May 2022 | SMS and Phone Number Link Improvements
Summary
We have introduced two updates to improve the hyperlinking experience for phone numbers.
- Phone numbers linked as SMS may be pre-populated with text.
- The "Link type" for phone numbers and SMS links may now be disabled to allow full alpha-numeric text strings.
Description of Changes
Pre-compiled messages using Link SMS
When creating an SMS link, users may enter a message that will pre-populate in the recipient's SMS client.
Why we did this
This update enhances the user experience and improves contact rates. Users can easily enter promotional codes, add reference numbers, and more.
Disable link validation for phone numbers or SMS fields
The host application may now be configured to disable validation in the "Tel" field. This allows any string of text to be entered here. This feature also allows the "link type" field to be removed completely.
Why we did this
In some cases, users are required to enter merge tags instead of numerical values. This update allows the host application to disable the validation that would normally prevent this. Additionally, some email sending systems do not support SMS or Tel links, so the option to disable them makes the builder more compatible.
Implementation
The SMS message field is available by default in all builders. No further implementation is needed.
Link validation may be disabled by adding a configuration parameter, as shown below:
const config = {
//
...
disableLinkSanitize: true,
//
...
}
To disable the Link type field, you may use Advanced Permissions. Note that you must be on the Superpowers billing plan to access this feature.
Comments
2 comments
Which email clients support SMS in the inbox? I have tried Gmail App, Yahoo App & Outlook App, both on Android and Apple. None of which work.
Hey James Maguire!
I'm sorry about the gap here. All the clients listed by you don't support the send SMS feature.
We have an article on our Bee Pro Help Center explaining the issue. You can read it here.
We'll work on updating this article as well!
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