Texting in GC Outreach - New & Improved Experience

This article will give you an overview of what to expect in the new texting experience embedded within GC Outreach to send mass text messages to your constituents for a wide variety of use cases.

 

Guided Walkthrough

Take an interactive video walkthrough of our new texting feature, guiding you step by step from setup to your first message. This short, click-through demo makes it easy to see how texting can streamline communication and boost engagement.

How do I create a text campaign?

To create and send a text campaign to a large group of people, navigate to the GC Outreach icon in the left navigation (envelope) and choose to "New Outreach" in the top right. Here you will be given the option to send an email OR a text as long as you have access in your account to both options.

Once you create a text draft outreach, you will be able to revisit this and make edits to the messaging and the recipient list before sending it out or scheduling it for a future date using the edit icon on the table view.

 

Managing your Text Content

When editing a text outreach, you will be able to rename the text, insert a template you have previously created, attach an image, and manage your text content. 

You can attach an image or a gif using the upload on the text content. This will be sent directly before the text content and does count as an additional message and will be sent separately.

How to include an image in a text message

1. Navigate to GC Outreach via the left navigation and click New Outreach.
2. Select Text as your message type.
3. Optionally, choose a saved template to prefill your message.
4. In the outreach content editor, locate the Attach an Image section with media upload controls. Use these controls to add an image or GIF to your campaign. The attached media is sent as a separate message before your text and counts as an additional message (refer to the Media Attachments section for file limits).

What to do if you don't see the Attach an Image control

• Confirm that you are initiating an outreach by selecting Text under GC Outreach > New Outreach rather than editing a template in the Templates area.
• If the control is still missing, verify that Text is selected as the message type, since the Attach an Image feature is not available for emails.

The text content itself can be as long as you'd like. However, the longer you make your text, the more it will be split up across messages. Use the character count on the bottom to help inform your messages length. Also, merge token values and link lengths inserted could impact the end result for different recipients of your message. You can directly insert merge tokens, emojis, and GiveCampus links directly in the content builder.

GiveCampus Links will provide a few options to select from across the platform. Once you add a GiveCampus link that points to a campaign, giving form, or event within the platform, you will see the green link you added in the editor.

Using Unique Tracking Links in text messages

Unique Tracking Links enable per‑recipient click and conversion tracking in GC Outreach. This is a two‑step process: first, create the tracking link on the campaign, giving form, or event; then, insert the tracking link into your text via the GC Links panel.

Step 1 – Create a tracking link

1. Open the campaign, giving form, or event in admin.
2. Go to the Tracking & Analytics section. The section is titled either Unique Tracking Links or Links & Appeal Codes based on your settings.
3. In the form, enter a descriptive name in the Title field and click Create Link. Ensure the title clearly identifies the channel and purpose, for example: a pledge reminder text.

Step 2 – Insert the tracking link in a text outreach

1. In the text outreach content editor, click the GC Links button to open the side panel.
2. Select the appropriate Destination from the Destination dropdown (Campaign, Giving Form, or Event).
3. Choose the specific record from the next dropdown.
4. The panel then shows radio options for the link type:
   • General Link – always available.
   • Personalization Link – appears if personalization links are configured for the record.
   • Advocacy Link – appears for campaigns that have advocacy links (not for giving forms or events).
   • Auto-Fill Link – always available.
   • Unique Tracking Link – appears only if at least one tracking link is created for the record. If not visible, create a tracking link first (see Step 1).
5. Select Unique Tracking Link. A secondary dropdown labeled Select a Tracking Link will list the available tracking links for the record. Choose the one you created in Step 1.
6. Confirm your selection. The editor preview will show the full URL, but the actual text message sends a GiveCampus‑shortened URL that begins with www.givecampus.com.

Event links

When working with events, the link-type options appear slightly differently and only display if the event has tracking links or RSVP No links configured:

• Event Landing Page – always the first option.
• Event RSVP No – appears if RSVP No links are enabled.
• Unique Tracking Link – appears if tracking links have been created (following the same rule as above).

Additional details

• All links inserted via the GC Links panel are automatically shortened on a per-recipient basis for individual click and conversion tracking.
• Pasting or typing a URL directly into the text body does not enable per‑recipient tracking, so use the GC Links panel.
• Use clear, descriptive titles when creating tracking links to simplify selection when building multiple outreaches.

