Configure Package Notifications

Package notifications can be used to keep your customers informed about the status of their packages. In this article, we'll go through how to set up automated notifications for packages.

Things to know: 

• The ability to configure package notifications is governed by the "Accessing Automated Messages" access control setting.
• Package notifications come with three pre-configured templates that you can customize and use.
• Clients who have used all their package item credits will not receive the "Package Expired" automated notification. Instead, they will only receive the "Package Fully Used" automated message.
• Notification Requirements
  • SMS Notifications: Clients must have a valid phone number on file and be single-opted in to receive transactional SMS.
  • Email Notifications: Clients must have a valid email address on file and be opted in to receive transactional emails.
• SMS Segment Calculation & Billing

  • SMS costs are calculated per segment, not per message. Carriers treat each segment as a separate message for delivery and billing, so every segment is counted and charged individually. This billing method is determined by carriers and is not specific to MyTime.

  • Segments per message are based on length and encoding

  • Encoding Standards 

    • GSM Encoding:

      • GSM-encoded messages (standard letters, numbers, and symbols) allow up to 160 characters per segment. 

      • If the message is longer than 160 characters, it will be split into concatenated segments of 153 characters each.

    • UCS-2 Encoding:

      • UCS-2 messages (special characters, emojis, or non-Latin alphabets) allow up to 70 characters per segment. 

      • If the message is longer than 70 characters, it will be split into concatenated segments of 67 characters each.
        

      • Even a single emoji forces UCS-2 encoding, reducing per-segment capacity and potentially doubling the number of segments.

    • Note: Concatenation headers are hidden data that let the recipient’s phone reassemble multiple segments into a single message.

  • Each recipient receives their own copy, so the number of segments per message is multiplied by the number of recipients to calculate billing. Example: A 2-segment message sent to 50 recipients counts as 100 billable segments. If each segment costs $0.02, the total cost would be 100 × $0.02 = $2.00.

  • Learn more about SMS segments & billing here

To configure package notifications:

1. Navigate to Marketing > Automated Messages
2. Locate the Packages section

   Template	Description
   Package Expired	This notification is sent when packages have expired
   Package Fully Used	This notification is sent when packages have been fully used up
   Package Purchased	This notification is sent when packages have been purchased successfully

3. Hover over one of the notification statuses to see the options to 'View' or 'Activate' the template
4. Click 'View'
5. From here you can set your preferences and edit the template:
   • Reply-to-Name -This is the name that appears when clients reply to an automated email. By default, it is pulled from the business name set on the Business Profile page.
   • Reply-to-Email: By default, this is set to the location's email address.
     • If no email is configured for the location, the system will use the location owner's email instead.
     • If the hidden setting "Use a specific reply-to email for outbound emails" is enabled, the system will use the email address entered in the "Reply-To Email for Outbound Emails" field.
   • Add Direction - You can add directions for each of your locations. They will be featured in clients' appointment-related emails 
   •  Add Service-specific instructions - You can add instructions for each of your services. They will be featured in clients' appointment-related emails and SMS
   • Body of the template - This is the content of the email that will be sent to your clients. You can customize the message, include dynamic fields, and apply styling as needed
6. Save
7. Hover over the notification statuses to see the options to 'View' or 'Activate' on the template you just edited
8. Click Activate

For more information, contact us at support@mytime.com. 

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