Bulletin TXT Messenger - FAQ

Sending Messages

Receiving Messages

Address Books

Message History and Reports

Account Options and Billing

General Information

How many messages can be sent per minute?

The speed of message delivery will be determined by

1. Network connection speed between your PC and Bulletin TXT Messenger
2. Method of connecting to Bulletin TXT Messenger (email or via the web page)
3. The destination carrier. Some carriers throttle message delivery based on their network requirements.

If you have requirements for high volumes in short periods please contact Bulletin Wireless with details.

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Can the recipient see a name instead of a number when they receive a message?

No, however this can be done (on some networks) via Bulletin Connect using rate codes if required.

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Can I see when a recipient received a message on their handset?

Yes. Although a few networks do not provide the message status information most do and they will be shown with the message in the Bulletin TXT Messenger Message Log.

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Are messages delivered immediately?

Bulletin attempts to send all messages to the carriers within seconds of receiving them, but SMS is a best effort, store and forward process which means that the carriers may have their own queuing, delivery and expiry policies.
Once Bulletin has passed the message to the carriers delivery is beyond our control, however we will request status updates and use these to keep you informed of the of the message if these are available.

You can use the status information to decide whether you should resend the message or use an alternative communication method.

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When sending SMS by email can I tell if the person received it?

Yes. When sending an email set the option for a "read receipt" (each email system has a different way of doing this so see the relevant vendor for more information). When a message is processed with a read receipt request, Bulletin TXT Messenger waits for a few minutes and sends an email back that has the status information for each recipient.
If you have login credentials you can also view this information in the online message logs.

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Can I see when a recipient reads a SMS message I sent them?

No. Standard SMS does not provide this sort of information, the closest you can get is if the carrier notifies us when the message is received on the handset.

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What networks does Bulletin TXT Messenger work with?

Bulletin TXT Messenger has worldwide SMS messaging capability.

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How is sending text messages from Bulletin TXT Messenger different from usual text messaging?

You have the convenience of messaging from a web site and being able to send a group message from your phone in a very cost-effective manner.

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How do I send a message to a mobile?

When you log in to Bulletin TXT Messenger you'll be presented with the main screen for sending messages. Here you simply type your message into the text box, select the contacts or Recipients you'd like to send the message to and click 'SEND'.

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How do I send an SMS by email?

Sending SMS by email requires your email address to be setup in Bulletin TXT Messenger. Contact your company administrator to do this and they will either

1. add your email address to the appropriate if they have the email domain configured, or
2. request that the email address be authorised by the service provider.

When your address is configured you will receive an email with instructions. However, it is as simple as sending an email to a specially formated email address made up of

1. the mobile number (in international format), and
2. @bulletinmessenger.com

For example sending to mobile number 614912345678 you would address the email to 614912345678@bulletinmessenger.net. It is that simple.
Try sending a message to your personal phone and you should receive it within a few minutes. If you do not receive and do not receive an error back by email please contact your company administrator to confirm your address is setup.

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Can we set up Bulletin TXT Messenger so each login can only see certain numbers/groups?

The company admin user can close the address books so users can not send to any contacts that are not in the address book that the company admin sets up.

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How do I create a message that will be sent at a later time?

Create the message as normal, by adding the recipients and entering the message text. Instead of clicking Send, click Send Later.
This takes you into the Schedule Message screen where you can select from a calendar what day to send the message and then use the pull down menus to select the time you want the message sent.
Then you click Save and you will be taken to the Confirm Schedule screen where you check the message content and confirm the time you'd like the message sent. If you are happy with the message content and the timing of the message delivery click 'OK' and you'll be taken back to the Send Message screen.

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How can Bulletin TXT Messenger be automated to send the same message to different recipients on a regularly basis?

Example: I'm looking to send monthly messages to our customers once their account reaches a prescribed limit. What sort of information would we need to provide in order to organise this? Would you simply require a file with the account numbers / mobile contact number, etc ?
Bulletin TXT Messenger can be used to send out the same message to thousands of recipients at once. This can be done in a variety of ways to a varying level of automation depending on your needs, environment and technical level.

Bulletin TXT Messenger must not be used for unsolicited SPAM or marketing messages. Users that do so may have the service restricted or cut off.

If you are using an email method to send Bulletin TXT Messenger ensure that the address you are sending from is configured in the Bulletin TXT Messenger system before you send the messages.

