Twilio
With Twilio, you can send and receive messages at scale using Messaging APIs. This makes it the perfect integration to send SMS messages from MinistryPlatform directly to your congregation! You can also view incoming text replies. With a one-time configuration, you'll be good to go.
Cost
There is no charge from ACS Technologies for configuring the integration.
Fees from Twilio are assessed as per each church's individual contract agreement. See Twilio's SMS Pricing page. Pricing is based on your usage, with discounts for committed usage as you scale.
Messaging Options
We usually recommend churches use toll-free numbers in Twilio because they send messages faster and cell phone carriers receive them more reliably. However, select the messaging option that best fits your needs. See this Twilio article to learn the differences between messaging options.
Planning to send text messages to contacts in countries outside of the United States? Make sure to configure your Twilio account to allow texting to those regions. And make sure you enter the full phone number, with + and the country code, on the Contact record.
Texting Segments
Every text message is limited to a certain number of characters. That limit is called a segment. If your message is longer than the limit, it creates a new segment. Sending a really wordy text? Your long text will still send, just with more segments. You pay by the segment.
How many characters do you get per text? That depends on the content:
- If you just use letters, numbers, and spaces, 160 characters.
- If you use emojis, 70 characters.
- Certain accented characters, non-standard spacing, smart quotes, and reassembly headers are more complex to encode and can further reduce the number of characters available per segment.
For more information, see this Twilio article.
See Also
- Milestones For Onboarding your SMS Project to Twilio
- CTIA's Messaging Principles and Best Practices - If you send A2P messages, please read and understand how the guidelines affect you.
- Twilio Website
Integration Setup
A SPoC can complete this one-time initial setup with Twilio to enable text messages from MinistryPlatform.
- You must have an account with Twilio to configure this integration.
- Make sure you've completed Milestones 1 through 4 of the Twilio Onboarding process.
Once you enable your Twilio integration, you can send text messages from the Platform using the New Message Tool!
Add a Webhook for Inbound Messages
Using a webhook, you can display inbound texts from your Twilio account in the Platform.
- You must have a configured Twilio account. Fees apply for inbound messages.
From your Twilio account, you can configure a messaging webhook for each active phone number. This optional feature is only for informational purposes. You can see replies from text messages the Platform sent, but you can't respond to their reply. It is not a two-way texting feature.
This webhook also allows the Platform to automatically update the Do Not Text field on Contact records when they opt out or opt in by replying to a message.
- In the Messaging section, set the following:
- Time received
- Message To number
- Message From number
- Message Text, up to 1,600 characters – the Twilio limit
- Emojis are accepted (but do affect cost)
- Images and GIFs (these display as files attached to the Inbound Message record) Note: You can receive images with or without text.
Twilio Campaign Registration
Set your texting campaign up for success!
- Sample text messages that you plan to send
- Keywords that recipients can use to subscribe and unsubscribe from your texting campaign
- A payment method for the registration fee
Campaign Use Cases
You'll also need to determine which "use case" your campaign falls under. Twilio recommends using Low Volume Mixed Use since this is the low-cost option. However, this use case provides lower throughput, which means fewer messages can be sent successfully within a given time period. That may be just fine, depending on how your church uses texting. It's up to you to decide the best option for your church.
- Two-factor authentication (2FA)
- Church-wide announcements, such as "Church closed due to inclement weather"
- Small group announcements, such as "Bible Study is canceled for tonight"
Two-factor authentication falls under verification/account security. Announcements fall under SMS reminders and/or SMS marketing, depending on how you use them.
Sample Use Cases
Use the following samples as an outline when creating your A2P campaign. You can edit each response based on how your church plans to use text messaging. (In your Twilio console, go to and click Register new Campaign.)
- Twilio Campaign Scenario #1: 2FA
-
- A2P Brand: Select your approved brand from the drop-down list.
- Available A2P Campaign use cases: Select Two-Factor authentication (2FA).
- Messaging Service: Select Create new Messaging Service.
- Campaign description: Enter
Sending out one-time login or authentication codes. - Sample message #1: Enter
To finish creating your account, please enter this code: [Code]. - Sample message #2: Enter
The verification code you requested is [Code]. This code will expire after 10 minutes. - If you have other sample messages that you plan to use, include those in the other Sample message fields.
- Message contents: Select the options that are appropriate for your use case, depending on whether you plan to send messages with embedded links and/or phone numbers.
- How do end-users consent to receive messages? Enter
By entering a mobile phone number in the registration process, the user is consenting to receive login authentication codes via text. The consent language is noted on the page.
- Twilio Campaign Scenario #2: Low Volume Mixed
-
- A2P Brand: Select your approved brand from the drop-down list.
