Email to SMS
Send texts from your email
Write an email, put the mobile number in the address, and it arrives as a text. It works from any mail client or any system that can send an email, with nothing to install and no code to write.
What is email to SMS?
Email to SMS turns an email into a text message. In CaptiFi Connect you email 07412000001@sms.captificonnect.co.uk (the mobile number, then our domain) from an address you have verified, and the body of the email is sent as an SMS to that number. Several numbers in the To field means several texts. Replies come back to your inbox and, if you want, to your email.
How email to SMS works in CaptiFi Connect
Turn it on under Settings, then send an email to the number you want to text, followed by @sms.captificonnect.co.uk. Write the number the way you would dial it (07412 000001) or in international form (447412000001); either works. The body of the email becomes the text. We stop at a signature separator (a line of two dashes) so your email signature never goes out, and we strip the formatting that mail clients add. The subject line is ignored.
Only verified addresses can send. Your login email is verified already. Add other people or systems under Settings and we send a link to prove the address belongs to them. An email from anyone else is dropped and you are told about it by email.
Every text sent this way appears in message history like any other, marked as sent by email, with its delivery status. It costs the same credits as a text sent from the dashboard, and you see the part count in the confirmation we email back if the text runs over one part.
Where it comes in useful
Email to SMS suits anything that already produces an email:
- Booking and ticketing systems that can send a confirmation email but have no SMS option.
- Alerting tools and monitors that email an on-call address: point them at the on-call mobile instead.
- Staff who live in Outlook or Gmail and need to text a customer without opening another tool.
- Rotas and reminders sent from a shared mailbox, so the whole team can see what went out.
Replies and delivery
Texts sent by email go out from a UK mobile number, so people can reply. Replies land in your two-way inbox with everything else, and if you turn on reply notifications under Settings they are emailed to the address you choose as they arrive, with the number and the text in the subject line so you can read them at a glance.
If a text cannot be sent, for example because the number is a landline or has opted out, we email the sender back with the reason, and nothing is charged.
Rules and limits that apply
Texts can be up to 10 parts long, the same as anywhere else; longer emails are refused with a reply explaining why. UK mobile numbers only. An email with more than 50 recipients is refused, since a campaign is the right tool for that and gives you merge fields and an opt-out line.
Email to SMS is for texts people expect from you: confirmations, alerts and answers. Marketing texts need consent and an opt-out line, which is what campaigns are for.
Send your first text by email
- 1
Turn it on
Under Settings, switch on Email to SMS. Your own login email is verified straight away.
- 2
Add other senders
Add colleagues or a system mailbox and click the link we email them to verify the address.
- 3
Write the email
Put the mobile number followed by @sms.captificonnect.co.uk in the To field and the text in the body.
- 4
Check the history
The text appears in message history within a few seconds with its status, and replies come to your inbox.
Questions people ask
Which email address do I send to?
The mobile number followed by @sms.captificonnect.co.uk, for example 07412000001@sms.captificonnect.co.uk. Spaces in the number are fine; mail clients drop them.
Can anyone send texts by email from my account?
No. Only addresses that have been verified for your account can send. Your login email is verified already, and each extra address proves itself by clicking a link we email it. Anything from an unverified address is dropped.
Does my email signature get sent?
No. We stop at the standard signature separator (a line with two dashes on its own) and strip the formatting mail clients add, so only the words you wrote go out. Keep the text short: the composer limit of 10 parts applies here too.
What does an email text cost?
The same as any other text: one credit for each SMS part to a UK mobile. Replies are free.
Can I send to several people in one email?
Yes, put each number@sms.captificonnect.co.uk in the To field, up to 50 in one email. For more than that, or for a personalised text with merge fields, run a campaign instead.
Will I get the replies by email?
If you turn on reply notifications under Settings, every reply is emailed to the address you choose as well as appearing in your inbox. You answer from the inbox, where the whole conversation is in one place.
Send your first text this week
Set up your account and contacts now; we check every new account before it can send.