Step-by-Step Guide for Bulk SMS in Salesforce

Oksana Mikhalchuk2024-08-15

Estimated reading time: 14 minutes

With the highest open rate among all communication channels, SMS is a powerful channel for engaging with customers who use text messaging daily. SMS marketing leverages people's trust in their phones, offering direct, personal marketing. Despite the effectiveness of SMS marketing, it's often overlooked. 

By choosing the proper method and tool, you can ensure efficient and effective communication with your customers. This article will review the main ways of sending bulk SMS in Salesforce, its pros and cons, and resource extensiveness for your business.

Key Considerations for Using Bulk SMS Functionality in Salesforce

Here are some key reasons for SMBs and larger businesses to consider upgrading to bulk SMS sending and why:

• Personalized communication
  Bulk SMS allows companies to segment their customer base better and send highly customized messages tailored to customer data and preferences stored within Salesforce. This can increase customer engagement by delivering relevant content.

• Integrated сustomer journey
  Leveraging Salesforce's robust CRM capabilities, SMS can be seamlessly incorporated into multi-channel marketing campaigns. This integration ensures that SMS complements other channels like email and social media, creating a cohesive and unified customer journey.

• Time-sensitive communications
  Bulk SMS is ideal for time-sensitive communications, such as delivery updates, appointment reminders, emergency notifications, event attendance, or other desired actions from customers.

• Cost-effective marketing
  The relatively low cost per message and high engagement rates make it a valuable marketing channel for businesses of all sizes.

• Detailed analytics and reporting
  Salesforce SMS services offer comprehensive analytics and reporting features. Businesses can track delivery, engagement, and conversion rates, which helps refine messaging strategies and optimize ROI.

• High open rates
  According to Gartner, SMS messages generally have higher open rates than emails. Most recipients read text messages within minutes of receipt, making SMS an effective channel for time-sensitive updates that require immediate attention.

• Traditional payment model for SMS
  Pay after usage and only for what you use. This is more cost-efficient due to a lower price per message and no need for a mobile studio.

• European vendor with the best routes and direct connections
  Ensures reliable and efficient delivery in your markets, enhancing the effectiveness of your SMS campaigns.

How do you use this valuable channel to ensure your message reaches your clients directly?

Top 2 Ways to Bulk Send SMS in Salesforce

Salesforce does not have a native bulk SMS-sending feature, but it supports integrations with various third-party applications that provide this functionality. These integrations allow businesses to send SMS directly from Salesforce, leveraging its CRM capabilities to target the right audience with the right messages.

Simply integrate an add-on in order to send SMS messages from your core Salesforce database.

When choosing an SMS tool for Salesforce, consider these key questions:

1. What functions does the tool offer?
   Ensure it can schedule texts, provide analytics, and manage contacts effectively.

2. How simple is it to integrate?
   Check if it fits smoothly into your existing infrastructure with minimal disruption.

3. How easy is it to use?
   Evaluate its intuitiveness for current and future employees and its ability to integrate with your contact database.

Let's review all the available options.

1. AppExchange Third-party Apps

Enabling and configuring Bulk SMS in Salesforce requires effort, expertise, and experience with Salesforce products if you’re doing it with in-house resources. There are many variables, multiple requirements to consider, addons to install and configure, and even coding involved in creating a personalized bulk SMS activity. 

Time can be saved more efficiently with tools that already configure bulk SMS sending for you. 

To send SMS in Salesforce in bulk, you can utilize pre-built applications from AppExchange, such as LINK Mobility, ValueText, or Mogli. These apps offer advanced features, quick implementation, and dedicated support teams, making them ideal for businesses seeking hassle-free and fast integration.

For instance, LINK Mobility helps companies engage in meaningful conversations with their audience across multiple channels, including SMS, WhatsApp Business, Viber, Email, and more. The messages include mobile communications for notifications, marketing, promotions, and customer care. Using their simple-to-integrate SMS API, you may start sending SMS right away.