- Available A2P Campaign use cases: Select Low Volume Mixed.
- Messaging Service: Select Create new Messaging Service.
- Campaign description: Enter
End-user communication such as sending out one-time login or authentication codes, sending church updates/notifications, etc. - Sample message #1: Enter
To finish creating your account, please enter this code: [Code]. - Sample message #2: Enter
Join us for a special service this Sunday at 11am!. - If you have other sample messages that you plan to use, include those in the other Sample message fields.
- Message contents: Select the options that are appropriate for your use case, depending on whether you plan to send messages with embedded links and/or phone numbers.
- How do end-users consent to receive messages? Enter
Users can consent to receive messages in two ways. The first is by registering for an account through our website [ENTER YOUR URL HERE]. By entering a mobile phone number in the registration process, the user is consenting to receive login authentication codes via text. The consent language is noted on the page. The second way is to text in a keyword to subscribe to receive text message updates specific to the user's request. Opt-in confirmation and consent verbiage is in the auto response to the user. - Opt-in Keywords: Enter
Subscribe. - Opt-in Message: Enter
Thank you for subscribing to our church-wide text message notifications. To opt-out, reply STOP.
- Twilio Campaign Scenario #3: Marketing
-
- A2P Brand: Select your approved brand from the drop-down list.
- Available A2P Campaign use cases: Select Marketing.
- Messaging Service: Select Create new Messaging Service.
- Campaign description: Enter
End-user communication such as sending church updates and notifications. - Sample message #1: Enter
Reminder: Wednesday is the last day to donate to our food drive!. - Sample message #2: Enter
Join us for a special service this Sunday at 11am!. - If you have other sample messages that you plan to use, include those in the other Sample message fields.
- Message contents: Select the options that are appropriate for your use case, depending on whether you plan to send messages with embedded links and/or phone numbers.
- How do end-users consent to receive messages? Enter
Users can consent to receive messages in two ways. The first is by registering for an account through our website [ENTER YOUR URL HERE]. By entering a mobile phone number in the registration process, the user is consenting to receive login authentication codes via text. The consent language is noted on the page. The second way is to text in a keyword to subscribe to receive text message updates specific to the user's request. Opt-in confirmation and consent verbiage is in the auto response to the user. - Opt-in Keywords: Enter
Subscribe. - Opt-in Message: Enter
Thank you for subscribing to our church-wide text message notifications. To opt-out, reply STOP.
Tips and Tricks
If you aren't receiving texts sent by the New Message tool, double-check each of the setup steps and values to ensure you didn't miss any details. If you're still don't receive texts (and the tool doesn't give an error or warning), the issue is most likely with your Twilio account. See this article from Twilio: Troubleshooting Undelivered Messages.
Carriers may automatically block messages that are not in compliance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) guidelines. Be aware of your content, especially if it contains a clickable link. Avoid wording like "Click this link" and bit.ly links. Ensure your message has a footer with instructions to opt out. For more information on the TCPA, these articles may be helpful: TCPA Compliance and Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991.
Text messages with links are more likely to be filtered and blocked.
The New Message Tool supports the use of multiple Twilio numbers, so add as many numbers as your church or diocese needs! A benefit of multiple numbers is that you can spread your text volume over multiple numbers, which improves the speed and deliverability of your text messages.
You should use different phone numbers for these tools versus other third-party applications (for example, the OnlineGiving.Org text-to-give). If you already have a third party using your Twilio account, you may need to purchase additional numbers to use with these tools. Contact your third-party vendor for specific requirements.
Twilio throttles things, so getting a Short Code can help to speed up processing time. Short codes have an 8- to 12-week provisioning time.
You can also get a toll-free number that's verified through Twilio to speed things up by up to three times faster. For more information from Twilio regarding processing time, see their Sending and Receiving Limitations on Calls and SMS Messages article. Toll-free numbers are available in five to seven days.
Long codes are turned off by Sprint if they see 200+ of the same message in one day.
You can work with Twilio to update the auto-response sent to people who respond to texts sent through the New Message Tool. You can also work with a third party to create a custom web service for something more custom, like forward the message onto another number or auto-respond based on various criteria. For more on auto-responses, see the Twilio article, Set up an SMS Auto-Responder with TwilioStudio. Reach out to Twilio Support for assistance!
Can I customize the message about opting in to texting that displays on the Sign Up screen?
If you use Twilio for text, you may work with them to register your A2P (Application-to-Person) campaigns. Learn more with this article from Twilio, What is A2P 10DLC?.
To help with compliance, people who sign up for a MinistryPlatform user account see a default opt-in message on the Sign Up screen. If needed, you can update the Application Label for the MinistryPlatform Client to customize this wording: oauth.smsDataWarning.