Webinar and Q&A: SMS Communication

We recently hosted a live webinar covering a major new TaxDome product release: SMS communication.

During the one-hour session, TaxDome co-founder and chief product officer Ilya Radzinsky was joined by chief revenue officer Petar Iliev and special guest Jamie L. Burkart, CEO at Foenix Tax & Business Services. Together, they outlined the benefits of using SMS communication and provided a deep dive into how it works in TaxDome.

If you weren’t able to attend, we’ve got you covered. Find a full recording of the webinar below:

Here’s a brief overview of what we discussed:

• How to set up SMS integration 
• How to send clients SMS messages individually or in bulk
• How to use SMS templates — and customize them using shortcodes

Want to learn more about SMS communication in TaxDome? Schedule a demo with our implementation team:

Q&A transcript

Can I send a mass (bulk) SMS?

Yes, you can. You will be able to send bulk SMS to different accounts.

Will we have SMS templates similar to the existing email templates that we can auto-send via our pipelines?

Yes, you will be able to create templates for SMS.

Do clients need to be registered in TaxDome, or use the client app, to participate in SMS? 

SMS will be sent directly to your client’s cell phone, so they don’t need to log in to the Client Portal or have an active portal. All you need is their contact information in TaxDome. 

If TaxDome keeps the SMS history, that would be great. Is it going to be in the same area as Chat?

Yes, it will. You will be able to access it the same way you access the secure messages feature.

Are we going to have the option to turn off SMS replies?

We believe that preventing replies is a bad user experience for your clients. It’s not possible to stop clients from texting you, so they will either get no response if replies are not enabled or an auto-response that tells them they cannot reply – both of which are not ideal user experiences. 

We’d love to hear your thoughts – please chat with our product team through the feature request board.

Can I upload client phone numbers without creating contacts/accounts?

A contact is required, as SMS are sent to contacts. To send an SMS, add the cell phone number to the contact’s Phone Numbers section.

Firms can only send SMS to contacts. To send an SMS to a contact, add the cell phone number to the Phone Numbers section.

How will SMS work when a client has multiple accounts? Will texts show up under accounts or individuals?

You will be able to choose the account(s) that you want the SMS to be sent to. It will show up on the accounts communication trail. It will work similarly to the email sync feature.

If a client has multiple phone numbers, which one will the SMS go to? 

We’ve added a field ‘Primary’ when a contact has multiple phone numbers. SMS will go to the primary number. You can pick and choose who will get the SMS.

What happens if a client tries calling our number?

The phone number won’t be enabled for calls, so the call won’t connect. Our plan for the future is to enable call forwarding so the calls get re-routed to an active phone line, i.e. an office number.

Is SMS already available in TaxDome? I don’t see it on my account.

It is available for Early Access users. As the brand registration process with Twilio can take a few weeks, we recommend registering as soon as it’s available for your firm.

What happens when clients respond to SMS messages we send?

You will receive a notification in TaxDome. By clicking on the client’s account page, you will also be able to view the message in the SMS subtab under the Communication tab.

Having one big “Communication” tab on the left-side task panel is going to be essential.

We are already working on it! Stay tuned for details.

Can we cancel this service for SMS anytime?

Yes, you can cancel this anytime. If in future you decide to register again, you will get a new number, so please pay attention to that.

What if we have two spouses on the account? Will it send it to both of them or just one?

SMS are sent to specific phone numbers. So if you want to just send an SMS to one spouse, you can do that. And if you want them both to receive it, you can do that, too – they will each receive an SMS from you in separate threads; it will not be a group thread.

Two offices, one company… Does that mean two SMS phone numbers?

Each TaxDome firm will have one SMS connection service and one phone number. Let us know in the feature request board if you require more numbers and use cases!

There are two places to put a phone number in TaxDome – does it matter which one you use?

SMS are sent to contacts – so make sure that the contact’s phone number is complete. If you don’t have it, you can bulk import the information. 

Visit this help article for how to bulk import information for existing contacts.

A client does not have to register for Twilio, is that correct? Also, are we texting from our phone, from TaxDome, or both?

There are no registrations for clients. They will just receive SMS directly to their cell phones.

You will be provided with a new phone number after connection, so you can’t use your existing phone number for now. However, we are already working on adding an option to transfer your existing phone number.

How much does SMS cost through TaxDome?

For more information on SMS processing fees, visit this help article.