlocks a more immersive and conversion-focused channel that feels closer to an in-store shopping experience than a traditional text blast. Shoppers can click quick replies, ask follow-up questions, and complete purchases directly within the conversation.
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