A Zoho CRM Twilio integration lets your team text leads and contacts from the CRM and keep the replies on the record. Most of the work is in the data and the Twilio account, and both are easier to fix before the first message than after.
This post covers what to check in Zoho CRM and in Twilio first. It also says what the Zoho CRM AI Assistant can and cannot do here.
Your options
Texting from Zoho CRM usually goes through an SMS provider such as Twilio, connected by an extension from the Zoho Marketplace. Check which modules each one sends from and whether it receives replies.
zsetup, the team behind this assistant, also makes a Twilio SMS integration for Zoho CRM. It lets you:
- send an SMS from a lead or contact through your own Twilio account, with every message logged;
- receive replies in Zoho CRM, and keep the history when a lead is converted to a contact;
- send templated messages with merge fields to several contacts at once;
- send SMS and MMS from deals and accounts, schedule mass messages and automate them with workflows.
Whichever route you take, the checks below apply.
Phone numbers in the right format
Twilio expects numbers in E.164 format: a plus sign, the country code, then the number, with no spaces or brackets, for example +14155552671. Twilio's E.164 glossary page explains it.
CRM data is rarely like that. People type (415) 555-2671, 0415 555 2671 or 415.555.2671. Some extensions strip brackets and spaces for you, and zsetup's does. No tool can know the country of a number stored without its code, though. If your contacts are in more than one country, decide how the code gets added, and do not let anyone guess it in bulk.
Contacts with no mobile number
An SMS needs a mobile number. A contact with only an office line, or with no number at all, cannot be texted. Find these records before you plan a text campaign, so you know how many people it will miss and whose records they are.
Also decide which field the integration sends to. Zoho CRM has both Phone and Mobile on leads and contacts. If some reps put mobile numbers in Phone, the integration may skip them or text a landline.
Consent and opt-outs
Texting people who did not agree to it, or who asked you to stop, breaks carrier rules and often the law, so get advice on what applies to you. In the CRM, the question is where consent and opt-outs are stored.
Zoho CRM has an Email Opt Out field on leads and contacts. We did not find a standard SMS opt-out field, so many teams add a custom checkbox such as SMS Opt Out, and sometimes a field for when and how consent was given. Decide this before the first send, and decide who updates it.
Twilio has its own handling for replies such as STOP. An opt-out recorded only in Twilio does not appear in Zoho CRM unless the integration writes it back, so ask how yours handles it.
Duplicate contacts
If the same person is in Zoho CRM twice, they can get the same text twice, and their replies can land on the wrong record. A lead for someone who is already a contact causes the same problem. Clean these up first: a second text costs money.
Who sends from which number
Decide before you connect:
- Does the whole team send from one Twilio number, or does each rep or region have their own?
- Who sees replies to a shared number, and who answers them?
- What happens when a rep leaves and their number keeps getting replies?
Twilio account limits
Trial accounts. Twilio's trial account guide says a trial can send only to verified phone numbers, up to five, and only in your sign-up country, and that it expires after 30 days. A trial is for checking the setup, not for texting customers.
US A2P 10DLC. To send to US numbers from a local (10-digit) Twilio number, US carriers require A2P 10DLC registration of your business and your messaging use. Plan for it, because it is not instant.
US toll-free numbers. Twilio's toll-free verification guide says a toll-free number cannot send SMS to the US and Canada until verification is approved, and that you need a paid account to apply.
A checklist before the first SMS
- Choose the integration and read its documentation.
- Decide which field holds the mobile number, and check numbers carry a country code.
- Find contacts and leads with no phone or mobile.
- Decide where SMS consent and opt-outs live, and add the field if it is missing.
- Find duplicate contacts and leads that already exist as contacts.
- Decide who sends from which Twilio number and who answers replies.
- Upgrade from the trial, and complete A2P 10DLC or toll-free verification if you text US numbers.
- Test with a few colleagues' numbers before you text a customer.
Where the Zoho CRM AI Assistant helps
The assistant works inside Zoho CRM, on request. It reads and lists records, and changes them only after you approve. It does not send SMS, and it does not run, replace or configure any Twilio integration or read Twilio. It helps with the CRM data the integration starts from.
- No number. Find contacts without email or phone checks Email, Phone and Mobile, or the fields you list, and groups the records by owner. Ask it to check only the phone fields. It can tag the records or create tasks for owners. It checks whether a field is filled, not whether the number works or is a mobile.
- Duplicate contacts. Find duplicate contacts by email groups contacts that share an email and suggests which to keep. Deleting extras asks for a final confirmation.
- Leads that are already contacts. Find leads that already exist as contacts lists leads whose email matches a contact, and tags, reassigns or deletes the ones you choose.
- Opt-outs before a send. Check email opt-outs checks a campaign or list for people marked opted out. It is built for email, but you can name your own checkbox, tag or picklist value, such as an SMS Opt Out field. It reads only what Zoho CRM holds.
- A field for consent. Add custom fields creates fields such as an SMS Opt Out checkbox or a consent date, and places them on the layout, after you approve.
The assistant does not reformat phone numbers or add country codes. Do that in Zoho CRM or in your source data.
Clean the numbers and the opt-outs, settle the Twilio account, then connect. The integration does the sending from there.