Send and receive texts

Your number has to be registered before texts get delivered. If you haven't done that yet, see Set up text messaging.

Where to text from

The Inbox. Every text conversation is in the Inbox, on the Texts tab. Open one to read it and reply. To start a new one, click New message and pick Text.

A contact or company record. Open a record with a phone number and click Text. This opens the existing conversation, or starts a new one.

Ticket replies. If a ticket's customer has a phone number, you can reply to them by text from the ticket.

The phone. The Messages tab on the Phone page (and in the Windows desktop app) lists your conversations. Open one to reply, or click New text to text someone new.

Pictures (MMS)

To send a picture, use Attach in the reply box. Pictures customers send you show in the conversation.

Who sees which texts

Each number has its own Text messages go to setting. It's separate from where the number's calls go. Texts go to one person's extension, a shared inbox, or the AI receptionist. Owners and admins see every conversation. Where texts go explains the setting and the defaults.

Taking and sharing a conversation

The top of a text conversation in the Inbox shows who it's assigned to.

• Assign to me: take it, so a colleague doesn't answer it too.
• Assign: click the assignee and pick a teammate. From then on, they get the notifications.
• Move to shared inbox… (under More): share it with a team. This adds the team; it doesn't take the conversation away from whoever had it.

Which numbers you can text from

The From list shows only the numbers whose texts come to you: your own extension's numbers and the numbers of any shared inbox you're in. Owners and admins can text from any number. This keeps people from texting a customer from the wrong line.

What the statuses mean

• Sent: Hey Quad handed the text to the carrier.
• Delivered: the carrier confirmed it reached the phone.
• Failed: the carrier refused it or couldn't deliver it. The reason shows next to it when the carrier gives one, and you can Retry.

"Sent" doesn't promise the text arrived. Only "Delivered" does.

Why a text might be refused

Hey Quad stops a text before it goes out when:

• The person opted out. They texted STOP to any of your numbers, or someone added them to your do-not-contact list. See Opt-outs and consent.
• The number isn't registered yet, or its registration hasn't reached the carriers. You'll see a warning in the reply box.
• Your organization handles health information and the text doesn't match an approved template. Approved templates are under Settings → Privacy & PHI. Use one, or ask an admin to add one.
• It's a marketing text sent outside quiet hours, without written consent, or past the daily limit. See Opt-outs and consent.

Notifications

When a text arrives, the people it goes to get a notification: the extension's owner, or everyone in the shared inbox. Once someone is assigned the conversation, only they're notified. If a number has no owner (for example, its extension was deleted), owners and admins are told instead.

Good to know

• Replies go where the conversation lives. If the customer's number is tied to an open ticket, their reply lands on the ticket. If not, it's a conversation in the Inbox.
• Missing a colleague's conversation is on purpose. If you expect to see a conversation and don't, the number sends its texts somewhere else. An admin can point it at you, or add you to the shared inbox.
• The SMS / messages report is for owners and admins, because it covers every conversation. Your own conversations are in the Inbox. See Understanding the reports.
• Long texts cost more. A text over 160 characters is split into two or more segments, and each one counts. Texts you receive are free. See How texting is billed.