Switching from iBASIS to Instasent as your SMS provider may affect the workflows and messages you already have configured in Connectif. To maintain your sends, you will need to update the senders, review the SMS content, and adapt the opt-out mechanism to the new provider.
In this article, you will learn how to migrate from iBASIS to Instasent in Connectif.
Implementation time: 10 min.
Difficulty: Low.
When to use it: When switching from iBASIS to Instasent as your SMS provider in Connectif.
Before you start
Before performing the migration, check the following:
- Which workflows use the “Send SMS” node.
- Which SMS content uses the iBASIS opt-out mechanism.
- Which Sender ID you have available and active in your Instasent account.
STEP 1. Configuring Instasent as your SMS provider
(This section explains how to configure Instasent as your SMS provider in Connectif.)
1. Configure the SMS channel with your Instasent provider by following the steps in our Configuring the SMS channel with Instasent article.
STEP 2. Updating the “Send SMS” nodes
(In this section, you will learn how to update the senders of the SMS messages sent by your workflows.)
2. Go to Workflows from the Connectif side menu.
3. Review your active workflows and identify those that use the “Send SMS” node.
4. Click More and then Edit.
5. Click (Edit node configuration) on the “Send SMS” node.
6. Click Next to access the configuration.
7. Under Sending Parameters, enter a valid sender from your Instasent account.
In Instasent, the “Send SMS” node includes a checkbox that allows you to enable the sending of special characters. If it is not selected, Instasent converts these characters to prevent encoding that may increase the size of the SMS and, therefore, its cost.
8. Click Apply to save the node changes.
9. Click Save to apply the configurations.
STEP 3. Updating opt-out management
3.1. Updating SMS content
(In this section, you will learn how to update the messages that use the iBASIS opt-out mechanism.)
With iBASIS, contacts can opt out using a word such as “STOP”. When migrating to Instasent, you must replace these instructions with a variable that allows you to incorporate the new provider’s opt-out mechanism.
10. Go to “Content > SMS”.
11. Locate the SMS messages created previously, click More and select Edit to open each message in the SMS Editor.
12. In the Tools panel, go to the Content tab and check whether the message text includes opt-out instructions using a word such as “STOP”.
13. If it includes these instructions, delete them and add a variable such as “{{sms_unsubs}}” to incorporate Instasent’s opt-out mechanism.
14. Click Save to apply the changes.
3.2. Configuring the opt-out variable in the “Send SMS” node
(In this section, you will learn how to configure the variable that allows you to include Instasent’s opt-out instructions in your messages.)
15. Go to Workflows and locate the workflow from which the updated SMS is sent.
16. Click (Edit node configuration) on the “Send SMS” node.
17. Click Next and, in the Variables step, locate the opt-out variable added to the content and select “Literal” as the value type.
18. In the literal value text field, enter “{{unsubscribe}}”. Instasent will automatically generate the corresponding opt-out instructions for the destination country.
19. Click Apply to save the node changes.
20. Click Save to apply the configurations.
Instasent automatically adapts the {{unsubscribe}} value according to the destination country of the SMS. In the United States and Canada, it is changed to “Stop to opt-out”; in France, to “STOP au #sms#”; and in all other countries, to an opt-out link in the format “nosms.to/xxxxxxx”.
Final checks
Before you start sending SMS messages with Instasent, check that:
- Instasent is configured as your SMS provider in Connectif and its account is active.
- All “Send SMS” nodes have a valid Instasent sender configured.
- The special character settings and their potential impact on message size and cost have been reviewed.
- The SMS content uses an opt-out variable.
- The opt-out variable is associated with the literal value {{unsubscribe}} in the corresponding “Send SMS” nodes.
Success!
You have completed the configuration and can use Instasent as your sending provider in Connectif
Still have unanswered questions?
Remember that our Connectif specialists are available to help you. To contact them, simply open a ticket with Support by clicking the blue “Help” button in your dashboard.
Keep learning!
To make the most of your Connectif account, we recommend continuing with the following articles:
Configuring the SMS channel with Instasent, to learn about the requirements and procedure for connecting this provider with Connectif.
SMS Editor, to learn how to create text messages with Connectif.
SMS subscribers, to segment your contacts subscribed to SMS.
Bulk SMS campaign, to send your first SMS campaign.