SMS Messaging

Brightpearl uses Clickatell to send SMS messages - you'll need to sign up for an account with them to buy credits.

We use the Clickatell Gateway product, onto which you can add extra services not related to the Brightpearl integration.

Setting Up

1. Register for an account with Clickatell.

2. Create an API connection ID

1. From the API login screen, click Create a new connection.
2. Choose HTTP/S.
3. Don't tick any of the options.
4. Click Submit and get API.
5. Copy the details into Brightpearl admin at Setup > Integration > Clickatell SMS.

You'll also need to buy some credits to get the system up and running. You do get 10 credits free from Clickatell to test, but you can't send custom messages until you've bought real credits.

Adding a Sender ID

Until you get an approved "sender ID", the name you set in your Brightpearl admin won't be seen as the sender on text messages. You need to get this name approved using the Clickatell control panel:

1. Click the My settings tab.
2. Click Manager sender IDs from the left menu.
3. Click the Add sender ID link.
4. Choose a sender ID - this must match the "from name" in your Brightpearl admin exactly.
5. Click Submit.
6. Add a reason.
7. Wait for Clickatell to approve!

Setting up SMS Templates

You can create some templates to drop into SMS send windows to save time:

1. Go to Setup > Templates > SMS templates.
2. Click Add a new template.
3. Click Save.

You can use "merge fields" in your SMS templates, so that they are personalised and also relevant to the message. Fields available are:

#name# - Full name
#fname# - First name
#lname# - Last name
#order# - Order reference (only when sending SMS from the order list reports)
#invoice# - Invoice reference (only when sending SMS from invoice list reports)
#salu# - Salutation of the contact, eg "Mr"
#user# - Full name of the user sending the message

Example SMS Templates

Credit chasing:

Dear #salu# #lname#,
Your invoice #invoice# is now overdue. Please ensure that your account is cleared as soon as possible. Thanks, #user#

Send an SMS when updating orders to "shipped":

Hello #fname#! This is just a quick message to let you know that your order has now shipped. Thank you for shopping with us!

Offer notification:

Hello #fname# - limited offer at www.mystore.com - 10% off using discount code 7634JGH

Sending SMS Messages

There are a number of ways to send an SMS:

• To a single contact from the contact record.
• To a contact on an order; click the Send SMS link next the mobile number in the Addresses tab.
• To a batch of contacts from the contact list screen.
• To a batch of contacts from various sales and accounting reports.

SMS sending will use up your Clickatell credits depending on the customer location. Since Brightpearl supports international SMS messaging, it's important to make sure that the contact has the correct country set, and that country has the correct dialling code. Go to Setup > Localisation > Countries to create countries.

If you've opened the SMS send window from the order edit screen, you can use any of the Customer, Billing or Delivery addresses as the message template; very handy for notifying contractors of site addresses - plus many other uses we're sure!

Clickatell will allow you to send messages in batches of up to 100 with a daily limit (24 hour period) of 5000 and a monthly limit of 10,000. Use can read more in the Clickatell help guides available on their website.

SMS log

You can see a record of all SMS messages sent by selecting the SMS Log Report from Reports > More > SMS Log.

Return (Two Way) SMS Messaging

Clickatell support inbound messages too, so that you can receive replies to the SMS messages you send out. Have a look at the Clickatell website for more info.