Frequently Asked Questions

Pricing

• How much does it cost?
• Any other costs involved to send SMS?
• How do I buy credits?
• Do you offer other discounts?

Features

• Can I send 1000 simultaneous messages?
• Do you provide status reports for the undelivered messages?
• How long does it take to deliver messages?
• Is it possible to use the "sender id" parameter?
• Do you support non-English text?
• Do you support 2 way SMS?

Registration

• How do I register?
• What does enter only alphanumeric and "_" mean?
• How do I Log in?
• I haven't received my activation code yet?
• I got the activation code. Now what?

1. How much does it cost?

From 26c/SMS but please see our pricing page for up to date costs. If you buy in bulk you pay less.
By registering and sending some test messages (for free) you can be sure exactly what the cost will be.

2. Are there any other costs involved to send SMS?

There are no setup fees or monthly fees or any other additional fees. We operate on a prepay basis. The credits that you buy will not expire until you use them, so if you buy them now and only use them 6 months down the line, that is no problem. They will always be on your account at your disposal. Our holding company is in South Africa and therefore only South Africans will be charged VAT. Users do not pay for replies. It does not cost anything extra to be able to customize the sender ID.

4. How do I buy credits?

We work on a prepaid basis. You can purchase credits online via Credit or Debit card, paypal, moneybookers, electronic funds transfer(EFT) or bank deposit. Please see our payment methods page for more detailed information.

5. Do you offer other discounts?

We provide users with an option of appending their messages with our tagline www.bulksms.com. This is called a 'Tag-line discount'. You can tick this option on the 'Compose Message' page. This option saves you 15% off the cost of an SMS.

6. Will the system allow 1000 or more simultaneous messages?

Yes, our system can handle over and above that amount of messages per day at a time. The limit is quite high. BulkSMS offers the same easy to use service whether you are a individual or bulk client.

7. Do you provide status reports for the undelivered messages?

All messages will have a status report whether successfully delivered or not.

8. How long does it take to deliver messages?

Typically messages are delivered within 15 seconds on the premium route and within 3 minutes on the standard route, but usually even faster. The best is to test it for yourself.

9. Is it possible to use the "sender id" parameter?

Setting of the Sender ID can be enabled after your initial credits purchase. Sender Id requests are processed manually and thus we suggest you request a sender Id change within office hours for a swift response.

Sender ID's only work to International numbers. A message can either have a Sender ID, or be repliable. Sender ID is not available when using the desktop Messenger but can be set via http request and email to SMS.

10. Do you support non-English text? (The SMS will be written in your language)

Yes, you can send non-English Characters. On the 'Compose Message' page select 'Send as Unicode'. The character length for your message will be much shorter though, about 80 characters.

11. Do you support two-way SMS?

Yes, recipients of messages that you sent via our system can reply to your messages. The reply messages will be posted to your inbox folder in your account. You can also have replies forwarded to an email address or to a URL if you want.

12. How do I register?

Registering for an account is free and takes a few minutes. Please note that all fields must be completed to register. Once you register a code will be SMS'ed to your cell phone. This code will activate your free credits.

You will need to provide the following information:
Username (case sensitive)
Password (case sensitive)
First Name
Surname
Email
Cell number (country code and number with no spaces or leading zero, e.g. 27828872376)
Telephone (e.g. 27828872376)
Fax (e.g. 27828872376)
Company
Street Address
Postal Address
Postal Code
City
Country
How did you hear about us?

Once you have entered the information correctly CLICK 'Register' and you will receive the following message: "You have been successfully registered. An activation code is being sent to your cell phone right now."

If you do not receive your activation code please email Support to request it. Please include your username, cell number and website in the email.

CLICK 'Message Centre' to proceed to see the 'My Account' Page.

13. What does enter only alphanumeric and "_" mean?

Alphanumeric: a-z, A-Z and 0-9. You can use any characters in these ranges, as well as the underscore: "_". Also the login is case-sensitive.

14. How do I Log in?

ENTER 'Username' and 'Password'. These are both case sensitive. CLICK 'Login' to access your home page.

15. I haven't received my activation code yet?

Please view coverage to see if our service is available in your area.

16. I got the activation code. Now what?

An activation code was sent to your mobile. To claim your 5 free credits, please do the following:
a) Go to our web site,
b) LOGIN with your username and password,
c) Once you have logged in, CLICK on 'Claim them now',
d) Enter the activation code exactly as it appears on your phone.

Note: If you use our Text messenger desktop software you can also claim your free credits from the 'My Account' menu in the program.

For detailed help on user account functions in the logged-in section of the site please see the Help Centre