Message Campaigns

Message campaigns allow you to send bulk messages to a group of contacts through a configured messaging channel. This is useful for marketing promotions, customer notifications, appointment reminders, and other outreach scenarios. This article describes how to create and manage message campaigns.

Supported Channels

You can create message campaigns for the following channel types:

• SMS: Send text messages or multimedia messages (MMS) directly to mobile phones.
• WhatsApp: Send messages using pre-approved WhatsApp message templates.

Limitations

Campaign Status

Each campaign has a status that reflects its current state:

Prerequisites

Before creating a campaign, ensure the following resources are ready:

• Message Channel: A configured SMS or WhatsApp channel. Ensure your account with the service provider has sufficient credits or quota for the planned messaging volume.
• Contact List: A list of recipient phone numbers. You can add numbers manually, import them from a CSV file, or use contacts from an existing PBX phonebook. Phone numbers must be in E.164 format (e.g., +41415084545).
• Message Template (WhatsApp only): WhatsApp campaigns require pre-approved message templates. Ensure the templates are synchronized to the PBX before creating the campaign.
• Routing Target (optional): If you want the campaign to automatically create messaging sessions, configure the desired routing target (an extension or a message queue) in advance.

Create a Campaign

1. Log in to the Cloud PBX administration portal.
2. Navigate to Messaging > Message Campaign.
3. Click Add.

Basic Settings

Configure the following settings in the Basic section:

• Name: Enter a descriptive name for the campaign.
• Message Channel: Select the SMS or WhatsApp channel to use.
• Sender: Select the phone number associated with the channel for message sending.

Recipients

Add the recipients for your campaign using one of the following methods:

• Input & Import — Add manually: Select Input & Import, then click Add to enter phone numbers one by one in E.164 format.
• Input & Import — Import CSV: Select Input & Import, then click Import to upload a CSV file. The file must be UTF-8 encoded, less than 50 MB, and contain a Number column with phone numbers in E.164 format.
• Phonebooks: Select Phonebooks, then choose an existing PBX phonebook and the number type. The system retrieves the matching phone numbers automatically.

Message Content

Configure the message to be sent:

• File (MMS): Select File and upload a file to send a multimedia message. The maximum file size is 100 MB. Supported file types depend on the SMS provider.
• Text (SMS): Select Text and enter the message content. The message can be up to 1,600 characters long and supports emojis.

Sending Rules

Configure when and how the campaign messages are sent:

Send Time:

• Send Now: Messages are sent immediately after saving.
• Schedule Sending: Messages are sent at the specified date and time.
• Do Not Send, Save as Draft: The campaign is saved as a draft for later editing or sending.

Send Mode:

• Create session and send message: The system automatically creates a messaging session for each recipient and assigns it to a target (an extension or a message queue). If a session already exists for a contact number, the message is sent to the existing session instead.
• Send messages directly without creating session: Messages are sent without creating sessions. These messages will not appear in the External Chat Logs.

4. Click Save.

Result

After saving, the campaign appears in the campaign list under Messaging > Message Campaign. Depending on the send time you configured, the campaign status will be Executing (send now), Scheduled (scheduled), or Draft (saved as draft).

When a campaign is marked as Completed, you can review the results directly from the campaign list. The Result column shows the number of failed and total messages, and the Response Rate column shows the percentage of recipients who responded. To view detailed sending information for individual contacts, click the details icon next to the campaign.

Manage Campaigns

Navigate to Messaging > Message Campaign to manage your campaigns. The following actions are available in the Operations column:

• Edit: Modify the campaign settings (only available for drafts).
• Duplicate: Create a copy of the campaign with the same settings.
• Retry: Resend messages that failed during the previous attempt.
• Delete: Remove the campaign permanently.

Important Notes

• E.164 format required: All recipient phone numbers must be in E.164 format (e.g., +41415084545). Numbers in other formats will not be accepted.
• CSV import format: When importing contacts from a CSV file, the file must be UTF-8 encoded with a Number column header. The file size must be less than 50 MB and the filename less than 127 characters.
• WhatsApp templates: WhatsApp campaigns can only use pre-approved message templates. Ensure your templates are approved and synchronized to the PBX before creating the campaign.
• Session behavior: If you choose "Create session and send message", existing sessions with the same contact number will be reused rather than creating duplicates.
• Provider limits: Ensure your SMS or WhatsApp provider account has sufficient credits or messaging quota for the planned volume. Provider rate limits may also apply.