SMS Messaging - what you need to know

Text messaging is now available in TalentLink!

This functionality allows you to send texts to your candidates at any point in your selection process, whether it be on an individual basis or in bulk.

For a quick demonstration of how SMS messaging is used in TalentLink, click here to view a short video.

Management of SMS 

As the contract holder, West Midlands Employers will manage the usage and payment details.

Text bundles can be purchased as required and are then available for 12 months. The WMJobs Team will monitor usage of texts within the system and contact you if you have purchased a bundle and are approaching your limit - contact the WMJobs Team for cost details.

What happens next?

When a bundle has been purchased, the WMJobs Team can then switch on the SMS functionality within your environment. As a standard, we will ask you to provide the name and email address of each TalentLink user you wish to be able to send text messages by raising a ticket within our Service Centre as these users will need to be allocated a role via User Management - 'Use SMS feature'.

In order for text messages to be sent from TalentLink without issue, there are some configuration changes that need to be made locally to your Personal Information Form in order to maximise the functionality - a guide is attached to this article to show you the steps.

Once this has been actioned, you're ready to go!

How does SMS messaging work?

When using SMS messaging within TalentLink, there are a couple of points to bear in mind;

• SMS allows you to send messages from the system and only applies to outgoing messages - if a candidate decides to reply to a message, this will not be returned into the system. As best practice, we advise that all messages sent from the system include the terminology - 'please do not reply' or a phrase of your choice to that affect

• For each text sent, there is a maximum of 155 characters, including any merge field content you have included

• SMS messages will be sent from a standard TalentLink mobile number and not masked with any specific name. Again, if a candidate replies, this will not be received in the system

• You are able to type or paste in content of your text message within Talentlink, although bear in mind, there is no template facility available

• As outlined in the configuration document attached to the article, in order for text messages to be sent without issue, the candidate needs to enter their mobile phone number into the field of 'Phone (Mobile Number)'. If this number is entered into a different field configured on the form, such as 'home' or 'work' number, the system will return an error message to say the message hasn't been sent. If, for any reason, an incorrect PIF (Personal Information Form) is attached to a vacancy, you can rectify this by entering the number into the 'mobile phone' field within the candidate summary or by typing in the correct number at time of sending the SMS. To help alleviate this, you may wish to add some wording onto your PIF (Personal Information Form) within your application process to instruct candidates at time of applying, for example - 'Occasionally we may need to contact you by SMS. Please enter your mobile phone number in the 'mobile phone number' field below to ensure you receive these'.

• When sending a text message from TalentLink, the mobile phone number that's been entered by the candidate needs to be in the correct format in order for a text to be sent successfully. When applying for a role, the telephone number field on the online application form will be pre-fixed with the country code as 'United Kingdom' (+44) and a candidate will need to enter their mobile phone number by dropping the '0' and entering the rest of the digits as per the example below; If a '0' is entered before the number, when you try and send a message, this will error and the candidate will not receive a text message. As well as adding guidance text to your Personal Information Form, you can add the field 'Phone Number' to your Selection/Hiring tab on your vacancies in order to check all numbers before text messages are sent.

• SMS messages are sent in real time as they would do from a mobile device - unlike a job postings and certain emails, you are unable to set a delay within the system so that messages are sent after a certain period of time

If you have any queries regarding SMS messaging, please raise a ticket via the Service Centre and we'll be more than happy to help.

Happy texting!