To understand the different types of Appointment Reminders review the Appointment Reminder Overview.
BEFORE YOU BEGIN:
To successfully register with our text messaging service the following must be in the Location Address in the Organization Settings Profile:
NOTE: you will receive an email notification if your SMS registration is unsuccessful.
- City
- State/Province: Only a two-character state code can be used (e.g., SC for South Carolina). The full name of the state cannot be entered into this field.
- Zip/Postal Code: Use only a 5-digit zip code (e.g., 12345) or a zip+4 can be used as long as a hyphen is inserted before the last 4 digits (e.g., 12345-6789). There can be no spaces before or after the hyphen.
- Address: The street address for your location cannot be a PO Box.
- Tax ID Number
- Tax ID (EIN)
- Tax ID Type (such as SSN, EIN, etc.; this is a dropdown option)
- Business Type (such as sole proprietorship, partnership, LLC, etc.; this is a dropdown option)
- Company Type (private, public or non-profit; this is a dropdown option)
- Stock Exchange (Required only if company type is public)
- Stock Exchange Symbol (Required only if company type is public)
For additional information see New Requirements for SMS Text Reminders - FAQ
Appointment Reminder Settings
You will set Appointment Reminder Settings once and will apply to all Reminders. If you have already done this, skip to the next section.
- Click Organization tab in primary navigation bar.
- Click Appointment Reminders in side menu.
- Enter your Organization Name as you would like it displayed (or said) in your Reminders.
- Set your Reminders Schedule.
NOTE: You have the ability to select multiple reminder schedules so your clients can receive more than one message about upcoming appointments. Additional reminders will be sent even if the appointment is confirmed, but no additional reminders will be sent if the appointment is canceled.
- Enter a Callback Number for Reschedules. This is typically your office number.
- Click Save.
Text Message Reminders
Text Reminders are $0.07 per text message in the United States per 160 characters (includes spaces).
IMPORTANT: $0.07 is charged for both reminders sent to clients, AND their responses back to you.
- 0 - 160 Characters = 1 Text Message ($0.07)
- 161 - 320 Characters = 2 Text Messages ($0.14)
- 321 - 480 Characters = 3 Text Messages ($0.21), etc.
To setup text reminders:
- Click Text tab.
- Click Activate Text Reminder Service box.
- Enter Area Code to generate your Unique Reminder Phone Number.
NOTE: You cannot select the Reminder Phone Number, but you can select the area code.
- Edit Reminder Message in the Editor and see Preview on right.
- Placeholders will pull Appointment or Client information into the Reminder. Click appropriate Placeholder to add it to your message.
- Select when you would like the phone reminders to go out each day.
NOTE: The time entered will match the appointment location time zone.
- Click Activate and Reserve My Number. The Text tab will say On indicating that Text Reminders are active.
NOTE: Complete this step when you set up your text reminders.
- Click Save. You will receive confirmation and a reminder there is a short (usually within 24 hours) approval wait time, similar to the following:
"Thank you for requesting text reminders to be enabled for your account.
There is a short approval process and you will be automatically notified when approved. Information on how to use text reminders can be found here."
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