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How to send a new SMS Text Message
How to send a new SMS Text Message

How to send a new one time scheduled SMS text message

Caleb Miller avatar
Written by Caleb Miller
Updated over a week ago

Texting is a super powerful way to reach people. SMS (Text) messages are read and responded to faster than any other communication method. Text In Church allows you to quickly send a text message to individuals or groups. You can also schedule these messages in advance, saving you time and eliminating the possibility of forgetting to do it in “real-time.”

Getting Started:

  • Sign in to Text In Church and click on the Messages Section

  • Click "Create New Message"

  • Select “Text Message” for the type of Message

(Optional) Create a title for your Text Message. NOTE: This title will only be visible in your account and can be helpful for finding sent or pending messages later.

  • Select Begin to move into the message builder

Step 1: Send text message to?

Choose who should get the text message (you can opt to send to Group(s) or specific people.

  • Click in the search bar to view a drop-down menu of Groups and People or type in the search bar to quickly find a Group or Person

Click the name of a Group or Person to add them as recipients of this message

  • Click the “x” next to a name to remove them from this message

  • Select the check-box by “Send to all contacts” to have your message sent to all opted-in People Records

Click Next to move on to the next step. Don’t worry, if you need to make changes before sending, you can click back on that step to edit it.

Step 2: Create Your Message

Click inside the box to begin composing what your message will say.

  • Click any of the Variables to insert a special code to pull a person's first name and/or other details from their people record to personalize the message.

  • Click Links to add the link to a Connection Card, Connect Page, or a shortened Link from your Text In Church account.

    Attaching Media​

    You can also attach media such as images to texts however, we'd recommend doing it only if the image really adds to the message at hand.

    You can add an image to your SMS (text) message. In the Create your Text Message step, click on "Add Media". Please note that you can only attach an image, not a file or other attachment.

    Important Notes:

    • Smaller images work best as it is less data to be transferred via message. We suggest messages of 500 kb or less.

    • .JPG or .JPEG is the recommended file type to attach to a Text Message, though you can still attach .PNG and .PDF file types to Text Messages, some recipient's devices may not accept these, so it's best to use .JPG or .JPEG files.

    Also note, attaching a photo to your text message can make the delivery rate lower. Cell phone providers reserve the right to not deliver text messages whenever they choose to and don't have to report that they failed to deliver. Read Text In Church's Solution to Cell Phone Carrier Filtering. For maximum delivery rate, don't include photos. An option would be to do a follow-up email with a photo if needed.

Click Next to move to the next step. If you need to make changes before sending, you can click on that step to return to it.

Step 3: Send From What Phone Number?

Click Edit to choose how you would like to send your message, either by one of your local 10-digit numbers.

You can send links and attachments through your 10-digit local number.

Learn more about using multiple phone numbers here!

Step 4: Schedule or Send Now

Click “Send Now” to send your message immediately to your recipients.

Click “Schedule” to select a specific date and time in the future to send your message.

Once scheduled, your message can be found in the Pending tab of the Messages section. You can make changes or cancel the pending message from here.

Step 5: Confirm Sending Selection

Click Confirm to finalize the process and return to the Messages section of your account

Learn More About Sending Messages

Another approach to sending to an individual is under their person record. This will show all message history with this person and allow you to send an SMS/text message to them.

This article can walk you through scheduling and sending emails through Text In Church.

Learn more about the mobile app for easy messaging on the go!

To learn about automated messaging to follow-up with your people, check out articles on our Automated Workflows.

Learn how many characters to send in each message and how each message is counted towards your monthly allotment.

Over your monthly text message allotment? Click here for more information on your options.


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