What are Bulk SMSes?

What are Bulk SMSes?

Bulk SMS: What It Is & How to Send Your First Campaign

(Updated — includes prerequisites, step-by-step instructions, sample API call, and troubleshooting tips)

When & Why Use Bulk SMS

Bulk SMS lets you broadcast the same text message to thousands of opted-in recipients in seconds. Use it when you need:

Situation

Example

Time-critical alerts

“Server down in EU-West. Our team is working on it.”

One-off promotions

“Flash Sale: 30 % off until 6 PM”

Routine reminders

“Your appointment is tomorrow at 10 AM.”

High open rates (≈ 98 %) and instant delivery make SMS ideal for urgent or engagement-driven communications.

Prerequisites

  1. Opt-in proof (TCPA/GDPR compliant).
  2. Approved sender ID or dedicated short code.
  3. Sufficient SMS credits in your account.
  4. Confirm your message respects DND/quiet-hours rules for each country.
  5. For API sends, generate an API key in Settings › API Tokens.

How to Send a Bulk SMS (Web Dashboard)

  1. Log in to portal.example.com.
  2. Go to Messaging › Campaigns → New SMS Campaign.
  3. Upload or select a contact list (CSV or saved segment).
  4. Compose your message in the editor.
    Live preview counts Unicode characters & split-messages.
  5. Schedule Send Now or pick a future date/time (user time-zone aware).
  6. Click Send and watch real-time delivery reports under Analytics › SMS Logs.

<img src="screenshot_campaign_wizard.png" alt="Screenshot: SMS campaign wizard showing message editor, list selector, and schedule picker." width="680"/>

How to Send via REST API

POST /v1/messagesContent-Type: application/jsonAuthorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY{  "sender_id": "MyBrand",  "to": ["+14155550101", "+14155550123"],  "text": "Flash Sale—30% off today only!",  "schedule_at": "2025-08-02T14:00:00Z"}

Success 200

{  "campaign_id": "sms_camp_7839",  "status": "queued",  "total_recipients": 2}

Expected Results

  • Queued → Sent → Delivered (<25 s typical).
  • Drill down to per-number delivery status in Analytics › SMS Logs.

Troubleshooting

Symptom

Likely Cause

Fix

Status stuck at Submitted

Sender ID not whitelisted

Verify registration in Settings › Sender IDs

High Failed count

DND or invalid numbers

Clean list; resend to valid recipients

Message split into 2 parts

Unicode or >160 chars

Shorten text or enable concatenation

Next Steps & Escalation

<details><summary>FAQ (click to expand)</summary>

Q. How much does Bulk SMS cost?
Pricing starts at $0.006 per domestic SMS.

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