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 turn on the Scheduled SMS toggle, which adds the number to the Messaging Service used for scheduled sends. It only works once SMS is on, and it stays locked while A2P registration is still outstanding. See phone number settings for the full Messaging section.
Enabling SMS on a Phone Number#
SMS isn't on by default, you'll need to turn it on for each number:
- Go to Settings → Phone Numbers and select your number
- Scroll to the Messaging section
- Turn on SMS Messaging
Only the number's owner can change these toggles, and the switch stays greyed out if the number has no SMS capability (most local and toll-free US numbers do). Below it you'll find Scheduled SMS.
US Numbers Need Registration#
Carriers require some sending numbers to be registered before they can deliver business texts. What applies depends on the number:
- US local numbers go through A2P 10DLC registration
- US and Canadian toll-free numbers go through toll-free verification instead
- Canadian local numbers have no registration requirement, so there's nothing to do
Registration gates sending only. You can turn SMS on and receive texts right away, with no registration at all.
While your registration is outstanding, the Messaging section shows a "Sending SMS requires A2P 10DLC" notice with a link to Compliance settings, and the Scheduled SMS toggle is locked. The notice tells you exactly which piece is missing: brand not registered, brand pending, brand rejected or suspended, or no approved campaign yet.
Unregistered sends look like they worked
A message from an unregistered US number can still show as sent, then get dropped by the carrier and come back as Undelivered. That's a carrier rule, not a dialnote setting, so there's no toggle that fixes it. Get registered first: the A2P quick start takes one form, and A2P fees covers what registration costs.
What a Text Costs#
Every plan includes a pool of SMS segments each billing period. Messages draw from that pool first, then from your wallet once it's spent.
A message uses the included pool when all of these are true:
- It has no attachment (MMS always comes from the wallet)
- You're sending from a local number, not a toll-free one
- Both your number and the recipient are in your plan's region, international texts come from the wallet
- Your pool still has segments left this period
The pool is counted in segments, not messages, so a 400-character text spends three of them. If your pool is empty and your wallet balance is zero, outbound messages are blocked until you top up. Auto-recharge keeps that from catching you mid-conversation.
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 |
| Undelivered | The carrier rejected it. Often a compliance block on an unregistered number |
| 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. One emoji drops the segment size to 70 characters, so a short message can quietly cost three segments.
- 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.
- Set up auto-replies. Let auto-replies handle incoming texts and missed calls after hours so customers always get a response.
- 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.
What's Next#
- Auto-replies - automatic responses for incoming texts and missed calls
- Canned responses - saved replies with keyboard shortcuts
- Inbox - manage every call and text conversation in one place
- A2P quick start - get a US number cleared to send in one form
- A2P fees - what registration costs
- Wallet - top-ups, auto-recharge, and what messages cost
- Messaging overview - how messaging fits into dialnote