How to migrate from Another SMS Provider to AVADA
Migrating from another SMS provider to AVADA can improve your ability to provide your subscribers with a genuinely personalized experience. By importing your SMS contacts, you'll be able to centralize your client data and take advantage of our powerful workflows and analytics. Our automation can connect SMS and email to customize your customers' experience.
This guide will show you how to migrate your data from another SMS provider to AVADA. Follow these steps below.
It's essential to configure SMS messaging in your account settings before you start doing anything with SMS. You can do this by heading to Settings -> SMS.
In this section, you can buy a number to send your messages, and choose the default sender number. You're able to choose either a long-code or toll-free number. In addition, AVADA lets you set AUTO REPLY MESSAGE to auto reply when customers reply to your messages with special keywords.
See guide to SMS Settings
Before you begin the process of migrating your SMS contacts into AVADA, it's important to distinguish between subscribers who have opted-in to SMS messaging and those who have not. It is against the laws to market to send text messages to those who have not explicitly opted-in to receive SMS communication from your business.
AVADA identifies opt-in subscribers as contacts who have a phone number and the SMS status* as subscribe. So, ideally, you'll want to export contacts from your previous SMS provider that have subscribed to your SMS messaging.
You can export your contacts in CSV format from most SMS providers. For precise details on how to export your contacts, contact your SMS provider. If your SMS provider account stores both opted-in and unsubscribed/opted-out contacts, make sure your primary contacts consist of contacts who have opted-in to SMS messaging.
Additionally, you may also want to export contacts' first and last names, addresses, and any other identifying information such as country, city, status, and so on. Before importing these fields into AVADA, you'll need to reformat them, which we will talk about in the next step.
Tip: After you've finished exporting subscribers, you might want to export contacts who have unsubscribed or opted out of SMS messaging separately so they can be stored outside of AVADA for historical purposes. Make sure to keep these non-subscribers distinct from the contacts you want to import.
Contacts can be imported into AVADA in CSV or TXT format. You should carefully format your list file before importing to make sure that the app can read your data smoothly and accurately.
To do that, open your file. Comb through the contacts in your list, and pay attention to the column headings and make sure of these formats:
The first row of the CSV file should contain column titles. If there are any excess rows between the column headings, delete them.
You must include a "Phone Number" column. Phone numbers can remove the country code, AVADA will recognize the country based on the "Country Code" column. When you write in the phone number on a CSV file, add a ' character to ensure the cell won't be automatically formatted.
You may also want to have a "First name" and "Last name" column.
You can include other profile properties to upload into AVADA. The fields available to use are Email, First Name, Last Name, Email Status, SMS Status, Phone Number, Country Code, Country, City, Internal Note.
This is a sample file on how your CSV file should be formatted.
This is a sample of the TXT file for your contact list.
After you've formatted your export data, change all flow messages to draft mode to pause any flows that are triggered by a phone number or email address being added to a list. If you don't do this before importing contacts, new contacts will immediately get these flow messages.
On your AVADA Dashboard, go to Audiences and click on the drop down arrow next to the New Contact button, select Import contacts.
Click on the Add file button or drag the contact list file into the box to upload. After you successfully upload the file, click on the Next button.
You will be prompted to review the file's field mapping before AVADA begins the importing process. Carefully review each import field and modify them as needed. By default, all the fields the app can identify will be displayed in this step. You can prevent a field from being imported by clicking on the x button to the right of the filed name.
Import fields that are not automatically matched to our fields will be marked as error and prompt you to map the filed. From the dropdown of the Equivalent contact attributes column, you can select an existing field name for the contact. The available fields are mentioned above.
When you finished mapping, click on the Next button. In the last phase, Ready, you will see the number of contacts that are ready to import, with some other options.
Update existing contacts that have the same email: This will remove any contact from your list if it matches contacts existing inside AVADA already.
Add tags for imported contacts: Choose existing tags or create new ones for newly imported contacts.
Send Welcome emails from AVADA to new imported contacts: If they are subscribers, they will immediately enter the Welcome email workflow in AVADA. This feature is not yet available for SMS subscribers.
By default, these options are turned off, you can select them to turn on. After that, click on the Next button to begin the importing process.
A popup with a message of "Import in progress" will appear like this. You can close it while the importing process is performing.
When the importing process is completed, you will find a notification about it in the notification symbol.
Data linked with your SMS account, such as call logs, reports, or account information, may be exported for historical reference. Before you shut down your prior SMS provider account, go through it and extract anything you might need in the future. If you need assistance with your export, contact your provider's support team.
Once you've migrated from your SMS provider to AVADA, you can start using our powerful app to create an automated and customized SMS experience for your customers.
