This article discusses how to add texting numbers for your Org and how to send and receive texts from a project and from your mailroom.
Permission Required
Working in the mailroom requires access to the mailroom. If you do not see it in the main menu, you don’t have access.
Add Numbers
Filevine can generate a texting number at either the Org level or the project level. The Org-level number can be used to send and receive texts both from the Org’s mailroom and from individual projects. Numbers assigned to a project can only be used to send and receive texts from that project.
Adding at the Org Level
Org-level texting numbers can be added using the Org Phone Numbers Advanced tool.
Adding at the Project Level
Org-level numbers can be used to send texts both from the mailroom and from the individual project. However, texting numbers can also be generated for individual projects if desired. In order to generate a project number, you must have project Admin access.
To generate a project-specific texting number, open the project’s vitals and select the Details tab. At the bottom of this tab, click Add Text Numbers.
Note
If you do not see this option in the project, there are a couple possible explanations:
- Make sure you have Admin permissions for the project you’re viewing.
- Make sure at least one project contact has a mobile phone number on file in their contact card.
- Your numbers may be limited based on your SMS Registration. If so, you will need to add a new texting number via the Org Phone Numbers Advanced tool.
You will be asked to choose an area code. Select the desired area code, and click Start SMS. If numbers with this area code are not available, you can try a different area code or try again later.
Once you’ve found an available area code, the number will be assigned to the project and you will see the number next to Texting at the bottom of the vitals.
Registering Numbers
Once you have finished SMS registration, texting numbers must be registered to avoid potential message failures. For US users, any new texting numbers will automatically be registered as part of the creation process.
Texting numbers can be registered in the Org Phone Numbers tool, under the Text tab. All unregistered texting numbers will be tagged as Unregistered.
To register a number, click + Register Number next to that number. If your numbers are tagged as Unregistered and there is no option to register the number, you will need to first register the Org in the Registration tab of the Org Phone Number tool.
Users registered for the Low Volume Standard tier can register up to 400 different numbers. Once a number is registered, it cannot be unregistered except by deleting the number entirely.
Adjusting Numbers
Numbers can be unassigned from and reassigned to projects in the Org Phone Numbers Advanced tool.
The Org Phone Numbers tool can also be used to create labels for unassigned numbers, and to add or remove numbers. Users must have Admin privileges and access to this tool in order to use it.
Removing and Releasing
Numbers can be unassigned and reassigned from projects or removed entirely in the Org Phone Numbers tool. Project SMS numbers will be automatically released after six months of inactivity.
Removing an SMS Number
To remove a number, find the number in the mailroom (for unassigned numbers) or the vitals (for numbers assigned to a project) and click on it to open the Remove Texting modal. You will be asked to type out “DELETE” and then click Drop SMS.
Heads Up!
Once this number is given back, the same number cannot be assigned again, so use caution when deleting numbers. SMS numbers can also be removed in the Org Phone Numbers Advanced tool.
Archived Project SMS Numbers
A number assigned to a project will be dropped from its project when the project is archived. The SMS number will be kept as an unassigned number and can be viewed in the Org Phone Numbers Advanced tool. After three months of inactivity, it will be automatically released.
Released Numbers
Numbers assigned to a project that remain unused for six months will be automatically released.
After five months of inactivity, you will see a note on the project’s vitals and in the Org Phone Numbers Advanced tool, telling you the upcoming expiration date for the number.
Heads Up!
Once a number is released, the same number cannot be reassigned.
If you’d like to continue using the number for the project, simply use the number by sending or receiving a text from it.
Send a Text
From the Mailroom
To send a text from the mailroom, navigate to the mailroom by selecting it from the main menu. Select the desired Org from the left hand menu if necessary and then click Send Text.
In the Send Text Message modal, enter the number you will be sending to, and then enter the message. Click Send.
Once the sent message has been sent, it will appear as an item in the mailroom. Replies will appear as comments on the item. Select the item to open it and view any replies. To reply or send another text to the same number, simply add a reply to the item.
Heads Up!
All replies will be sent as text messages.
To move an item and its comments to a project, enter the name of the project in the Move to project… text box and select the project from the dropdown filter. The item can now be viewed in the Activity Feed of that project. Once it’s been moved to a project, a text item can be moved to another project, but cannot be moved back to the mailroom.
From the Project
Texts can also be sent directly from a project using either an Org number or the project’s number. Texts sent from the project can only be sent to a project contact with a text-enabled number.
To send a text from a project, go to that project’s Activity Feed and select Add new activity. In the menu along the top, click Send a Text. You will have options to select both the sender and the recipient.
If you have multiple available numbers, you will be able to choose the number you would like to send the message from. If the project has its own SMS number, the project number will be the default. If the project does not have its own SMS number, the Org number will be the default. If the Org has multiple SMS numbers assigned to it, the Org’s default number will show up first.
After you select the number to send from, select the recipient. In the “Send To” field, you can search for any project contact with an SMS number. If a contact has more than one number, select which number you’d like to send to.
Once the sender and recipient numbers have been chosen, enter your message and click Send Text.
The text will appear as an item in the project’s Activity Feed. Replies will appear as comments on the item. Select the item to open it and view any replies. To reply or send another text to the same number, you can add a reply on the item. All replies will be sent as text messages.
Incoming Texts
All incoming texts sent to an Org phone number go either to the Mailroom or to the relevant project, depending on the following:
| If the texting phone number is… | Then… |
|---|---|
| not associated with a Filevine contact | the text goes to the Mailroom |
| associated with a Filevine contact not connected to any projects | the text goes to the Mailroom |
| associated with a Filevine contact connected to only archived projects | the text goes to the Mailroom |
| associated with a Filevine contact connected to exactly one active Filevine project | the text goes to the associated project |
| associated with a Filevine contact connected to multiple active projects | generally, the text goes to the project with the most recent activity |
Note
If the number is associated with multiple contacts, the most recently created contact will be used.
When a text message is sent to a project, if there’s a texting thread that’s been active within the last 30 days, then the incoming message is added to the thread as a reply. If there is not a texting thread active in the last 30 days, then the incoming message is added as a new text activity item.
Comments
0 comments
Article is closed for comments.