Video tutorial coming soon!
What you can do
- Send automated texts - Confirmations, reminders
- Receive texts - Customers can text your number
- AI responses - Intelligent auto-replies
- Templates - Pre-written messages for common scenarios
Automated messages
Appointment confirmation
Sent immediately after booking:
Hi [Name]! Your appointment with [Business] is
confirmed for [Date] at [Time].
Reply YES to confirm or call us to reschedule.
Appointment reminder
Sent 24 hours before:
Reminder: You have an appointment tomorrow at
[Time] with [Business].
Reply C to confirm or R to reschedule.
Follow-up
Sent after service:
Thanks for choosing [Business]! We'd love your
feedback. How was your experience today?
Reply 1-5 (1=Poor, 5=Excellent)
Message templates
Create reusable templates:
| Template | Use case |
|---|
| Booking confirmation | After appointment scheduled |
| Reminder (24h) | Day before appointment |
| Reminder (1h) | Hour before appointment |
| On our way | Technician en route |
| Follow-up | After service completed |
| Review request | Ask for reviews |
Variables
Personalize messages with variables:
| Variable | Replaced with |
|---|
[Name] | Customer’s name |
[FirstName] | First name only |
[Date] | Appointment date |
[Time] | Appointment time |
[Business] | Your business name |
[Address] | Your address |
[Phone] | Your phone number |
AI-powered responses
When customers text back, your AI can:
- Answer questions - Using your knowledge base
- Reschedule - Move appointments
- Confirm - Mark attendance confirmed
- Escalate - Alert you for complex issues
Example conversation:
Customer: Can I change my appointment to Thursday?
AI: Of course! I have availability Thursday at
10 AM, 2 PM, or 4 PM. Which works best for you?
Customer: 2pm
AI: Perfect! I've rescheduled you for Thursday at
2 PM. You'll receive a confirmation shortly.
Two-way texting
Your CallDesk number can send and receive texts:
- Inbound texts appear in your inbox
- Reply from dashboard or let AI handle it
- Full conversation history with each contact
SMS compliance
Text messaging requires consent. Make sure customers have opted in to receive texts from you.
- Get consent - Checkbox on forms, verbal agreement
- Include opt-out - “Reply STOP to unsubscribe”
- Honor opt-outs - Immediately stop messaging
- Identify yourself - Include your business name
Message limits
| Plan | Monthly SMS | Characters/message |
|---|
| Core | 500 | 160 |
| Pro | 2,000 | 160 |
| Max | Custom | 160 |
Setting up SMS
Enable SMS
Go to Settings → Messaging → Enable SMS
Configure templates
Create or customize message templates
Set triggers
Choose when messages are sent automatically
Test
Send a test message to yourself