If you'd like to send text messages to global customers through our marketing features, make sure to complete the Twilio integration!
Without integrating your channel with Twilio, you only have a limited number(500 per day, applied from August 2023) of SMS available for customers outside of South Korea. In order to utilize the marketing features in North America, you must integrate Twilio with your channel.
Integrating a Twilio account with Channel Talk
Create your Twilio account
Create or Log in to your account at Twilio.
Click the [Create New Account] button and make a new Twilio account in order to integrate with Channel Talk.
Produce API keys
Produce your API Key by clicking HERE or going to [Account] - [API Keys & tokens]. The API key is necessary for the integration.
Please follow the steps below.
3-1. Click the [Create API Key] button.
3-2. Enter the information below and click the [Create] button to issue an API Key.
Enter the API Key name to [Friendly name] field
Select "United States - Default" for [Region]
Select [Key type] as "Standard"
3-3. After issuing the API Key, you will see the following screen. This information will be needed when you integrate it with Channel Talk, especially [SID] and [Secret] data.
Make sure to copy and save your Secret key, which is only shown at the moment of issuing.
Integration process at Channel Settings
Go to [Channel Settings] - [Integrations] - [Text] menu. Find the [Twilio Integration] tab, and click the [Integration] button.
Check the Account SID of your Twilio account and enter it in the [Account SID] field.
Twilio
Your channel
Enter the [SID] and [Secret] information gathered from step 3-3 into the [API Key SID] and [API Key Secret] fields. You can find information about your API key in the API keys & tokens menu in the Twilio console.
Twilio
Your channel
Click the [Integration] button to complete the integration.
Register a sender number for North America
If you want to have a specific sender number to text your customers in North America, follow the steps below. Twilio integration in Channel Talk should be completed before setting up a phone number.
You can purchase a phone number through your Twilio account, or register an existing North American phone number from your Twilio account, which you can then use to send text messages via Channel Talk. You can also get a test number even if you have just created a new account.
How to get a new phone number from my Twilio account: See the guide by Twilio
How to register an existing phone number from my Twilio account: See the guide by Twilio
Go to the [Channel settings] - [Integration] - [SMS] and find the [Global settings] tab.
In the [Sender number] field, enter the phone number you want to use to send text messages. You can only use North American phone numbers from your integrated Twilio account.
You can see a list of your phone numbers in the Twilio console under the [Phone Numbers] - [Manage] - [Active numbers].
Click the [Save] button, and the number will be registered as a sender number on your channel. From now on, text messages sent to customers in North America will be sent from this phone number.
After integrating Twilio and Channel Talk, texts sent to customers outside of South Korea will be charged directly to your integrated Twilio account. The cost of SMS for Korean customers remains to be deducted from your SMS wallet(Recharge SMS) at your channel.
Utilizing Twilio Messaging Service in North America
Twilio Messaging Service is a feature provided by Twilio to help businesses send text messages to North American customers faster and more amount. To send text messages to your customers through marketing features, you need to integrate your channel with Twilio Messaging Service. (→ Learn more about Channel Talk's marketing feature)
If you primarily send text messages to customers outside of North America, you don't need to integrate Twilio Messaging Service.
Create Messaging Service and register a sender number
Access the Messaging Service admin panel through the [Messaging] - [Services] menu in the Twilio Console.
Enter the following information.
Enter your Messaging Service name for [Friendly name]
Choose your primary purpose for text messages as [Select what you want to use Messaging for]
Register your sender type for your Messaging Service. You can use a phone number you purchased on Twilio, or the number already registered on Twilio.
Phone Number: A North American phone number that you can use to send text messages to customers in North America.
Short Code: A number in the form of "123456" that is available in North America and can be used to send text messages to customers in North America.
Alpha Sender: A number that can be used outside of North America. (This is the same as the "Sender ID" that you can set up through Channelio).
You can skip [Step 3. Set up integration] and [Step 4. Add compilation info]. Once setting up Messaging Service is completed, you will see the screen below.
Integrate Messaging Service with your channel
After creating a Messaging Service in Twilio and copying the SID value displayed, you can register the Twilio Messaging Service by going to the [Channel settings] - [Integration] - [SMS] menu and selecting the [Twilio integration] tab.
Twilio
Your channel
Register your brand for marketing messages in North America
Following the policy in North America, you need to proceed with the pre-approval process in order to send marketing messages to customers in North America.
Register your business(brand) → The Guide by Twilio
Required information for brand registration: US-based business information (business name, address, tax ID, etc.) and the type and purpose of the text messages
The Follow-up notification messages, for sending replies from managers to offline customers via SMS, are available in North America without pre-approval.
However, in order to use the marketing feature(one-time messages and campaigns), you need to register your brand information based in the US.
Text messages without brand registration may be blocked by carriers without notification.
Check out the information needed to register your brand information.
You can also find our text messaging policy for North America HERE.