Create SMS Campaigns

Create SMS campaigns

SMS campaigns use text messages for running promotional campaigns. These campaigns are more personal than email campaigns because they act as direct and immediate channels for communication. They increase open rates and drive more engagement by reaching your audience at their fingertips.
Using Zoho Marketing Automation, you can design and run SMS campaigns to target your contacts on the move. You can inform your contacts about your products and services, deliver updates and notifications, or attract them with charming offers sent to their mobile devices.
Points to remember :
1. A contact’s mobile number should be saved to send them an SMS campaign.
2. We only support promotional SMS types for now.
3. Non GSM characters are allowed in the message.

Create SMS campaign

Choose a SMS gateway

  1. Select Marketing Campaigns and go to SMS .
    Select SMS campaign
  2. Click Create campaign .
    Create SMS campaign
  3. Name  your campaign and choose the gateway you want. If you opt for a third-party gateway, you have to sign up with them, buy sufficient credits, and integrate those third-party applications with Zoho Marketing Automation to start sending SMS messages.
  4. Click Save and proceed . Choose SMS campaign gateway

Add recipients

  1. Under the To section, click Add Contacts in the screen that appears after clicking Save and proceed .
    Add contacts
  2. Select contacts from any of the following options:
    1. Lists : Contacts in the lists will be added as recipients.
    2. Segments : Contacts in the segments will be added as recipients.
    3. Tags : Contacts associated with the tags will be added as recipients.
    4. Custom : You can define your own criteria and add leads that fulfill the criteria as recipients. Configure contacts
  3. You can also Exclude contacts by setting various criteria to filter them out.
    Exclude leads

Configure campaign content 

  1. Click on Create content in the SMS campaign configuration page.
    Add content
  2. Enter the message you want to send.
  3. You can use meta tags to customize your message for each of your contacts by clicking the  Personalize button.
  4. Enable the Unsubscribe link button if you want to add an unsubscribe link to your message.
  5. Click Save.
    Configure SMS content
Notes :
  1. If your message contains more than 160 characters, it will be split into multiple messages of 70 characters each.
  2. You can include only one link in the message. Link clicks (except the unsubscribe link clicks) can be tracked and assigned with a response action. Only unique clicks will be tracked.
  3. Any SMS message that includes non-GSM characters will be separated into Unicode messages of 70 characters or less.

Send test SMS

  1. Once you are done configuring the SMS content, click Test SMS in the SMS configuration page.
  2. Add and choose the numbers you want to send a test SMS to.
  3. Click Send .
    Send test SMS
Info : Reports will not be generated for test SMS messages.

Configure a response action

  1. Click on Set Response Action in the SMS campaign configuration page.
    Response action
  2. Choose the Response  for which you want to configure the follow-up action.
    1. Delivered : The number of SMS campaigns delivered.
    2. Clicked : The number of unique link clicks (excluding the unsubscribe link)
  3. Choose the Activity to be done when your contacts perform the chosen response.
  4. Click Save.
    Configure response action

Schedule SMS campaigns

  1. After completing the configuration, click Launch to schedule and send the campaign.
  2. You can choose from two scheduling options:
    1. Send immediately : The campaign will be sent as soon as the launch button is clicked.
    2. Send later : Schedule the date and time for launching the campaign. You can also set the time zone of the recipient.
  3. Click Launch .