Walkthrough 4 of 5

Twilio

Twilio is one of the two phone companies the app texts through (the other is RingCentral; you need one, not both). It carries the on-the-way message, the quote link and the reply a client sends back. You buy a number from Twilio, prove to the US carriers that you are a real business, and paste two codes into the app. The app sets up the rest.

What it is
A texting and calling service for businesses. You get a phone number and pay per message.
Cost
At the time of writing about $1.15 a month for the number and under a cent per text segment, so a few dollars a month for most rental companies. US business texting also needs a one-time carrier registration of roughly $20 and a small monthly campaign fee (a few dollars).
Time
30 minutes of clicking. The carrier registration (called A2P 10DLC) is reviewed by people and can take from a day to a few weeks. Until it is approved, texts to US numbers may be refused or filtered, so start this early.
You will write down
The Account SID (starts with AC) and the Auth Token. Optionally a Messaging Service SID (starts with MG).

Part A: the account

  1. Open twilio.com, press Sign up, use the company email, and confirm it. Twilio asks a few questions (what you are building, how you will use it): answer "customer notifications", "SMS", "with code".
  2. Twilio starts you on a trial that can only text numbers you verify. Press Upgrade at the top and add a card and the company address. Put in $20 to start; it is used up slowly.
  3. On the console home page (Account Info box) you can see the Account SID and, behind an eye icon, the Auth Token. Leave this page open.

Part B: a phone number

  1. Left menu: Phone Numbers, Manage, Buy a number. Country United States, tick SMS and Voice, type your area code, press Search, and Buy one you like. That is the number clients will see.
  2. That is all on Twilio's side for the number. You do not type any webhook address: the app points the number (or its Messaging Service) at itself when you pick it in Part D, and puts back what was there if you ever disconnect.

Part C: carrier registration (US only, but required)

  1. Left menu: Messaging, Regulatory Compliance (it may be under Trust Hub). Press Register for A2P 10DLC.
  2. Business profile: your legal company name, EIN (tax ID), address, website, and a contact. Use what is on your tax paperwork exactly; mismatches are the usual reason for rejection.
  3. Brand: choose Low-volume standard (fine for under 6,000 texts a day). Pay the one-time fee. Twilio checks the EIN with the carriers, usually within a day.
  4. Campaign: use case Customer care or Mixed. Description: "Delivery and pickup notifications, quote links and replies for an event rental company". Sample messages: paste two texts the app sends, for example "Hi Jordan, your tent delivery is on its way, arriving between 9 and 2. Reply here with any questions." Say that clients opt in by giving their number when they book, and that replying STOP ends messages. Tick that the messages contain links. Submit. Review takes from a day to a few weeks.
  5. When the campaign is approved, go back to the number, press Add to campaign (or open the Messaging Service it made and add the number to its sender pool).

Part D: into the app

  1. In the app, Settings, System, Connections, Phone, the Twilio card. Paste the Account SID and, after pressing the eye on Twilio's page, the Auth Token. Press Check and save. The app checks both with Twilio before it keeps them.
  2. Under Pick the number texts go from, choose the number and press Use this number. The list shows every number on the account and the Messaging Service each one belongs to; a number in a service sends through the service, with its registration and its STOP handling.
  3. Read the Registration line under the number. The app asks Twilio for the campaign or toll-free verification status and says it in words. Until it says approved, carriers may block your texts. The app never files the registration for you: that stays with you, in Twilio, as in Part C.
  4. Optional: switch on Log calls on the client's record (and Recordings, if you record calls in Twilio) so calls on that number land on the client's record.
  5. Press Send me a test text. It goes to the phone on your own profile. Until Client messaging is switched on, the app refuses to text anyone who is not on the team or a test contact, so nothing reaches a client by accident.

Done when: the card shows your number, the registration line says approved, and the test text arrives on your phone.

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