SMS & MMS
dialnote lets you send and receive text messages directly from your business phone numbers. You can text customers from the same inbox where you handle calls, so every conversation stays in one place.
Sending Text Messages#
There are two ways to send an SMS in dialnote:
From an existing conversation — Open any conversation in your inbox and switch the input to "Message" mode. Type your message and hit Enter (or click Send). Your text goes out from the phone number tied to that conversation.
Starting a new conversation — Click the compose button in your inbox to open the new message modal. Pick a "From" number (only SMS-enabled numbers show up), enter the recipient's phone number, type your message, and send.
Character limits
Each SMS segment holds 160 characters (or 70 if you're using emoji or special characters). dialnote supports messages up to 1,600 characters — they'll automatically split into multiple segments. The character counter in the composer shows both your total count and how many segments your message will use.
Sending Pictures and Files (MMS)#
You can attach media to your texts by dragging a file into the message input or clicking the attachment icon. dialnote supports these file types for MMS:
- Images — JPEG, PNG, GIF
- Documents — PDF
The max file size is 5 MB per attachment. You'll see a preview of your file before sending, so you can double-check it looks right.
Scheduling Messages#
Need to send a text later? dialnote lets you schedule messages anywhere from 15 minutes to 7 days out. Click the clock icon next to the send button and pick a time:
- In 1 hour — quick follow-up
- Tomorrow 9 AM — start of business
- Tomorrow 2 PM — afternoon check-in
- Custom — pick any date and time
Scheduled messages show a clock icon so you can spot them easily. You can cancel a scheduled message anytime before it goes out.
Scheduling setup required
Message scheduling needs to be turned on per phone number. Go to Settings → Phone Numbers → [your number] → Messaging and enable the Scheduled SMS toggle. This adds your number to the messaging service pool that handles timed delivery.
Enabling SMS on a Phone Number#
SMS isn't on by default — you'll need to enable it for each number:
- Go to Settings → Phone Numbers and select your number
- Scroll to the Messaging section
- Toggle Enable SMS on
Not all numbers support texting. The toggle will only appear if your number has SMS capability (most local and toll-free US numbers do).
US numbers need A2P registration
If you're texting from a US number, you'll need to complete A2P 10DLC brand registration first. This is a carrier requirement for business texting. dialnote walks you through the registration process — your SMS won't activate until your brand and messaging campaign are approved.
Message Delivery Tracking#
Every text you send goes through a delivery pipeline so you always know its status:
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Queued | Message accepted, waiting to send |
| Sent | Handed off to the carrier |
| Delivered | Confirmed delivered to the recipient's phone |
| Read | Recipient opened the message |
| Failed | Couldn't deliver — check the number and try again |
| Scheduled | Waiting to send at the time you picked |
| Canceled | You canceled a scheduled message before it sent |
Status icons appear next to each message in your conversation timeline, so you can quickly see what landed and what didn't.
Tips for Business Texting#
- Keep it short. Texts that fit in a single segment (under 160 characters) are cheaper and deliver faster.
- Use canned responses. If you send the same replies often, set up canned responses to save time. Type a shortcut and the full message fills in automatically.
- Watch your timing. Respect business hours when texting customers — nobody wants a sales follow-up at midnight.
- Check delivery status. If a message shows "Failed," the number might be a landline or disconnected. Try calling instead.