How to send SMS through Manychat

Sending SMS through Manychat offers a powerful way to engage with your audience directly through text messaging. This guide will walk you through the process of building SMS automation, ensuring seamless communication with your contacts. Whether you're looking to send promotional messages, reminders, or personalized updates, this article will help you maximize the potential of SMS marketing by integrating it smoothly into your existing Manychat workflows.

How to build SMS automation

Once you've enabled the SMS channel and connected your Twilio account to Manychat, you can start building an SMS automation. For this, go to the Automation tab > New automation. Choose SMS from the list of first steps. SMS Message is a type of node that can be accessed from the "Add Step" menu:

Known limitations

The SMS Message node operates similarly to other Manychat nodes but with some key differences:

• Linking steps: You can create links to other steps by clicking the Link to another step button and selecting the desired block.
• Character limit: While a single Text Block in Manychat can hold up to 480 characters, SMS messages themselves are limited to 160 characters. Consequently, if you send a message with 480 characters, it will be split into multiple SMS messages and charged accordingly. For instance, a 480-character SMS will be counted and billed as three separate messages.
  • When using emojis, the character limit per SMS message is reduced from 160 to 70 characters. This is due to the way emojis are encoded. For more information on this, please refer to this Quora post.

How to send SMS broadcast

You can send bulk SMS messages to your contacts who have opted in by using the SMS feature in Manychat. To start a new SMS broadcast, you need to go to the Broadcasting section of Manychat, click the New Broadcast button, and select the SMS channel:

💡 Learn more about broadcasting in the following article: Broadcasting Content.

What can affect SMS delivery?  

When crafting SMS content, be mindful of these potential "red flags" to avoid having your messages marked as spam:

• Excessive use of capital letters: Using all caps can come across as shouting.
• Overuse of emoticons: While emoticons can add personality, too many may seem unprofessional.
• Excessive exclamation marks and informal language: Avoid phrases like “hey,” “pssst,” or “yooo,” and limit the use of exclamation marks.
• Mentioning prices: Be cautious when including specific prices.
• Spam trigger words: Words like “free,” “won,” “now,” “only,” and “sale” can trigger spam filters.
• URL shorteners: Links processed through URL shorteners can raise red flags.

Additionally, be aware that keywords such as "YES" and "START" will be processed by Twilio automation, not Manychat automation. These keywords will serve as opt-in confirmations and make subscribers eligible to receive your SMS messages if they have not already opted in.

Similarly, keywords like "STOP," "UNSTOP," "UNSUBSCRIBE," and "CANCEL" will opt the contact out of receiving SMS messages. Therefore, you won't be able to send automated SMS to those individuals, regardless of how SMS keywords are set up in Manychat.

Used appropriately, these elements can enhance your click-through rate (CTR), but misuse can negatively impact your deliverability.

Examples of texts at risk of being marked as spam

• "Get a FREE box NOW with any purchase of another box. ONLY TODAY ??? Click the link below to add to cart. [Shortened URL]"

• "Hey %%first_name%%, YOU WON!!!!! Click here to claim your FREE t-shirt [Shortened URL]"

• "Yoooo bro, GREAT BURGERs and TASTY COFFEE ??? If you wanna learn more, simply click the link below. See you SUNDAY!!!!! HURRY UP and get a $10 coupon for BURGER BAR [Shortened URL]"

SMS prices

Twilio handles the cost of sending SMS messages, not Manychat. To find out how much you'll be charged, check Twilio’s pricing page or contact their support team. They’ll give you all the details you need about rates and any additional fees.

SMS statistics

You can see the statistics right in the SMS block for a specific SMS automation: the numbers of sent, delivered, and clicked messages: