Bulk Text Messages

You can use your text-enabled tracking numbers to send bulk text messages through the CTM system. This is an easy way to quickly send a text message to a list of your customers. If you need to confirm, or enable, text messaging with your tracking numbers, you can learn more about that here. Bulk messages are available on Sales Engage, Enterprise, Performance, Growth, and Connect plans.

Watch the Bulk Messages video walkthrough.

Once you have at least one text-enabled tracking number in your account, you can create or view your bulk messages by going to Flows → Engagement Section → Bulk Messages.

Bulk Text Message Log

This page will display all past and scheduled bulk messages. If a message is scheduled for a future time, you can click Edit to make changes before it is sent. When you are editing a scheduled message, you can also click Cancel Bulk Message to cancel the scheduled message. 

View Sent Message View

If the bulk message has already been sent, you can click View to see details about the message, including the status, tracking number that sent the message, the list of recipients, the body of the message, and the send and completion times of the message.

To setup a New Bulk Message select →  New Bulk Message

Bulk Messages are used to send a text message to multiple recipients, either now or at a scheduled date and time. Recipients can be added to an upcoming bulk message automatically by using call triggers or text triggers. Messages are billed per recipient, and messages longer than 160 characters are split into multiple message segments and are billed individually.

First, you'll add a description and select the number type. Next, select the local text campaign. If you don't have a local campaign yet, please register your campaign within the Trust Center. 

Choose a number in the Number Picker:

Fill out the Message and Media and the Opt-out Prompt sections:

Add Recipients:

Recipients List 

The next step is adding your list of recipients to receive the message. You can click Manual Add to manually enter your list. Enter one number per line, including the country code (e.g., [phone]). You also have the option to upload a CSV file of your recipients. Click on Upload CSV and then select the country code to be used for all of these recipients. Click on Choose File to select and upload your CSV file. Once the file is uploaded, you will see the first entry of your list. This can help you determine if you need to toggle the option to Exclude First Row. Click the Exclude First Row checkbox if needed (e.g., CSV file uses column names or headers).

Note: If uploading a CSV file, the one required column is for the Phone Number.

To manually add numbers, enter your list of phone numbers you would like to contact. Enter one number per line, including the country code (e.g., [phone]).

Schedule the bulk message:

• If you’re scheduling for later, select the date and designated time

• You also have the option to send recurring messages for Daily, Weekly, or on the Day of the month 

Regulatory Compliance

The TCPA treats text messages like phone calls, so similar rules apply to both under the TCPA. Under TCPA, “prior express written consent” requires a written agreement, signed by the consumer, that includes at least their telephone number. The consent has to specifically authorize telemarketing with automatic dialing/texting or prerecorded voice. When it comes to non-marketing calls, a consumer generally consents to receive non-marketing communications if they have given their number for a specific purpose or in connection with a specific transaction. In general terms, the scope of the consent extends to communications related to the transaction or purpose for which consumers provided their number.

In addition, he TCPA requires that your contacts have the ability to opt-out at any time.

Note that there may be additional regulatory or industry best practice considerations depending on your use case or industry. You should consult with your legal counsel to ensure your SMS use case is compliant with all applicable laws and frameworks, including TCPA, GDPR and CTIA requirements.

For information on registering Tracking Numbers in A2P campaigns to send outbound text messages, please see our Trust Center Walkthrough.