Twilio SMS Quick Start

Twilio SMS lets you send and receive text messages from your own Twilio phone number inside Resool, so SMS conversations sit in the same shared inbox as WhatsApp, email and live chat. You connect your Twilio account with Connect with Twilio, pick the number to use, and Resool sets up the number's incoming-message webhook for you. Nothing is copied or pasted. It's built for teams that already use Twilio, or want SMS for customers who don't use messaging apps.

#What you can do with Twilio SMS

In the Inbox

• Receive every SMS sent to your Twilio number as a conversation.
• Reply at any time: SMS has no reply window.
• Send photos, video and audio as MMS where Twilio supports it (US and Canada); elsewhere they're sent as links.

On the channel

• Send from a single number, or through a Twilio Messaging Service (a sender pool, or A2P 10DLC registration in the US).
• Refresh the connection if the number's webhook was changed in Twilio.

#Before you begin

• A Twilio account with a phone number that supports SMS. Buy one in the Twilio console if you don't have one.
• A payment method on your Twilio account before you go live. Twilio charges you directly for each message, by country.
• US numbers: Twilio requires A2P 10DLC registration for business texting to US recipients. If you registered a Messaging Service, have its SID (starts with MG) ready.
• In Resool, only workspace Owners and Admins can connect channels. Twilio SMS counts as one channel toward your plan's limit.

#How to set up Twilio

1. Sign in to the Twilio console.
2. Go to Phone Numbers › Manage › Buy a number, filter by SMS capability and buy a number in the country you need.
3. Optional: in Messaging › Services, create a Messaging Service, add your number to its sender pool and complete any registration Twilio requires for your country.

You don't need to copy your Account SID or Auth Token. Resool gets access through Twilio's own authorization page.

#How to connect Twilio SMS to Resool

1. Go to Settings › Channels and click Add Channel.
2. Open the SMS tab, find Twilio SMS and click Connect.

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Settings › Channels › Add Channel, SMS tab

The SMS tab of the Channel Catalog with the Twilio SMS card (New badge) and its Connect button, next to Custom Channel (SMS) and the Coming soon cards.

File: screenshots/twilio-sms-quick-start-catalog.png

1. The Connect Twilio SMS dialog shows three steps. Click Connect with Twilio.

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Settings › Channels › Add Channel › Twilio SMS › Connect

The "Connect Twilio SMS" dialog with the three numbered steps, the "Open the Twilio console" link, the note about adding a payment method, and the Connect with Twilio button.

File: screenshots/twilio-sms-quick-start-connect-dialog.png

1. On twilio.com, sign in if asked and authorize Resool to access your account.
2. You're returned to the Channel Catalog and the dialog says Twilio account connected. Select the number to use. Fill in:
   • Channel name: how the channel appears in Resool. "Twilio SMS" by default.
   • Twilio phone number: the numbers in your Twilio account. Numbers that can't send SMS are marked no SMS and can't be selected.
   • Messaging Service SID (optional): enter it to send through a Messaging Service instead of the number itself.

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Settings › Channels › Add Channel › Twilio SMS, after returning from Twilio

The dialog with "Twilio account connected. Select the number to use.", the Channel name field, the Twilio phone number dropdown open with two numbers (one marked "no SMS"), the empty Messaging Service SID field, and the Save Changes button.

File: screenshots/twilio-sms-quick-start-select-number.png

1. Click Save Changes. Resool creates the channel, sets the number's A message comes in webhook and opens the channel page.

Send a text to your Twilio number from your phone. It appears in the Inbox within seconds.

#How to configure Twilio SMS

Open Settings › Channels and click Manage on the Twilio SMS channel. The Configuration tab shows:

• Channel name: rename the channel and save with the save bar.
• Status: Connected when the webhook is set, Needs attention when something failed, with the reason.
• Refresh connection: sets the number's webhook again. Use it if someone changed the number's messaging settings in Twilio.
• Webhook: the address Twilio sends incoming messages to. Resool sets it automatically; you only need it to check the number's settings in Twilio.

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Settings › Channels › Twilio SMS › Configuration

The Configuration tab with the channel name field, the card showing the number with the Connected badge and the Refresh connection button, and the Webhook card with the URL and its Copy button.

File: screenshots/twilio-sms-quick-start-configuration.png

Routing, auto-assignment and satisfaction surveys for this channel are set in Channel settings.

#How to delete the channel

On the Configuration tab, under Danger zone, click Delete channel and confirm. New messages stop; past conversations and contacts stay. To also remove Resool's access to your Twilio account, deauthorize Resool in your Twilio console's connected apps.

#Notes and limitations

• Twilio bills you directly for every SMS and MMS, at its rates for each country.
• MMS (photos, video, audio) works where Twilio supports it, mainly the US and Canada. Elsewhere, media is sent as a link.
• Sending rules such as A2P 10DLC (US), sender ID registration and opt-out keywords are enforced by Twilio and carriers.
• Each Twilio number can be connected to one Resool workspace.

#FAQ and troubleshooting

#I see "This Twilio account has no phone numbers yet."

The Twilio account you authorized has no numbers. Buy a number with SMS capability in the Twilio console, then click Connect with Twilio again. If you have several Twilio accounts or subaccounts, make sure you authorized the one that owns the number.

#The connection to Twilio was cancelled or expired

If you see The connection to Twilio was cancelled. or The Twilio connection expired. Please try again., start again from Settings › Channels › Add Channel › Twilio SMS and finish the authorization on twilio.com without leaving the page open for too long.

#Incoming SMS don't appear in the Inbox

What you can do:

• Open the channel and check the status. If it says Needs attention, read the reason and click Refresh connection.
• In Twilio, check that the number's A message comes in webhook points to the address shown under Webhook.
• If you use a Messaging Service, check its integration settings in Twilio don't override the number's webhook.

#My messages to US numbers aren't delivered

US carriers block unregistered business texting. Register for A2P 10DLC in Twilio, add the number to the registered Messaging Service, and enter the service's SID in Messaging Service SID (optional).

#I see "Twilio Connect isn't set up on this server yet."

Twilio SMS isn't available in your environment yet. Contact Resool support.

#What's next?

• Channel settings: routing, auto-assign and satisfaction surveys
• Replying to conversations
• Custom channel for other SMS gateways
• Workflows overview