Summary

• First, create a tracking link in the Tracking & Analytics section of your record.
• Next, insert the link into your text by selecting the appropriate Destination, record, and then choosing Unique Tracking Link from the GC Links panel.

This two‑step approach ensures accurate per‑recipient reporting and compliance with carrier link requirements.

Clicking on this will let you make adjustments to the link if you would like to change what link, where it's pointing, etc.

All links inserted from the GiveCampus link selector will be shortened automatically for you. Alternatively, if you copy/paste a url into the text message body, GiveCampus will not automatically shorten the link or track clicks or conversions on these links. If tracking clicks and conversions are a key priority for your team, we recommend using one of the link options in this dropdown. If you manually type in a GiveCampus link, we will also shorten those. These links are shortened PER recipient in order to ensure we can track clicks and conversions for individuals and get you that reporting later. You will see the shortened URL in both the send test text message flow and once the message is actually sent but the preview will show the full URL.

Text message links and branded URLs

GC Outreach texts enforce strict link rules to maintain deliverability and avoid carrier spam filters.

• Only GiveCampus-shortened URLs are approved by Twilio. These auto-generated links support tracking and deliverability.
• Shortened URLs begin with www.givecampus.com.
• Using non‑approved URLs may result in messages being flagged as spam or blocked by carriers.
• Preview vs. actual send: The on‑screen preview displays the full URL, while your test text and actual message use the GiveCampus-shortened version.

Best practice

Use the GiveCampus link selector when inserting links. This ensures that links are shortened per recipient for accurate click and conversion tracking and remain compliant with carrier requirements.

 
 

 

 

Segmentation & Recipient Management in Text Outreaches

Clicking on the recipients tab at the top of the page will allow you to manage your recipient list for this text message outreach. You can choose a few paths:

1. Uploading a .csv directly of the phone numbers you would like to send this outreach to who have previously opted in to receiving messages from you about this topic. You will need to have a .csv with the headers of external_id, first_name, last_name, and phone_number for this option. External_Id does NOT need to be filled in but the column will need to be present.
2. Selecting from various segments from across the platform. This includes a variety of segments originating on GiveCampus (campaign donors, event registrants, etc) or custom segments you have created previously in the "Segments" functionality using our query builder or a custom list.
   1. When using segments in a text outreach, phone numbers will be pulled from the data that was uploaded via the school level data importer and matched via external id and email address based on the segment.
      1. So, for example: If you have an event registrant that used the email example@example.com and that is associated to external ID 12345 as your constituent identifier, we will pull the mobile phone number from their record if present when you select to send a text outreach to this individual
      2. Important Note: We will NOT pull phone numbers from custom fields added to donation forms or event registration forms that are not explicitly associated to an external ID and email address in our school level data importer. 

Once you have selected your segment or uploaded your .csv to the text outreach draft, all phone numbers will be validated with Twilio for SMS acceptance, checked against solicit code mappings you have done for individuals at the school level, and checked for opt outs done previously within the GiveCampus platform from your outreach phone number. All of those scenarios will be shown at the top to exclude from the recipient list automatically. 

 

Filtering your Text Recipient List

After you have created a recipient list, you can additionally layer on any of our dynamic filters to your text recipient list similar to email capabilities mentioned in this article. Filters will match based on external_id associated to your phone numbers in your recipient list to find those that have the parameter you have set in your filter from across the platform. Utilize the school level data importer or the Constituents API to unlock the full functionality here to ensure you can match across any action they may have taken with a large variety of email addresses they may have. 

 

Testing your Text Messages

On the content editor page, you can choose to send yourself a test text message and select one of the constituent recipients you have uploaded to check their individual merge tokens and/or shortened links to ensure it is coming across the way you want.

Review all merge token values at once (CSV review)

On the Preview tab of a text outreach draft, you’ll see a Review Merge Tokens button above the Send Outreach button if your message contains at least one merge token and you have added at least one recipient. (This button is not shown for sequence-based text outreaches.)

• Label and placement: The button is labeled Review Merge Tokens and is positioned above the Send Outreach button for a final audit before sending.
• Availability: It only appears when the draft contains merge tokens and has one or more recipients. It will not display if there are no merge tokens or recipients.
• Disabled state: While GiveCampus is computing the merge token substitutions, the button appears disabled (greyed out) and is enabled once the computation is complete.

