Texting and email (built in)

Turn on texting from your store's own number and email from your store's name. BridalIQ sets it up; you fill in one form.

You don't sign up for a texting or email service. Both are in Settings, for owners: the Texting card and the Email card, just under Messages to customers. What goes out, and when, is set on Messages, reminders and automations.

Turn on texting

In Settings, Texting, tick Turn on texting. A short form opens.
Fill it in exactly as your business is registered: the legal business name as it is on your IRS paperwork (your EIN letter, with "LLC" or "Inc"), the name customers see, the kind of business, your EIN (federal tax ID), the business address, email and website or Facebook page, and the contact person.
Pick the area code you'd like for your texting number. If none are free there, a nearby one is picked.
Press Turn on texting. BridalIQ gets your store its own local number and sends the registration to the phone carriers for you.

Why the carriers need thisVerizon, AT&T and T-Mobile only deliver business texts from registered businesses, to stop spam. You only do it once. Your EIN is kept locked away and only ever shown as its last 4 digits. It is not a card or bank number.

While you wait

Approval usually takes 1 to 2 weeks. The card says Waiting for carrier approval and shows the number you'll text from. It updates on its own; Check now looks right away.
Until it's approved, no texts go out. Emails still do.
If a step stops, the card says Stopped and why. Nothing is lost: Try again carries on from that step.
If the carriers ask for a fix (for example, the legal name doesn't match your EIN), the card shows their reason. Press Edit the details, correct it, and press Send the fix.

Once it's on

Every text to your customers comes from your store's own number. When a bride texts back, her reply shows in Texts (below) and on her customer page under Messages.
Untick Turn on texting to stop all texts at once. Tick it again to start again; nothing has to be set up twice.
Every first text says "Reply STOP to opt out". A bride who texts STOP gets no more texts.
The card counts texts this month (sent and received). A long text counts as more than one.
Texting from your existing store landline is coming later. You can leave the number on the card and we'll let you know.

Texts: every conversation in one place

Texts lists every text conversation from your store's number, newest first: her name, the last text, when, and a dot for unread. On a phone it is the Texts tab on Quick view. On a computer, open Customers and press Texts (the red number is how many are unread). A customer's Messages card also has Texts with her.

Unread / All / Mine: Mine is your own customers (she is assigned to you, or her latest appointment was with you). Search by name or number.
Tap a conversation to see every text, in and out, with who on staff sent each one and whether it went. Opening it marks it read for the whole team. Mark unread puts the dot back.
Who read it: under the texts it says who read the newest ones and who opened it after, like Read by Kayla at 3:42 PM; also opened by Matt at 4:10 PM. Owners and managers can tap that line for every time someone opened the conversation. Staff see who read it last.
Write in the box and press Send. The quick replies above the box are your store's own text wording (from Messages to customers) and a few short ones, already filled in with her name. You can also type {first_name} yourself.
New text: type a few letters of her name (or her number), tap her, write, send.
A text from a number that isn't on a customer shows as the number. Press Add as customer (type her name) or Link to customer (pick her). Her texts move to her page, and then you can text back. If the customer you pick has another number on file, it asks first: replies go to the number on her page. Linked the wrong one? Open the conversation and press Undo link; the texts go back to the number.

Who can be textedCustomers who said yes to texts (OK to text her on her page). When a bride texts the store first, you can tap She texted us: OK to reply to her (a customer added from Texts gets it by herself): you can then answer her in Texts, but that is all. It is not a yes to texts, so no reminders, automations or offers go to her until she says yes. A bride who texted STOP can't be texted from anywhere: Texts says so, nobody can tick her back on, and nothing goes out until she texts START (or says yes again herself, on her page or when she books). While your number is waiting for carrier approval, nothing is sent.

Staff replies after hours

In Settings › Texting the owner picks what happens to a text your team sends from Texts between 8 PM and 9 AM (the hours automations already wait out): Send right away (the default), Hold until the store opens (your store hours; never before 9 AM) or Hold until 9 AM. A held text shows in the conversation as Will send at 9:00 AM with a Cancel link. When it goes out, STOP and her yes to texts are checked again.

Everyone on the team can use Texts (there is no money in texts). An owner can take it away from a role in Settings › Team › Roles: the permission is Texts inbox: read and send texts from the store's number. Texts need the internet: offline, it says You're offline. This needs the internet.

Turn on email

In Settings, Email, type your store's own email under Replies go to and press Save.
Tick Turn on email. The card shows the address customers see emails from: your store's name, at a BridalIQ address.

When a bride replies, her reply goes to your store's email and also shows on her customer page. A reply matched only by her email address is marked From email, not verified: email addresses can be faked, so check with her before acting on it.

Send from your own domain (optional)

Open Send from your own domain instead, type the address (for example hello @ yourstore.com) and press Set up.
The card lists a few records. You, or whoever runs your website, add them in your domain's settings.
Press Check. Records can take a few hours to show up. Until it says Working (or Records not found if they aren't there yet), emails keep going from the BridalIQ address, so nothing stops.

Still on BridalLive?Confirmations, reminders and follow-ups start switched off, because BridalLive is probably sending its own. Turn each one on in Messages to customers when you stop BridalLive's, so brides don't get two of everything.

Which plans have it

Built-in email is on every plan. Texting is on the Shop plan and up. See Your plan.