Send Text (Action) Follow

Action

This step sends a text message (SMS) to any contact with a valid phone number.

How to use "Send Text" Action?

This action helps reach out to your contact over the text and further automate your journeys based on their replies.

Let's drag-drop the Send Text action step on the journey's canvas.

Click on the step to configure the detailed options.

• Number Field : Select the number field to which you would like to send a text. It could be mobile, phone or any other custom field (of the type Phone / Mobile only) you have created in the system under contacts to capture the phone number.
• Select Text Template : Choose a text template which you have created inside system. 
• Select Number :  Choose one of the your numbers from the drop down menu from which you would like to send a text.
• Reply Tracking : Once you enable it, you can select the keywords. Here, if the recipient replies with that keyword or has that keyword anywhere in his/her text message it will be tracked in Salesmate.
• Click on "SAVE".

This action has multiple output ports:

• Send: This output port triggers the successful message sent.
• Failed: This output port triggers when the phone number is invalid or missing. Output port also triggers when an error status is received from the carrier while sending the text message.
• Continue: This output port triggers irrespective of the message sent status. 

If you have enabled reply tracking, then you can configure more outcome ports.

• On Reply - Any: This outcome port triggers when the contact replies to your text message.
• On Reply - ( Keyword ): There can be multiple outcome ports based on the number of reply keywords defined for this text message. The specific port triggers when the received text message has a defined keyword in it. 
• On Reply - Un Match: This outcome port triggers when you have defined reply keywords, and none of the keywords is found inside the received text message.

Use Case

Whenever a customer fills up a case study form from the website, he is tagged with "Case Study Downloaded". Now automation journey starts with that specific tag and sends a text message to the customer about booking a demo with us for a particular product. And we also send an email using the "Continue" output port to ensure that the user receives details over the email.

E.g., Do you want our Sales Rep to give you a call and explain more about our product Salesmate? Please reply with "Yes" or "No".

Now, if the contact replies with the message "Yes" then the respective output port is called and activity is assigned to the sales rep to give a call back to the customer. 

FAQs

Are replies case-sensitive?

The system ignores case sensitivity for replies. For example, "Yes" and "yes" are treated as the same. 

What happens if the contact sends multiple replies?

The system will try to match replies with defined keywords. If the reply keyword is matched, that specific port is called; otherwise, it will call the unmatched port. 

What happens if the reply has more words than the expected keyword?

It will depend on the keyword position option chosen for the action. Suppose you have defined a reply keyword as "Yes" and someone replies with "Yes, please" or "Please yes".

1. The first word of the text message (Preferred) - If you choose this option, the provided keyword should be the first word in the received text message. So this will trigger for "Yes, please" but will ignore "Please yes".
2. Found anywhere in the text message - If you choose this option, the keyword is checked anywhere inside the complete text body. This will trigger will for both "Yes, please" and "Please yes".