Answering Service Message Dispatch Method: Text Messaging with Confirmation

Easily confirm receipt of messages

After taking an accurate and detailed message, our answering service phone agent can dispatch the message to you in a variety of ways. Often, the message dispatch method will depend on whether a call is deemed urgent or non-urgent according to your custom protocol. Messages for non-urgent calls are often immediately emailed, sent as part of a daily email recap, delivered as a text message without confirmation, or held for check-in. For urgent calls that can’t wait and require an immediate dispatch, we can call/email/text a list of contacts until we reach someone on your staff and dispatch the message. (See below for a sample urgent dispatch protocol.)

Tip:  Using our medical, plumbing, or hvac answering services?  Have on-call staff?  Use our free online on-call scheduling software to alert us in real time who is on call. Set your on-call schedule as far out in advance as you want.

How SMS with Confirmation Works

The text message you receive from the answering service will begin with the text, "Reply with xok," where ‘x’ will be a single digit number. For example: "Reply with 1ok." This code is followed by the contents of the detailed message taken by the answering service. To easily confirm receipt of the message, simply reply with "xok," where ‘x’ is the single digit.

Here is a Sample message ticket where text with confirmation is enabled:

"Reply with 1ok
John Doe – Answering Innovations 555-1234 Re: Test message"

The reply that you will send back to confirm the message has been received would be: 1ok.

In the sample urgent protocol listed below, the answering service operator will send a text message with confirmation to the on-call staff member and wait 15 minutes before proceeding to step #2 to call the on-call staff member's cell phone.  If the staff member replies to the text message with the confirmation code 1ok within 15 minutes, our system automatically receives the response and marks the message delivered. If we do not receive confirmation in 15 minutes -- or any time period that works best for you -- the message ticket will pop back up to the answering service agent, who will proceed with the next step of your urgent protocol.

Benefits of Texting Messages with Confirmation

Save time with fast confirmation of message delivery:
Confirm receipt of answering service messages in a matter of seconds. The instant you reply with the short sms confirmation code, we know you have received the message and that the message is delivered; we know to stop going down your urgent protocol list.
It's convenient:
Don't worry if you can't get to the phone right away.  In some cases, such as while driving, it might be dangerous to answer the cell phone to receive a message from the answering service.  In other cases, a phone call might be inappropriate, interrupting you in the middle of a job or in a social setting.  Receiving a text message gives you time to quickly but safely remove yourself from any situation, read the message, and confirm receipt.
Save money:
Clichéd but true: time is money.  And it takes time for the answering service operator to call out to deliver you a message, especially if multiple attempts are required to reach your staff.  On the other hand, our agent can send a text message with confirmation in about a second.  Text messaging with confirmation is cost-effective, fast, and easy.