Using the Group SMS Assistant

Overview

The Group SMS Assistant is used to send SMSs in batches without code development. The Group SMS Assistant cannot be used to send verification code SMSs.

You can use the Group SMS Assistant to create a scheduled task, enabling the system to send SMSs at a scheduled time within one month. The scheduled task can be canceled. However, the Group SMS Assistant does not support sending SMSs periodically.

Prerequisites

You have created an SMS application.
You have an approved and activated SMS template that does not contain variables and is not of the verification code type.
Applications and templates are associated.

Notes

The Group SMS Assistant cannot be used to send verification code SMSs. The system charges the SMS that has been sent based on the SMS service type. For details, see Billing Mode.
For details about the browsers supported by the Message & SMS console, see Which Browsers Are Supported?.

Submitting a Send Task

Set the parameters.

Parameter	Description
Task Name	Set this parameter based on the service requirements and SMS type, for example, EuropeanSMS_ServiceNotification_01.
SMS Application	Configure as needed. The SMS Application setting determines values available in the SMS Template drop-down lists.
SMS Template	Select an SMS template that is associated with the SMS application and does not contain template variables.
Recipient Number File	Click Download Sample File to download the example file. Add recipient numbers to the file as instructed, and upload the file. NOTE: An XLSX file can contain a maximum of 50,000 mobile numbers, and the file name can contain only letters and digits. To prevent numbers from being displayed abnormally, set cells to the text format, or copy the sample cells, paste and modify them. All recipient numbers to which SMSs are sent must be in the +{CC}{NDC}{SN} format, for example, +440200000000 (a Gabon number). {CC} indicates the country code. {NDC} indicates the region code. If the called number is a mobile number, {NDC} is optional. {SN} indicates the recipient number.
Schedule SMS Sending	(Optional) Select Yes if you want to send SMSs at a scheduled time.
SMS Sent	This parameter specifies the date and time when an SMS is sent. Set this parameter only when Schedule SMS Sending is set to Yes. You are advised to send scheduled SMSs between 08:00 and 21:00 every day. Sending messages at other time may incur user complaints.

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Click OK.

The system checks the imported recipient numbers as follows:

Check Item	Matching Rule	Solution	Example
Number normalization	The number consists of 11 digits and starts with 1.	Prefix the number with +86.	131**5678 -> +44131**5678
	The number consists of 13 digits and starts with 44.	Prefix the number with +.	44131**5678 -> +44131**5678
	The number consists of neither 11 nor 13 digits and does not start with +.	The system considers them invalid, deletes them from the number list, and records the quantity of such numbers.	231**5678 -> Delete 131567 -> Delete 123456789 -> Delete 44131**567 -> Delete
Number deduplication	Check whether duplicate numbers exist after number normalization.	Delete deduplicate numbers and record the quantity of such numbers.	Only one duplicate number is reserved.

If the message "Submission request failed. The recipient number file includes invalid phone numbers" is displayed, check the recipient number file, enter valid numbers, and upload it again.
If a message "X phone number(s) imported. Redundant and invalid numbers have been deleted. You will not be charged for the Y message(s) deleted." is displayed, check the recipient number file for whether invalid numbers exist, create a task again for modified numbers.

After the sending task is submitted successfully, click View in the Operation column of the task to view the sending result. The sending result is displayed in about 3 minutes. To view the real-time result, refresh the page.

After the sending task is submitted successfully, click Copy in the Operation column of the task to create a task with the same configuration. The imported recipient number file is not copied. You need to import the file again. In this way, you can quickly create a sending task.

Viewing Task Details

Log in to the Message & SMS console, choose Group SMS Assistant > Task Management, and filter tasks by task name and status. Click View in the Operation column of the task. The task details page is displayed.

Filter sending details by recipient number and sending result to view sending details of specific numbers.

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"√" indicates that the operation is supported, and "-" indicates that the operation is not supported.

Status	Operation (View Details)	Operation (Cancel Task)	Operation (Delete Task)	Description
Pending	√	√	-	Click Cancel Task to cancel a scheduled task to be executed. Cancel a scheduled task at least 5 minutes before the scheduled SMS sending time. The task cannot be canceled if it is about to be executed within 5 minutes. If a scheduled task is not executed within 24 hours, it is automatically canceled.
Canceled	√	-	√	Click Delete Task to remove a canceled task from the system. To resend the SMS, submit the sending task again.
Executing	√	-	-	The sending task is being processed. Some recipient numbers do not return the SMS status in time due to errors (such as mobile phone power-off/suspension, poor signal, and unallocated number). Click View Details, select the number whose Send Result is Sending, and dial the number to check whether the mobile phone is in normal state.
Completed	√	-	-	The sending task is processed, and the SMS status reports of all recipient numbers are returned.

View information about sending SMSs, such as number quantity, receipt time, SMS ID, and sending result.
- A long SMS will be segmented to multiple records with the same SMS ID. For details about how an SMS is segmented, see SMS Sending Rules.
- Click Download Failed Number File to obtain a file containing all numbers to which SMSs fail to be sent. Only the numbers whose sending tasks fail in the latest three days can be exported. Such numbers before three days cannot be exported.
- If Send Result is Sending, the SMS gateway does not send a sending status report. Wait for a period of time and check the sending status again. For details, see Why Send Result Is Displayed as Unknown or the SMS Is Received After a Long Time?
- If Send Result is Failed, click SMS status error codes to query the error based on the status code.