1. manually import contact file into Bulletin TXT Messenger as an address list
   When you import an address list the contacts are available to be used in the Bulletin TXT Messenger web site or via email.
2. email 'mail merge'
   Bulletin TXT Messenger can use email to SMS so you may be able to do a mail merge using your email client such as Outlook. Each email system differs in how they do mail merges so see your email user guide for more information.
3. Automated address book updates
   Another option is to automate an address book update so one of your Bulletin TXT Messenger address books always contains a current list of these numbers assigned to one group.
   See the user guide for information on automating address book updates.
   This option would require a plain text file with name, number and group/s (eg "MonthlyWarning"), one contact per line in the file.
   If this is automated the most current group of contacts would be in that address book and you could send a message to MonthlyWarning@bulletinmessenger.net which would SMS all the current members of that group.
4. Scripting and batch files
   Since Bulletin TXT Messenger can use email to send SMS messages, a simple windows batch file, linux shell script or even an MS Office macro could be quickly written to process your file of recipients and send the same message, or even a customised message, to each person . How this is done depends the language you use, the complexity of the message and your network environment.
   Some (free) command line tools* that you may find useful for sending automated email are
   • • BLAT
     • SendEmail
     • bmail

* these links are provided for information only and without guarantee or any explicit or implied association. If you need assistance with any of these tools please contact the relevant vendor.

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Where do replies go?

All replies to messages sent from the Bulletin TXT Messenger will show in RECEIVED MESSAGES log on the web site. Click the MESSAGES tab to see these messages. Replies are attached to the original message in a 'thread' so you can keep track of your conversations using the patented mTag technology.

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How do I store contact numbers?

Select Address Book from the Main Menu and then click 'Create Individual'. You then type in their contact details, and the new contact is added to your Address Book.

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How do I create groups?

Select Create Group from the Address Book Menu. All members in your Address Book are displayed on the page. You then assign a Name and an Alias to the group. Members can then be added to the group simply by selecting them and clicking the 'ADD' button.

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Why can't I add a new group?

In some instances the Company Administrator may deny access to add contacts to the Address Books. Contact your Company Administrator if this is the case.

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How do I import an address book?

Click on the Manage Address Books menu option . This option works best if you have existing contact lists stored in the form of a CSV (Comma Separated Values) file such as a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Set your spreadsheet up with header rows of Number, Name, Alias, Group, Group Alias, and further rows containing the contacts you wish to import and Bulletin TXT Messenger will attempt to import the data. See Manage Address Books for more information.

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Why am I getting warnings and/or errors when I try to import into an address book?

It is important that the records you want to import conform to Bulletin TXT Messenger requirements. These are some common causes for imports not completing correctly.

• Bulletin TXT Messenger can not import contacts or groups that already exist in your address books. If they already existing your address book, try copying them in the Manage Address Book screen.
• Contact or Group names can not contain spaces or many other special characters. Remove the spaces from names or replace them with the underscore "_" character.
• Aliases can not be longer than four characters.

Contact Bulletin Wireless support if you have problems with the data you are trying to import.

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How do I view messages that I have sent and received?

Click on the Message menu option to display a log of messages. You can also choose to filter by Sent, Received or Scheduled messages with details on their current status. Bulletin TXT Messenger functionality allows you to Forward (F), Reply (R) or delete any messages from the message log or message detail pages.

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How do I change the Recent Messages display?

Click on Display in Options and you can select the number of Recent Messages to display by setting values from 2 - 20 messages. Click SAVE to keep your changes.

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Can I change the Sent/Received messages display?

Simply select in the same way as the Recent Messages display and click SAVE.

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How do I change my options?

Click on the Options tab in the top menu bar. This will take you to the Settings page where you can set your screen refresh rate, time zone and mobile shortcuts. The Screen Refresh Rate determines how often your browser checks for new messages. The Time zone option is used to determine where you are sending messages from and when scheduled messages are sent. Mobile shortcuts allow you to enter your common mobile phone prefixes and configure them to international format. Mobile shortcuts are used when sending messages, they allow you to enter local phone numbers in a format you are comfortable with, and Bulletin TXT Messenger will change it to the international format it requires.

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Where do I set my Signature?

In the Options menu under "Signature" and you can type in a signature that can be added to messages before you send them or automatically attached to all new messages sent via the web site (not email). Remember it is best with limited character numbers to keep your signature short.

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How will I be billed for Bulletin TXT Messenger?

All billing is handled through Bulletin Online Services (BOS). BOS provides an easy interface to purchase credits and extend your subscription using your paypal

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What do people use this service for?

The range of ways people use it is quite varied. Some people use it in ways we never intended and have managed to integrate it into their system very nicely.
See the Bulletin TXT Messenger examples page for some ideas.

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What is international number format?

INTERNATIONAL NUMBER FORMAT

All numbers used in Bulletin services must be in International Format.

International Number Format is a number format that includes the country, carrier and phone numbers without any dialing prefixes (eg 00 or 001) or special characters such as the plus symbol (eg '642111111' not '+642111111').
The Following table shows how some numbers are displayed in international format.

The recipient is in	Their country code	their local number	Their International Format number
Australia	61	(0403) 416 7216	614034167216
New Zealand	64	021 525-582	6421525582
United Kingdom	44	07700 954 321	447700954321
United States	1	(954) 555-1234	19545551234
France	33	06 87 71 23 45	33687712345

For your convienience this is a sample of Countries and their Country Codes.