When you click the button:

1. If the batch is complete: Clicking triggers an email to the admin that includes a downloadable CSV. The CSV lists every recipient and the exact values each merge token will resolve to when the message is sent. Use this CSV to check for missing or unexpected values.

2. If the batch is not complete: An error message is displayed: "Merge token substitutions have not yet been computed. Please try again once merge tokens are ready for review." Wait for the process to finish before trying again.

How this tool fits with existing merge-token checks:

• Use the CSV review for a bulk audit of all recipients.
• For a quick check of individual recipients, use the beaker icon in the recipient list.

Reviewing merge tokens in bulk can help you spot data issues—such as blank names or incorrect custom-field values—and make any necessary corrections before the texts are sent.

Additionally, if you would like to check more merge tokens, you can utilize the "beaker" icon next to each recipient in the recipient list to view their individual merge tokens that will be sent for quick checks.

 

Opt Outs

 

Opt outs are globally for your phone number used within Outreach. These will carry over from the old texting experience.

If you have opt outs from previous platforms outside of GiveCampus, you will need to map those through the school level data importer as "solicit codes".

Managing Text Conversations

Where to find conversations

• Open GC Outreach in the left navigation and select Conversations to view all two‑way SMS threads for your school.

How the conversations inbox works

• Threads are listed in order of most recent activity. Any new inbound or outbound message moves the thread to the top of the list.

Understanding the "Has not been responded to" filter

• A conversation appears in this filter only when the recipient sent the most recent message and you have not replied. The filter considers only the direction of the latest message.

Conversations filters — what each one does and how to use them together

The Conversations inbox includes four filters that help you quickly locate replies and address opt‑out edge cases:

• Included in Text Campaigns

  • This dropdown shows every sent outreach by name and date (format: "[Outreach Name] - MM/DD/YY HH:MMAM/PM"). Select a campaign to limit the list to threads where the recipient was part of that send. This is useful for reviewing replies to a specific outreach.

• Conversation Status

  • Options include Has unread messages, Has no unread messages, and Has not been responded to. Choose Has not been responded to to display threads where the recipient’s message is the latest and you have not replied. You can combine this with the campaign filter to check for unreplied messages from a specific send.

• Opt Out Status

  • Options include Includes Opt Out Message, Includes Opt In Message, and No Opt Out/In Messages. Use No Opt Out/In Messages with a specific campaign to find replies that did not exactly match the opt‑out keyword "stop." (GiveCampus only flags replies that match "stop" exactly, ignoring case and whitespace.) Variations like "Stop." or "Please stop" will not trigger the automatic opt‑out flag.

• Message Senders (admins only)

  • This filter lists admin users at your school. Use it to narrow the inbox to threads associated with a particular sender when multiple staff members are involved.

Common workflows:

1. Review all replies for one outreach: Set Included in Text Campaigns to the specific send to show all related conversations.
2. Identify replies that didn’t trigger auto opt‑out: Set the campaign filter and then set Opt Out Status to No Opt Out/In Messages. This will highlight replies that need manual review.
3. Find only unreplied inbound messages: Combine Included in Text Campaigns with Conversation Status = Has not been responded to.
4. Filter by sender: Add Message Senders to further narrow down the threads by a specific admin.

Additional details:

• Conversations are ordered by the most recent activity, with the newest messages at the top. There is no built-in date‑range filter, so use the campaign filter to isolate a specific send date.
• For a bulk delivery report, navigate to Outreach > Reporting > Recipients, select the outreach, and download the CSV. This report provides each recipient’s delivery status.
• For replies that include an opt‑out variant not detected automatically (for example, "Stop."), manually suppress the constituent by mapping a solicit code in School Dashboard > Settings or by uploading the phone number to a manual exclusion list.

Archiving conversations

• Use the Archive action to remove a conversation from the active view while preserving its history.

  • Once archived, future messages to that recipient will not be added to the archived thread. Instead, new outbound messages and replies start a fresh conversation thread.

Workflow tip

• If a short reply doesn’t require your response and you want to clear the thread from the "Has not been responded to" filter, archive it. Keep in mind that any subsequent message creates a new thread.
• To continue a conversation with an archived recipient, create a new text outreach by navigating to GC Outreach > New Outreach, selecting Text, adding the recipient, and sending your message.

