Campaigns - SMS

This article describes how SMS Campaigns are generated within the FORTH CRM. The following items are required to create an SMS Campaign:

• From Number – This is the phone number that will send the SMS campaign.
• A Contact List – The list of contacts that will receive messages from the SMS campaign.

1.  From the SMS tab, click Create New Campaign.
   
   The Create a Campaign window opens.
    
2. Do the following where indicated:
   • Name Your Campaign: Use a descriptive name that explains what the campaign is being used for. (Example: Payment Reminder, Welcome Message, Happy Birthday Campaign, etc.)
   • Select The Contact List(s) You'd Like To Message, by clicking within the field provided and choosing from the dropdown options.
   • When finished, click Continue.  A second "Create a Campaign" window opens. 
     
3. Do the following where indicated:
   • Select a Template message from the Choose Template dropdown menu, if desired.
     • When searching for templates, users will now only see those relevant to their position in the company hierarchy.
   • Select the From Number. This is a dropdown menu that will show the available phone numbers for your use. If you use Ytel for your SMS integration, the dropdown will show a separation of Ytel-specific numbers as shown below:
     
   • Select the Delivery Window for this message to be sent (start time and end time).
   • Enter the Message Body that will be sent. (If a Template was selected in step 3, the Message Body should already be populated - see example below).

   • When finished, click Continue.
     

     IMPORTANT
     Keep your message short so it has as few Message Segments as possible.

4. Before proceeding, review the campaign Summary to verify that the campaign is configured to your desired preferences.
5. Do one of the following:
   • Select Send Now if you want to immediately send the campaign; or
     
   • Select Schedule (see image below) if you want to send the campaign at a later time. 
     • You now have two options to choose from:
       • Click Send Once to add the date the campaign should send; or
       • Click Recurring to specify how many times you want the campaign to run and when you want it to begin. When you click on the "From" field, a pop-up appears with calendar and time selection tools.
         
6. Click Finish located at the bottom right of the page to schedule the Campaign.
    

Sharing SMS templates and campaigns between parent companies and their affiliates within a single FORTH account

The FORTH system allows you to manage affiliate settings without constantly switching between affiliate and parent company. The “shared with” dropdown for SMS templates will let you select specific companies. This allows broader sharing options and allows companies to secure their templates further. 

When a company is selected (more than one is possible), its users can see the SMS templates shared with them when scheduling a campaign or sending individual SMS messages.

We also updated the visibility of templates when creating campaigns in the SMS Tab. When searching for templates, users will now only see those relevant to their position in the company hierarchy.

Simply put, companies at higher levels of the hierarchy ARE ABLE to see all SMS campaigns of companies below them, and companies at lower levels of the hierarchy are NOT ABLE to see SMS campaigns of companies higher than them unless they are explicitly shared.

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