FAQ

Q: What is a text message?

A text message is a short message that can be sent to and from your cell phone. The term "SMS" that you often hear stands for "Short Message Service", which is the internal protocol that mobile phones use to send and receive text messages.

Q: Is my cell phone able to send and receive text messages

Just about all mobile phones on the market today can send and receive text messages. If you are not sure about how to use your cell phone's text message functions, please consult your phone manual or wireless provider for instructions.

Q: Why do People Use SMS Text Messages?

Cell phones today are a part of most people's everyday life at home and on the road. In many cases, only a few lines of information are needed for you to communicate with your friends, peers and business associates. Text Messages allow you to do exactly that, and are a quick and effective means of communication in today's world.

Q: Am I required to sign a long-term contract?

There are no long-term contracts. Textabit is a month-to-month service, meaning you pay for the service on a monthly basis and cancel or suspend your account at any time in accordance with our terms and conditions.

Q: What types of text marketing plans does Textabit offer?

Textabit offers many different plans to allow you to choose the one that best fits your needs. Along with our monthly plans, Textabit offers both quarterly and annual plans with additional price incentives. Please refer to our Pricing page for more information or contact sales@textabit.com.

Q: Why doesn't Textabit offer SMTP email based Texting?

SMTP email-to-text technology is no longer supported by the US mobile carriers. While there may be loopholes that still exist to allow some SMTP based texting to operate the carriers have indicated that they will be eliminating this from occurring. As it exists today, email-to-text technology is unpredictable and not reliable. Textabit aims to provide high quality and dependable text messaging. We do not offer this option to our clients because we choose not to provide an unpredictable means of text message transport.

Q: Am I able to send bulk SMS mobile text messages?

Yes. We provide you with the capability to send bulk text messages quickly, efficiently and easily to groups of any size.

Q: Am I able to receive replies to the bulk text messages that I send?

Yes. They will be delivered to your inbox. From your inbox, Textabit can forward the replies to your mobile phone, your email address or both.

Q: Can I send a single text message?

Yes, you can simply select a single user or enter a new user right after you create your message.

Q: Where does Textabit provide its services?

Textabit's text messaging service today is provided in the US.

Q: Can I set a specific date and time that I want my SMS text messages to be delivered to my subscribers?

Yes, Textabit provides you with the ability to send your message immediately or to schedule a future date and time for your message to be sent to your subscribers.

Q: How can I purchase Textabit Credits? What is a credit??

To purchase credits, you will need to first log into the website. From there, click on the link labeled "Account Upgrade" and choose the plan you would like to upgrade to. You can opt to use your existing credit card on file or add a new one. Once you enter in your credit card info, click on "Place Order". Your payment will then be processed and the additional credits will immediately be applied to your account. We accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover.

Q: How many characters am I able to include in a text message?

A standard text message is limited to 160 characters. Textabit also permits you to combine two text messages into one if you need to send information that is greater than 160 characters. From a pricing perspective, please note that sending out a "combined" message counts as two text messages.

Q: How long does it take to deliver a text message?

Text messages are usually delivered to mobile phones very quickly, on average from just a few seconds to about a minute. Occasionally during peak hours, it can take a little longer. On some occasions, messages are delayed for reasons beyond the text messaging network. For example, a receiving person outside of a cell phone coverage network will not receive a text message until he/she enters back into the cell network.

Q: Does Textabit limit how many text messages I can send?

We do not limit the number of text messages you can send as long as your text campaigns are compliant.

Q: Can you guarantee delivery of every SMS text message that I send?

At Textabit, we strive to deliver your text messages with speed and efficiency. Text message communication is dependent upon wireless carriers and their networks. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee the delivery of a text message because it depends upon the carrier who is the transmitter of the message. We at Textabit are always here to support your needs and want you to reach out to us if you believe there is a problem at any given time with message delivery. Please feel free to contact us at support@textabit.com

Q: What is a Keyword?

A keyword allows your users to connect to your specific text message campaign when sending a text message to your short code. You can define your own keywords and add as many as you like. Keywords must be unique can be a combination of letters and/or numbers).

Q: What do I need to do to setup and activate my Keyword(s)?

As you purchase your keyword it is immediately activated for your use. You can then define your Opt-in, Opt-out and Help message settings. Your keyword is ready to use!
Note that for each keyword, you only need to define the above message settings one time. You can run as many text message campaigns as you like with your newly defined keyword.

Q: Can I choose any Keyword I want?

Provided that the keyword you want is available in our system at the time of your purchase, you can register it through your account panel.

Q: What is a Short Code?

A Short Code is a 5 or 6 digit special "phone number" designed for gaining access to a variety of mobile content. As opposed to sending text messages to your friend's mobile phone number, you can send text messages to a short codes to access information like store promotions, business alerts and many other forms of content that come from a source that can provide you with valuable information and benefits.

Q: Where do you store my data, and how do you protect my data?

We store all of your information on our secure database server, and nobody has access to your data except you. Textabit will not access or do anything with your data without your consent. If you would like to share your data with someone else, at your discretion you can provide them with your login information to access your account on our website. Our database server is co-located at a data center that is housed by multiple levels of both security and redundancy. The data center is also equipped with 24x7 surveillance and is staffed 24x7.

Q: Is my list of contacts secure? How do you protect my privacy?

Your contacts are kept in strict confidentiality at all times and our admin area is Verisign Secured.

Q: Who is the owner of my data?

You are the owner of your data at all times.

Q: How long will it take me to get started?

Upon registering, you can start sending mobile text messages almost immediately. By following our simple 4-step "how to" starter guide you can build and enable your first campaign within 15 minutes. If you already have a list of opt-in phone numbers, you can easily import them into our tool at any time. The Textabit application is designed to make the process of creating new campaigns as simple and efficient as possible.

Q: Do I need any special training to use your software?

Textabit's software is simple and easy to use. If however you need assistance, please contact us at support@textabit.com and we will happy to help you get going quickly and effectively!

Q: What hardware and software do I need in order to use the Textabit application?

Our software is 100% web-based and there is nothing that you will need to download onto your computer. You can access everything directly from our website through your browser.

Q: What is a Username?

The email address you input to create your account will be your username. A username is your unique identity on the Textabit website and, along with your password, allows you to login to your own secure account.

Q: Why do you ask me for my phone number when I register?

For security reasons we require that you enter your phone number. It is important for Textabit to confirm your identity by ensuring that the number you provide is in fact your phone number. As your security is of the utmost importance to us at Textabit, we feel this requirement provides an additional layer of protection for our customers.

Q: How do I upload my contacts?

You can upload your contact through a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet file or a CSV file. Most word processing programs today allow you to open an Excel or CSV. You can also manually add your contacts by using copy/paste directly into the input box.