How to turn on SMS in Klaviyo

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Learn how to enable SMS and, for those with subscribers in the UK and Australia, set up your branded sender ID.

Before you begin

You must turn on SMS before you can do any of the following:

  • Collect SMS subscribers
  • Import SMS contacts
  • Send SMS or MMS messages

If you have contacts in the UK or Australia, you will also need to set up a sending number (e.g., a branded sender ID) to collect or send to people in these countries. 

 

Turn on SMS

If you didn't set up SMS during the setup wizard, you can turn it on in the SMS settings page.

  1. Click on the name of your organization in the upper right-hand corner 
  2. Select Account from the dropdown
  3. Navigate to Settings > SMS 
  4. Click Set up SMS for free
  5. In the modal that pop ups, select the countries where you want to use SMS (check all that apply)
    • United States
    • Canada
    • United Kingdom
    • Australia
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  6. Click Next
  7. Check your sending numbers
    • For the US and Canada: A toll-free number 
      • This number will be used in both the US and Canada
      • This number will immediately be submitted for verification
      • Do not send until this number is verified
    • For the UK and Australia: A branded sender ID
      • Note that this sender ID will be used in both the UK and Australia
      • You can customize this sender ID to suit your needs

      • Branded sender IDs must:

          • Be between 3-11 characters 
          • Contain at least one letter
          • Not have any special characters (e.g., ~, &, etc.)
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  8. Click Next
  9. Optional: send a preview message to your personal phone number from your Klaviyo SMS sending number
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  10. Click Next
  11. Choose one of the following next steps
    1. Create a signup form (best for those who are new to SMS)
    2. Upload a list of previous SMS subscribers (best for those switching from another SMS provider)
  12. Click Next

Create your branded sender IDs (UK and AUS)

This is only for those who didn't create a branded sender ID when setting up SMS. 

The same branded sender ID is used for both Australia and the UK. However, with a paid plan, you can request a long code in either the UK or Australia, or a short code in the UK. 

Requirements for a branded sender ID

Branded sender IDs must:

  • Be between 3-11 characters 
  • Contain at least one letter
  • Not have any special characters (e.g., ~, &, etc.)
Create your sender ID
  1. Navigate to Account > Settings > SMS
  2. Go to the Sending Numbers section
  3. Click the dropdown menu on the right-hand side of the branded ID
  4. Choose Edit
    Sending numbers section showing the dropdown for an alphanumeric sender ID
  5. In the resulting modal, add your sender ID
    The modal where you can edit or turn off your sender ID
  6. Click Save

You'll now be able to gather and send to SMS subscribers in the UK and Australia.  

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