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Bulk SMS
Bulk SMS

Send a personalised SMS, such as a promotion, to a select group of leads and clients.

Taylor Bradfield avatar
Written by Taylor Bradfield
Updated over 3 years ago

Bulk messaging lets you send a personalised SMS, such as a promotion, to a select group of your leads and clients. The feature will walk you through each step to craft and send an engaging SMS.

When the weather turns chilly you might want to send all your clients a promotion encouraging them to join a free class during the winter months. We’ll use the groups and templates features to make writing and sending the SMS a breeze.

*Note: All bulk SMS are categorised as marketing. Learn more about transactional and marketing.

Let’s get txtin'! 📱

Create the draft

  1. Head to the Bulk Messaging page by clicking the Bulk Messaging option at the top of the page in the Marketing App.

  2. Open the SMS section by clicking the SMS option below the Bulk Email heading.

  3. Start a new message by clicking New Bulk SMS.

  4. Name the SMS, then click Create Bulk SMS. (e.g. “Winter Warmer Promo”)

You’ll be presented with a simple checklist that will guide you through preparing and sending your bulk message.

Selecting the recipients

The easiest way to select your recipients is to choose a group you’ve already created. If you haven’t created a group yet, check out our groups articles to get you started.

  1. View the audience options by clicking Set Your Audience in the checklist.

  2. View the groups by clicking Select Group.
    Alternatively, you can set your own recipient filters from the Select your filters section.

  3. Find the group by browsing the list, or search by typing the name then clicking Apply.

  4. Confirm the group by selecting it from the list.

  5. Save the audience by clicking Save Audience at the very bottom of the page.

  6. Return to the checklist by clicking the Check and Send option below the bulk message name.

Drafting the message

Make your SMS fun and to the point. With over a dozen personalisation merge fields to select from, it’s easy to make your message speak directly to each lead or client.

While you’re crafting the message you’ll get feedback about the message size and cost in the summary on the right hand side.

  1. Open the content editor by clicking Edit Content in the checklist.

  2. Write your message.

  3. When you’re done editing, save the message by clicking Update Content.

  4. Review your message using the preview just below the editor. Merge fields are personalised and links are shortened so you can see how the message will look when it’s delivered.

  5. Return to the checklist by clicking the Check and Send option below the bulk message name.

Adding personalisation merge fields

Using the recipient’s name is a great personal touch in an SMS. Names aren’t the only personalisation you can add to your message, however. GymLeads provides over a dozen merge fields including:

  • Lead name

  • Salesperson name and role

  • Latest appointment date and time

  • Club name, location and contact details (particularly handy for multi-location businesses)

  • Company details

To include a personalisation:

  1. Mark where you want to insert the merge field by placing the blinking cursor in the text as though you’re about to type something.

  2. Insert the merge field by clicking Insert Merge tag above the editor, then selecting the field you want to add.
    The field (e.g. {{lead_first_name}}) will be inserted right where your blinking cursor was placed.

Previewing the message

Your message is crafted, you’ve personalised the content and you’re happy with the cost estimate. It’s time to send yourself a preview for one final proof read.

  1. Shoot off a preview by clicking Send Preview in the checklist.

  2. Add your mobile number then click Send Preview.

  3. Check your mobile and review the preview to make sure everything looks and reads as you want.

Now is the time to make any final edits, because the next exciting step is to txt your selected leads and clients.

Scheduling the message

Your checklist is a series of big green ticks. Brilliant work – your message is ready to send.

Send the message immediately

There’s no time like the present, right? YOLO!

  1. Send your bulk message by clicking Send SMSs Now.

  2. Check that the recipient number looks right, then click I’m sure.

Your SMS will be sent momentarily and you’ll see a results page summarising the message performance.

Schedule the message for later

You may prefer to schedule your message to send when your leads and clients are most likely to read it, or at least not asleep.

  1. Schedule your bulk message by clicking Schedule a Send Time For Later.

  2. Choose a date and time for your message to send, then click Schedule Message.

You’ll see a confirmation of when the SMS will send, and how many people will receive it, and you’re given the option to change or cancel the schedule right up until the message is sent.

Reviewing the Results

Once a bulk SMS has been sent, you can review the results of the campaign.

There are a few things we can look at:

  • Results by percentages and an accompanying graph, breaking down by:

  • The original content of the message

  • Results by individual lead

  • The original audience of the message

Common Issues with Bulk SMS's

My message stopped before sending to all leads in the audience.

You may need to check you SMS Account in Settings, if you do not have enough SMS credit on your account, the message will stop sending.

My bounce rate is really high

This means that the numbers you have on file are out of date or no longer in service.

My clicked rate always says 00.0%

For GymLeads to be able to register if a lead has clicked a link contained in your SMS, it must first travel through a unique, shortened URL. GymLeads shortens your URL's automatically - you don't need to do anything - but can only do this if the address starts with an https://

If your click rate is constantly 00.0%, you may need to check that the URL you are including in your message has https:// at the beginning of it. Your leads may very well be clicking the link, but without the unique shortened URL, there is no way for us to track if they have.

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