Overview
You can reply to a text message directly from your Inbox, without opening the contact's full record.
You can send the reply straight away or schedule it for a later date and time, and you can write it yourself or pull in one of your saved SMS templates.
Before You Start
Check that a sending number is selected before you send. If no number is selected, the message will not go and you will get an error instead. This is the most common reason a reply fails to send.
Steps
Step 1: Open your Inbox
Hover over the left side panel and click Inbox.
Step 2: Open the conversation
Click the conversation with the person you want to reply to.
Step 3: Write your reply
There are two ways to do this.
Option 1 — from the message tab
Type your reply in the message box under the Message tab.
Option 2 — from the contact information
Hover your mouse over the contact's information and click the message icon.
Both open the same message box.
Step 4: Add your message
You can either:
Type the message manually, or
Select one of your available SMS templates
Step 5: Check the sending number
Make sure the sending from number is selected.
If it is not, the message will not send and you will get an error message.
Step 6: Send now or schedule
Send to deliver the message straight away.
Schedule to set a date and time for it to be sent later.
Important Notes
Always check the sending number before sending. A missing sending number is the usual cause of a reply that will not go through.
You can reply without leaving the Inbox. You do not need to open the contact's record.
There are two ways into the message box — the Message tab, and the message icon that appears when you hover over the contact information. They do the same thing.
Scheduling is useful for messages that should not go out late at night. Write the reply while it is fresh and set it to send at a reasonable hour.
SMS templates save retyping. If you send the same reply often, build a template rather than typing it each time.
Replying works the same way whichever contact type you are messaging — sellers, buyers, agents, or vendors.
Troubleshooting
You get an error when you try to send
Check that the sending from number is selected. This is the most common cause.
Your message did not send and you saw a notification
Same cause. Select the sending number and send again.
You cannot find the message box
Open the conversation and look under the Message tab. You can also hover over the contact information and click the message icon.
Your SMS templates are not showing
Check that you have templates saved, and that they were created for the contact type you are messaging.
You want to change a scheduled message
Find the scheduled message on the conversation before its send time.
The reply is going to the wrong number
Check which number is selected in the sending from field. The contact may have more than one number on their record.
Summary
You replied to a text from your Inbox. You opened the Inbox, opened the conversation, and typed your reply under the Message tab — or hovered over the contact information and clicked the message icon. You added your message manually or chose an SMS template, checked that the sending from number was selected, and then either sent it immediately or scheduled it for a later date and time.