Country	Prefix
Afghanistan	93
Albania	355
Algeria	213
American Samoa	684
Andorra	376
Angola	244
Antarctica	672
Antigua And Barbuda	1268
Argentina	54
Armenia	374
Aruba	297
Australia	61
Austria	43
Azerbaijan	994
Bahamas	1242
Bahrain	973
Bangladesh	880
Belarus	375
Belgium	32
Belize	501
Bhutan	975
Bolivia	591
Bosnia and Herzegovina	387
Botswana	267
Brazil	55
Brunei	673
Bulgaria	359
Burkina Faso	226
Burundi	257
Cambodia	855
Cameroon	237
Canada	1581
Canada	1403
Canada	1587
Canada	1780
Canada	1250
Canada	1604
Canada	1778
Canada	1204
Canada	1506
Canada	1709
Canada	1902
Canada	1226
Canada	1289
Canada	1416
Canada	1519
Canada	1613
Canada	1647
Canada	1705
Canada	1807
Canada	1905
Canada	1418
Canada	1438
Canada	1450
Canada	1514
Canada	1819
Canada	1306
Canada	1867
Caymans	1345
Chad Republic	235
Chile - Easter Island	56
China	86
Colombia	57
Comoros Mayotte Island	269
Congo	242
Cook Islands	682
Costa Rica	506
Croatia	385
Cuba	53
Curacao and Neth Antilles	599
Cyprus	357
Czech Republic	420
Denmark	45
Djibouti	253
Dominica	1767
Ecuador	593
Egypt	20
El Salvador	503
Equitorial Guinea	240
Eritrea	291
Estonia	372
Ethiopia	251
Falkland Islands	500
Faroe Islands	298
Fiji Islands	679
Finland	358
France	33
French Antilles Martin.	596
French Guiana and Guiana	594
French Polynesia	689
Gabon Republic	241
Gambia	220
Georgia	995
Germany	49
Ghana	233
Gibraltar	350
Greece	30
Greenland	299
Guadeloupe	590
Guatemala	502
Guinea Bissau	245
Guinea Rep	224
Guyana	592
Haiti	509
Honduras	504
Hong Kong	852
Hungary	36
Iceland	354
India	91
Indonesia	62
Iran	98
Iraq	964
Ireland	353
Israel	972
Italy - Vatican	39
Ivory Coast	225
Japan	81
Jordan	962
Kenya	254
Kuwait	965
Kyrgyzstan	996
Laos	856
Latvia	371
Lebanon	961
Liberia	231
Libya	218
Liechtenstein	423
Lithuania	370
Luxembourg	352
Macau	853
Macedonia	389
Madagascar	261
Malawi	265
Malaysia	60
Maldives	960
Mali Republic	223
Malta	356
Mauritania	222
Mauritius	230
Mexico	52
Miquelon St. Pierre	508
Moldova	373
Monaco	377
Mongolia	976
Morocco	212
Mozambique	258
Myanmar	95
Namibia	264
Nepal	977
Netherlands	31
New Caledonia	687
New Zealand	64
Nicaragua	505
Nigeria	234
Niger Republic	227
North Korea	850
Norway	47
Oman	968
Pakistan	92
Palestine	970
Panama	507
Papua New Guinea	675
Paraguay	595
Peru	51
Philippines	63
Poland	48
Portugal	351
Principe Sao Tome	239
Qatar	974
Republic of Benin	229
Reunion Island	262
Romania	40
Russia & Kazakhstan	7
Rwanda	250
Saudi Arabia	966
Senegal Republic	221
Serbia & Montenegro	381
Seychelles	248
Sierra Leone	232
Singapore	65
Slovakia	421
Slovenia	386
Soc Republic of Vietnam	84
Solomon Islands	677
Somalia Republic	252
South Africa	27
South Korea	82
Spain	34
Sri Lanka	94
St. Helena	290
Sudan	249
Suriname	597
Swaziland	268
Sweden	46
Switzerland	41
Syria	963
Taiwan	886
Tanzania	255
Thailand	66
Togo	228
Tokelau	690
Trinidad and Tobago	1868
Tunisia	216
Turkey	90
Turkmenistan	993
UAE	971
Uganda	256
UK	44
Ukraine	380
Uruguay	598
USA	1
Uzbekistan	998
Vanuatu	678
Venezuela	58
Yemen	967
Zaire	243
Zambia	260
Zimbabwe	263

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Who do I contact for more information or help?

If your question is not answered in the Bulletin TXT Messenger User Guide then contact the appropriate person (see below).
If you setup the account yourself (e.g. if you are the Company Administrator or an Individual Account holder) then contact Bulletin Wireless including the following information.

• Account name used in Bulletin TXT Messenger
• Contact Phone Number (please include Country and time zone so we are able to call you if necessary)
• Specific details. Clearly state your intention or issue and provide all relevant details. It is better to provide more information than too little and in the process of gathering the information your solution may actually appear without further assistance being required. State what you are trying to do and what you have tried.
  If you are a Company User then you should contact your Company Administrator in the first instance. If they are not able to assist you then they will contact Bulletin Wireless.
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