Templates
Prior to creating an automated texting schedule, a template needs to be created. To create a template you can complete the following steps:
1.) Select "Add New Record"
2.) Name your template.
3.) Select the category that this template will fall under.
4.) Enter your text. If you are looking to have any information personalized, you can insert tokens into your message.
5.) Click update.
Automated Messages
Mastermind is able to generate automated text messages to numbers that are flagged as textable numbers (i.e. mobile). To create an automated message schedule, you will need to complete the following steps:
1.) Select "Add New Record"
2.) Select the list (criteria) that you want Mastermind to use to filter the messages.
3.) Select the template that you would like to use when messages are generated.
4.) Reset the last send date- by either manually changing the date and time or selecting "Reset last send date". Mastermind will generate messages for anything past that point. We would recommend re-setting to todays date.
5.) Select the next send date. This is when you would like the automated messages schedule to start generating.
6.) Select "enabled". If you would ever like to turn off automation, you would uncheck the "enabled" box.
7.) If this is a message that you would like to generate more than one time, you would select "recurring". For example, if you want messages to generate on a weekly basis, you would select "recurring" which would unlock the recurrence scheduling listed below.
8.) Select the school(s) that you would like this automated message to be generated for.
9.) Set your offset days. This determines how many days in the past or future that you would like Mastermind to use as criteria. For example, if you are scheduling a one week attendance text, you would want to look back 7 days (the offset would be set as -7). If you are looking for an upcoming event (i.e. a renewal due in 30 days) you would set a positive number. In this case, you would set the offset as 30.
Recurrence Scheduling
If creating a recurring message, this means that you want a message to generate more than once for your school(s). By selecting "never ends" the message will continue to generate until a user manually disables the automated schedule. You can also pre-determine the number of times that you would like a message to generate. For example, if you want a message to generate for the next 3 weeks only, you can set the "Recurs how many times" to 3.
The "Repeats" box determines the frequency in which you would like your messages to generate. If you would like this template to generate daily (for example every night you want an automated message for students who have an upcoming payment in 30 days) you would select daily. Mastermind will generate messages for the students who meet the determined criteria since the last time that the automated messages were created.
"Recurs every" will allow you to determine how many days in between you want automated messages to be generated. For example, if you want an automated message to be sent ever 3 days you would enter "3".
Auto-Replies
Automated replies can be created for during school hours, after school hours, or both. Prior to turning on auto replies, be sure to establish your school hours (found on the top right corner of your screen).
Once your school hours have been established, enter the reply you wish for
students to see when messaging into the school. If turning on a reply, you will need to select “On”. After you have made adjustments to your text, select “Save” at the bottom right corner of your screen.
Pending Messages
Pending messages is the queue that automated or deferred messages will sit until they are sent out (either manually or automatically), or are cancelled (manually by a user).
Automated messages will automatically send 24 hours after being generated to allow time for staff to cancel any messages that they do not wish to have sent.
Deferred messages will send at the time that they are scheduled to send.
Custom List
Custom list allows you to send an SMS message to a specific group of students based on the criteria selected.
Messages can be scheduled (deferred) or can be sent immediately. Deferred messages will sit in the "pending messages" queue until the time that they are scheduled to be sent.
Standard SMS messages support a limited set of characters. The purpose of this standard is to define which characters will work on all mobile devices. While Mastermind currently allows characters outside of the standard, it tends to produce different results depending on which mobile carrier the recipient uses. That can be as minor as a character code inserted into your message (e.g. a long dash replaced with —), or a characters dropped completely from a message. Emojis are also outside of the standard, and although some major carriers will allow them it drastically increases the costs of delivering messages containing them. In order to provide a consistent, reliable, and affordable SMS text service to our customers Mastermind will begin blocking any character not supported by all devices.
For reference you can visit this link to see which characters are supported by this standard.