FAQ: Why are new messages not appearing in the archived thread?

• When you archive a conversation, it is set aside and preserved as a record. New messages to that recipient will not rejoin the archived thread but will start a new conversation in the active view.

Once you have uploaded solicit codes for a constituent with a specific external ID, you can go to School Dashboard > Settings to map those solicit codes to the "Texting" checkbox to prevent text messages from being sent to this person. This will work for all phone numbers associated to that person.

Note: Those that have the "GC Outreach" section mapped will only be excluded from emails sent from GC Outreach.

 

FAQs

Will my templates from the old texting experience be available here?

• Yes - those will now be visible and accessible to be used in this new experience. Volunteer templates can also be managed here with the template type = volunteer admin or volunteer

Can I see all my old texts in the new experience?

• Any text campaigns you had sent from GC Texting in the old experience will not be visible in Outreach History in the new experience but you can still access them if you would like from the old texting experience. Your conversations with individuals will be visible in both places. Opt outs will also be visible and exportable from both places. All of your text settings will be the same across the new and old experiences and update if you change it in one place or the other. 

What format should phone numbers be uploaded in?

• Our formatter strips out all characters except numbers, and then tries to discern the proper country code. There is a character limit of 15 (including spaces) when uploading phone numbers. The following formats will work:
  • (888) 123 4567
  • 888-123-4567
  • 888 123 3456
  • 18881234567
  • +1 555 123 4567

• Using link shorteners like bit.ly may cause your GC Outreach Texts to fail. Phone carriers consider obfuscated links as spam and often block them when detected. We recommend not using shortened links like bit.ly ensure deliverability.

  Can I cancel a scheduled text if I remove all recipients?

  Yes. If you remove every recipient from a scheduled text, you can cancel the scheduled send from the outreach preview page.

  How it works in the UI

  • On the outreach preview page, the scheduling control remains interactive even when there are no recipients. The primary scheduling button appears as Schedule Send when no send is scheduled and changes to Scheduled For: [date] when a send is scheduled.
  • Clicking the scheduling button opens a modal that lets you schedule or reschedule, and also shows a Cancel Scheduled Send button.
  • When there are zero recipients, the schedule/reschedule option is disabled, but the Cancel Scheduled Send button remains active so you can cancel the scheduled send.

  Why this matters

  Keeping the cancel option available prevents a scheduled text from remaining "orphaned" if recipients are removed, ensuring that the message won’t fail silently at send time. Simply remove the recipients, open the scheduling modal, and select Cancel Scheduled Send to clear the scheduled delivery.

 

 

How to Add Recipients to Text Messages

Where do I add recipients for my text campaign?

Text templates are saved formatting and language that you can reuse for future messages. To actually send a text message with recipients:

1. Start a new outreach: Navigate to GC Outreach in your left navigation

2. Click "New Outreach" in the top right corner

3. Choose "Text" as your message type

4. Add your recipients using one of these methods:

- Upload a CSV file with phone numbers

- Select from existing segments

- Choose from your constituent database

Common variations of this question

• How do I add people to my text template?
• Where do I add phone numbers for texting?
• How to send my text template to recipients?
• Can't find where to add recipients for texting

Text Templates vs. Text Campaigns

Text Templates are:

• Saved message content and formatting
• Reusable for multiple campaigns
• Found in the Templates section
• Do NOT include recipients

Text Campaigns are:

• Actual messages sent to specific people
• Created from "New Outreach"
• Include both message content AND recipients
• Can use templates as a starting point

Next Steps After Creating Your Template

Once you have a text template ready:

1. Go to GC Outreach > New Outreach

2. Select "Text" as your message type

3. Choose your template or write new content

4. Add your recipient list

5. Review and send your campaign

Media Attachments in Text Messages

GIF File Requirements

You can include GIF attachments in your text messages with these specifications:

File size limit: 600 KB maximum Duration: No specific time limit enforced, but shorter GIFs work best due to file size constraints

How GIF Messages Are Sent

When you attach a GIF to a text message:

• The GIF is sent as a separate message before your text content
• This counts as an additional message against your texting limits
• Recipients receive the GIF first, followed by your text message