Getting started with SMS/MMS in AVADA
How to create SMS Campaign? (mass SMS)
This guide will show you how to migrate your data from another SMS provider to AVADA. Follow these steps below.
Step 1: Set up SMS setting in your AVADA account
It's essential to configure SMS messaging in your account settings before you start doing anything with SMS. You can do this by heading to Settings -> SMS.
In this section, you can buy a number to send your messages, and choose the default sender number. You're able to choose either a long-code or toll-free number. In addition, AVADA lets you set AUTO REPLY MESSAGE to auto reply when customers reply to your messages with special keywords.
See guide to SMS Settings
Step 2: Export SMS contacts from your SMS provider
Before you begin the process of migrating your SMS contacts into AVADA, it's important to distinguish between subscribers who have opted-in to SMS messaging and those who have not. It is against the laws to market to send text messages to those who have not explicitly opted-in to receive SMS communication from your business.
AVADA identifies opt-in subscribers as contacts who have a phone number and the SMS status* as subscribe. So, ideally, you'll want to export contacts from your previous SMS provider that have subscribed to your SMS messaging.
You can export your contacts in CSV format from most SMS providers. For precise details on how to export your contacts, contact your SMS provider. If your SMS provider account stores both opted-in and unsubscribed/opted-out contacts, make sure your primary contacts consist of contacts who have opted-in to SMS messaging.
Additionally, you may also want to export contacts' first and last names, addresses, and any other identifying information such as country, city, status, and so on. Before importing these fields into AVADA, you'll need to reformat them, which we will talk about in the next step.
Tip: After you've finished exporting subscribers, you might want to export contacts who have unsubscribed or opted out of SMS messaging separately so they can be stored outside of AVADA for historical purposes. Make sure to keep these non-subscribers distinct from the contacts you want to import.
Step 3: Format your contact list
Contacts can be imported into AVADA in CSV or TXT format. You should carefully format your list file before importing to make sure that the app can read your data smoothly and accurately.
To do that, open your file. Comb through the contacts in your list, and pay attention to the column headings and make sure of these formats:
The first row of the CSV file should contain column titles. If there are any excess rows between the column headings, delete them.
You must include a "Phone Number" column. Phone numbers can remove the country code, AVADA will recognize the country based on the "Country Code" column. When you write in the phone number on a CSV file, add a ' character to ensure the cell won't be automatically formatted.
You may also want to have a "First name" and "Last name" column.
You can include other profile properties to upload into AVADA. The fields available to use are Email, First Name, Last Name, Email Status, SMS Status, Phone Number, Country Code, Country, City, Internal Note.
This is a sample file on how your CSV file should be formatted.
This is a sample of the TXT file for your contact list.
Step 4: Import your contact list
After you've formatted your export data, change all flow messages to draft mode to pause any flows that are triggered by a phone number or email address being added to a list. If you don't do this before importing contacts, new contacts will immediately get these flow messages.
On your AVADA Dashboard, go to Audiences and click on the drop down arrow next to the New Contact button, select Import contacts.
Click on the Add file button or drag the contact list file into the box to upload. After you successfully upload the file, click on the Next button.
You will be prompted to review the file's field mapping before AVADA begins the importing process. Carefully review each import field and modify them as needed. By default, all the fields the app can identify will be displayed in this step. You can prevent a field from being imported by clicking on the x button to the right of the filed name.
Import fields that are not automatically matched to our fields will be marked as error and prompt you to map the filed. From the dropdown of the Equivalent contact attributes column, you can select an existing field name for the contact. The available fields are mentioned above.
When you finished mapping, click on the Next button. In the last phase, Ready, you will see the number of contacts that are ready to import, with some other options.
Update existing contacts that have the same email: This will remove any contact from your list if it matches contacts existing inside AVADA already.
Add tags for imported contacts: Choose existing tags or create new ones for newly imported contacts.
Send Welcome emails from AVADA to new imported contacts: If they are subscribers, they will immediately enter the Welcome email workflow in AVADA. This feature is not yet available for SMS subscribers.
By default, these options are turned off, you can select them to turn on. After that, click on the Next button to begin the importing process.
A popup with a message of "Import in progress" will appear like this. You can close it while the importing process is performing.
When the importing process is completed, you will find a notification about it in the notification symbol.
Step 5: Check for additional data
Data linked with your SMS account, such as call logs, reports, or account information, may be exported for historical reference. Before you shut down your prior SMS provider account, go through it and extract anything you might need in the future. If you need assistance with your export, contact your provider's support team.
Next step
Once you've migrated from your SMS provider to AVADA, you can start using our powerful app to create an automated and customized SMS experience for your customers.
Getting started with SMS/MMS in AVADA
How to create SMS Campaign? (mass SMS)
Updated on: 06/09/2021
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