- I’ ve signed up, now what?
- How do I buy SMS credits?
- What are the banking details?
- How much does it cost to send SMS messages?
- What is Dynamic Originator / Sender Id?
- How do I add an originator to my account?
- How do I remove an originator from my account?
- How do I send messages?
- What other options do I have in sending messages?
- How do I send SMS using FTP?
- How do I send SMS using HTTP Posts?
- How do I send SMS using the Batch Upload option?
- How do I add/delete recipients to/from my address book?
- How do I create/delete a group?
- How do I send a message to a group?
- How do I add recipients that are in my address book into a group?
- I have a large database (or list) of recipients how do I load their details onto my HarvestSMS account?
- How do I check the status of my sent messages?
- HELP!!! How do I contact support?
- What is Premium SMS (Competition SMS)?
- How much does it cost to use the Premium SMS (Competition SMS) service?
- How do I order a Premium SMS (Competition SMS) keyword?
- How much revenue can I earn if I run a Premium SMS (Competition SMS) competition?
- What are the TERMS AND CONDITONS of using HarvestSMS and all its services?
- I’ve sent a message and it has not yet arrived. What do I do?
Now that you have signed up you may proceed to login to your account.
If you are not sure of what your username or password is click on the link “FORGOT PASSWORD?”.
The first thing you will need to do in order to begin sending SMS is to Buy SMS Credits
You will need to buy SMS credits in order to send messages.
Click here for more information and follow the instructions given.
3 What are the banking HarvestSMS details?
The banking details are given on our Buy Credits page.
4) How much does it cost to send SMS messages?
SMS messages cost anything between 1 and 3 credits depending on the network and country you are sending to. Each credit costs a maximum of US5cents and minimum of US3cents.
5) What is Dynamic Originator / Sender Id?
Dynamic Origination (also known as anonymous messaging) referes to the ability to customise the senders detail (Sender Id) that appears on the recievers mobile device (Cell phone).
In other words when the message arrives in the recievers SMS inbox, the cell number that the message appears to come from (originator or sender Id) can be customised by using the Dynamic Originator feature on HarvestSMS.
The Dynamic Originator can be changed to either numeric (eg: 1234) or text (eg: HARVESTSMS).
An originator cannot be more than 10 characters in length for text based originators and 12 characters for numeric originators.
HarvestSMS users may Add as many Dynamic Originators as they wish, this feature does NOT cost anything to setup or use.
In order to make use of this feature you will need to Add an Originator to your HarvestSMS account.
6) How do I add an originator to my account?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Add/Remove originator (it is the 7th option in the menu).
Once you have read through the information at the top of the page, you will notice a section labelled Adjust Originator, in the text box provided add in your originator and click the Add Originator button.
To check if your originator has been added, click on the drop down box which is located to the right of the Add Originator section in the Remove Originator section, your originator should now appear in this list.
As you have noticed you can also Remove an Originator in this section.
7) How do I remove an originator from my account?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Adjust originator (it is the 7th option in the menu).
Once you have read through the information at the top of the page you will notice a section labelled Remove Originator select the originator that you would like to remove by using the drop down box provided (which lists all originators available to your account) and click on the Remove Selected Originator button.
To check if your originator has been removed succesfully, check in the drop down box..
How do I send messages? Login to your account.
There are 2 main options of sending messages:
A) Quick Message option, (this option is used to send a once-off message to one recipient).
B) Send Message (Bulk SMS) option,(this option is used to send a message to many recipients or to a selected recipient in your address book).
A) Shouid you wish to use the Quick Message option, on the left hand menu click on the option labelled Quick Message (it is the 8th option in the menu).
Read through the information provided and select your delivery option.
On the Send Your Message page, select your appropriate originator and type in the cellphone number to which you would like to send the message in the text box provided.
The cell phone number needs to be in the international format (Eg.: instead of 0912 111 111 use 263912 111 111 NB: do NOT put in the + of the 27 or any other international codes).
Type in your message and click on the Send buttom when you are satisfied with your message.
B) Should you wish to use the Send Message (Bulk SMS) option, on the left hand menu click on the option labelled Send Message (it is the 9th option in the menu).
Choose your sending option on the next page
Read through the information provided and select your delivery option.
On the Send Your Message page, select your appropriate originator and type in your message.
You may also personalise the message by using the NAME, SURNAME and EXTRA INFO buttons on the right side of the message box.
Once you are satisfied with message, choose wether you want the message to be delivered now or at a later stage by clicking in the circle next to the appropriate option (these options are found underneath the box where you are able to type your message), click on the Send button and follow the instructions given on the Confirmation page.
9) What other options do I have in sending messages?
HarvestSMS users may also use the following SMS sending options:
FTP to SMS
HTTP Post
Batch upload
10) How do I send SMS using FTP?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled “Help”. Then click on FTP to SMS and follow the instructions CAREFULLY.
