Characteristics of SMS
SMS is a channel with many characteristics that should be kept in mind.
Number of SMS Messages
Each group has a set number of SMS messages; by default, this is 1. It will not be possible to exceed this limit without changing the configuration. Please notethat any changes made at the group level also apply to non-routed campaigns.
UTF-8 Support - Special Characters
SMS messages can be sent using two types of encoding: UTF-8 and IA5.
Here is an example of UTF-8 characters: ç ê ¡ ¢ £ ¤ ¥ ¦ § ¨ © ª « ¬ ®. An SMS containing special characters will have a lower maximum character count than one that does not contain them.
Several scenarios are possible:
- UTF-8 enabled, SMS content without special characters—the limit is 160 characters;
- UTF-8 option enabled, SMS content with special characters; the limit is 70 characters;
- UTF-8 option disabled; special characters are replaced with their equivalents; the limit is 160 characters.
It is important to note that the SMS content takes precedence over everything else; that is, if the UTF-8 option is enabled and the content does not contain any special characters. Any personalization containing special characters from the target will be replaced with an equivalent because the message will be sent using the SMS content configuration (excluding personalization). It is therefore important to test the rendering using the proof, especially if the SMS includes personalization.
The supported characters are those from:
- the IA5 table; each counts as 1 character:
-
the extended IA5 table, they count as 2 characters:
Replacement of Special Characters
When UTF-8 is not enabled at the time of sending, certain special characters in the SMS content are replaced by their non-special versions:
SMS Length
The maximum number of characters that can be included in an SMS message therefore depends on the number of SMS messages configured and the type of characters used.
Please note that the characters counted include the word “STOP” and any personalized text. It will always be the word “STOP” and the longest personalized text that are taken into account when calculating the size of an SMS.
- If UTF-8 is enabled, and the SMS content contains special characters, then:
- 1 SMS = 70 characters,
- 2 SMS messages = 126 (63 x 2),
- n SMS = 63 x n.
- If UTF-8 is not enabled, or the content contains no special characters, then:
- 1 SMS = 160 characters,
- 2 SMS messages = 306 characters (153 x 2),
- n SMS = 153 x n.
Concatenated text messages are limited to 153 x n characters. The 7-character difference corresponds to a character string that will link the two, three, or n text messages to concatenate into a single SMS. The recipient will, of course, not see this character string but will instead see a long message displayed.
Customization Details
The character count always uses the case with the most characters. Whether for standard customization or dynamic customization the longest case will be taken into account and added to the character count.
More details on customization in the section How do you create dynamic personalization in an SMS?
If the SMS includes personalization, you can limit the number of SMS messages to be sent when scheduling. If the maximum SMS size is less than the limit set by the group, the user will be able to limit the number of SMS messages to be sent when scheduling.
Banner limiting SMS length
This feature applies only to messages sent via a targeting process, as the length of a personalization field may vary between the time the test was performed and the time the target is calculated for routing.
When using a short URL, if the full URL contains personalization parameters, the personalization values are automatically encoded.
OADC
The OADC corresponds to the sender that will be displayed when the SMS is received, and will therefore replace the sender’s number (example: BRAND NAME instead of 36001)
You can configure one or more OADCs per group. The length cannot exceed 11 characters. To activate a new OADC, you must submit a request to the support team.
Special characters are not allowed in the OADC: accented characters, spaces, punctuation marks, and non-Latin alphabets.
Warnings and Their Meanings
Warnings are preventive measures. A warning does not necessarily mean that the feature will not work.
The following warnings may potentially appear when saving an SMS:
- When creating content : If UTF-8 is enabled, a persistent warning is displayed on the Content tab indicating that special characters are replaced with their equivalents (for example, an “ê” will be replaced by an “e”);
Characters are replaced with their equivalents
- Upon content validation: If UTF-8 is disabled and the SMS content contains special characters or personalization fields, a warning will inform the user that the special characters are being replaced with their equivalents (for example, an “ê” will be replaced by an “e”);
Precautions when UTF-8 is disabled
- Upon content validation : If UTF-8 is enabled and the SMS contains personalized content.
Precautions when UTF-8 is enabled
Please note that these warnings are a reminder. One of the two will inevitably be displayed if customization is present. That is why it is important to test the rendering in the Preview and Test