Segmentation lets you send SMS campaigns only to contacts in a specific country.
This is particularly useful when you want to target their SMS campaigns geographically. This example uses the United States, but the same steps apply to any country.
Mobile number country code
This solution uses the Mobile number country code system data field.
This field:
is automatically assigned to every mobile number when added to Dotdigital. We do this as part of our number validation process.
cannot be edited or overwritten.
Use case
If you currently send SMS to contacts in multiple countries, you may want to target your SMS campaigns more precisely.
Whether you want to target a single country or send different SMS campaigns to different regions, you need a way to filter contacts by country.
Solution
To do this, create a segment that includes only contacts from the country you want to target.
Learn more in Create a segment.
Step-by-step guide to sending SMS only to selected countries
1: Capture US mobile numbers
If you capture mobile numbers through a Dotdigital form, you can limit the form to only capture numbers from a specific country.
Go to Content > Surveys, pages, and forms and create a new form or edit an existing one.
Select your Text box field and, in Settings, define the following:
Question type - select Contact mobile number
Default country - select United States (+1)
Select the Show only default option.
This ensures the forms only captures US mobile numbers.
Adjust other form settings according to your needs.
Select SAVE and then PUBLISH your form.
2: Create a segment for US contacts
To ensure that SMS campaigns are sent only to US contacts, you can create a segment based on the mobile number country.
Go to Audience > Segments.
Create a new segment with the following rules:
Mobile number is not empty.
Mobile number country is equal to United States.
This segment includes only the contacts with a mobile number and a matching mobile number country.
3: Send SMS
When you send an SMS campaign, select the segment created in the previous step so the SMS is sent only to US contacts.
Select the segment:
During the SMS campaign setup, choose the segment created for US contacts.
Proceed with the campaign setup and send the SMS.
4: Handle opt-outs
For toll-free numbers, include instructions for recipients to reply with "STOP" to opt-out of further messages.
Include opt-out instructions:
Add a line in the SMS message instructing recipients to reply with "STOP" to unsubscribe.
When a recipient replies with "STOP," they are automatically opted out, and their number is removed from the list.