LINK Mobility offers an SMS messaging solution that natively integrates with Salesforce. It enables organizations to integrate SMS communications into their existing systems and applications to craft compelling mobile campaigns directly within Salesforce by a simple drag-and-drop.

You can also utilize a landing page designer that supports multiple rich elements - text, images, barcodes, CTA buttons, scratchcards - all customizable to reinforce your brand identity. 

The enterprise-grade SMS platform supports many use cases, from critical alerts and two-factor authentication to personalized marketing campaigns and advanced customer care.

Key benefits of LINK Mobility's SMS integration for Salesforce include:

Compared to manual configuration, opting for a native Salesforce application saves you a lot of time spent figuring it out.

2. Custom API Integration

You can also create a custom Salesforce application to connect with an SMS service provider using the Salesforce API. Custom Salesforce implies that you have as much technological freedom in building your bulk SMS sender as long as Salesforce capabilities allow it, and you can include features specific to your business, such as merge fields and criteria-based bulk SMS messaging.

While this option offers almost unlimited possibilities in terms of customization, the development and setup might be more resource-demanding and take longer than just enabling a feature. That's where Salesforce development and configuration services from certified Consulting Partners can be a viable option - especially if you want your SMS campaigns to be multi-level, highly personalized, and triggered by multiple events.

"As businesses increasingly rely on SMS messaging to engage with their customers, it is essential to approach any Salesforce SMS integration tool with the right expertise. Salesforce provides a robust platform, but making its workflows perform in your business’s favor requires a deep understanding of its capabilities and best practices.

At Twistellar, we understand the twists and turns of leveraging Salesforce to ensure seamless, personalized, and effective communication. Our extensive experience in Salesforce implementation and configuration allows us to help businesses maximize their SMS marketing strategies, driving higher engagement and better results,”

Serge Koczanowski
CTO at Twistellar, LINK Mobility’s official implementation Partner for SMS integration in Salesforce. 

However, there are a few considerations and limitations of the Distributed Marketing feature you have to сomply with first: 

MobileConnect requires obtaining customer consent, providing opt-out instructions, and selecting between short and long codes. Messages should ideally be 160 characters to avoid message segmentation.

• Distributed Marketing supports GSM characters only. It doesn’t prevent users from entering non-GSM characters, which may result in sending up to three messages.

• Customers must manage SMS opt-ins outside the Distributed Marketing application through email, mobile, or web opt-in templates. The documentation recommends consulting independent legal counsel for guidance on applicable legal and industry requirements for managing opt-in.

• The Mobile Messaging Product Special Terms (PST) apply to any SMS messages sent through Distributed Marketing.

• The Marketing Cloud Engagement system user requires the Content Builder: Assets > Subscriber Preview permission to send SMS messages.

• Distributed Marketing is subject to Salesforce governor limits as a managed package.

• The documentation recommends limiting messages per campaign per minute to 500 to avoid issues with custom rollup summary fields and record locking.

• If you anticipate sending more than 10,000 messages per minute or 600,000 per hour, it's recommended to contact your account team to ensure your account is provisioned for that level of volume.

• Engagement tracking for sent SMS messages isn’t available in CRM via Distributed Marketing or Marketing Cloud Connect. However, logs are available for messages sent using Quick Send from Opportunity and Quick Send from Case workflows.

• Please note that Distributed Marketing doesn’t show users' blockout windows, so it won't be sent during a blockout window.

Based on the journey you want to create, you can add other activities such as waits, decision splits, emails, etc. Decide if contacts can enter the journey multiple times, once, or re-enter after exiting.

Following these steps, you can effectively set up and manage SMS sends within Salesforce Distributed Marketing. For further details, consult the Salesforce documentation.

Compared to manual configuration, opting for a native Salesforce application saves you a lot of time spent figuring it out.

To Wrap Up

Whether you're considering native solutions or third-party apps to send SMS in Salesforce in bulk, choosing the right tool for precisely your business needs is crucial for effective communication.

But it’s not enough to just purchase software - you have to configure and maintain it to keep up with communication standards and your audience's demands.

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