11) How do I send SMS using HTTP Posts?
Login to your account, on the left hand menu click on the option labelled “Help”. Then click on HTTP POSTS option and follow the instructions CAREFULLY.
12) How do I send SMS using the Batch Upload option?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Upload batch (it is the 10th option in the menu) and follow the instructions carefully.
13) How do I add/delete recipients to/from my address book?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Address Book (it is the 3rd option in the menu).
To add a recipient click on the ADD RECIPIENT Button located on the top right of the page.
Enter your recipients details and if required select which group you want to put this recipient in.
Once you are satisfied with all the information click on the SAVE button.
To Delete a recipient, on the Address book page, locate the recipient(s) you would like to delete and click inside the box in the SELECT column of the recipient(s) and Click on the DELETE button located on the top right of the page.
14) How do I create/delete a group?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Address Book (it is the 2nd option in the menu).
To create a new group click on the ADD GROUP button located on the top right of the page.
Enter the details of you group and click on the SAVE button.
To Delete a group(s), select the group(s) that you want to delete by clicking inside the SELECT column of the group(s) and click the DELETE button located on the top right of the page and follow the instructions that follow.
15) How do I send a message to a group?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Send Message (it is the 9th option in the menu).
On the SEND TO: page click on the Group/s option.Select the group/s that you want to send the message to by clicking inside the box/s located in the SELECT column and then click on the CONTINUE button and proceed to send the message as normal.
16) How do I add recipients that are in my address book into a group?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Address Book (it is the 3rd option in the menu).
Locate the recipient that you want to add to an existing group by clicking on the surname of the recipient.
All the recipients details will appear.
In the section which displays your groups click inside the box next to the name of the appropriate group and click the SAVE button.
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled Address Book (it is the 4th option in the menu).
Follow step 1 through 5 of the address Book Import Wizard CAREFULLY.
18) How do I check the status of my sent messages?
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled REPORTS (it is the 5th option in the menu).
You will notice a drop down box with the words “Report Type” next to it,in the drop down box select your desired report type.
Where applicable use the calender to select the date on which you sent the messages that you would like to query and click the GET REPORT button.
Your report will now be displayed.
19) HELP!!! How do I contact support?
During office hours (09:00 - 16:30 Monday - Thursday & 09:00 - 16:00 Friday) use the contact details given on our Contact Us page.
20) What is Premium SMS (Competition SMS)?
This service is currently not available in Zimbabwe due to network limitations.
A Premium SMS is an SMS that a person sends from their phone to a shortcode (eg. 56003).
The message sent contains a unique keyword to identify the campaign.
The sender is charged a fee for that message eg. US$0.20 for that message.
Usually, companies use this service to run different types of competitions. .
HarvestSMS offers its account holders the ability to run a PREMIUM SMS service and to obtain a keyword of their choice.
HarvestSMS charges only US$30.00 (ex vat) per keyword per year.
Persons participating by sending the message will receive a confirmation SMS which can be customised (Advanced users can even use this to query databases and return the result to the sender).
The confirmation is included as part of the HarvestSMS Premium SMS package. By running a Premium SMS service, you earn revenue from SMS’s sent to your shortcode (with your keyword). The payouts given differ from network to network.
21)What are the costs involved in the use of the Premium SMS (Competition SMS) service?
In order to use this service you will have to order a Premium SMS Keyword.
Each key word costs US$30.00 EXCLUDING VAT per key word per year. This is deducted from your HarvestSMS account as credits.
The recipients that send messages to the shortcode will be charged US$0.20 INCLUDING VAT per message.
22) How do I order a Premium SMS (Competition SMS) keyword?
This service is currently not available in Zimbabwe due to network limitations.
Login to your account. On the left hand menu click on the option labelled COMPETITION SMS (it is the last option in the menu). On the right side of the page click on the Order New Keyword button.Read through the information carefully and select the desired keyword options and click the Order Keyword button.
23) How much revenue can I earn if I run a Premium SMS (Competition SMS) competition?
By running a Premium SMS service, you earn revenue from SMS’s sent to your shortcode (with your keyword) Payouts given differ from network to network. To view the current payout ammount per network please click on the COMPETITION SMS option on the left hand menu.
24) What are the TERMS AND CONDITONS of using HarvestSMS and all its services?
The Terms & Conditions can be found by clicking here.
25) I’ve sent a message and it has not yet arrived What do I do?
When you send an SMS it is relayed via our gateways to the SMS networks. Once it is sent to the networks, the time it takes to reach the recipient’s phone depends on the amount of traffic being handled by the networks involved. Messages usually are received within minutes of being sent, but due to congestion on the networks, may sometimes take longer.
Send Us Your Question
The HarvestSMS Customer Support team is committed to making sure your questions are answered as quickly as possible. If there are no answers here to your question, please send it to us using the form below:
