Messages (Legacy Feature)

⚠️ This feature is no longer available for new users.

Messages (formerly called VoiceTouch) was discontinued for new signups in 2025. If you're currently using Messages, it will continue to work, but we recommend transitioning to our current text messaging solution, which offers improved features, better provider options, and a more streamlined setup process.

Ready to upgrade? See our Setup: Text Messaging guide.

What Was Messages?

Messages was an integrated phone system that allowed you to:

  • Receive calls through a dedicated phone number
  • Route callers to different extensions
  • Record custom greetings for your phone system
  • Automatically capture caller information as new contacts
  • Trigger workflows when callers selected specific extensions
  • Send text messages through the same Twilio phone number

The system was only available in the United States and Canada and required a Twilio account for the phone number and messaging services.

How Messages Worked

Choosing a Phone Number

Messages used Twilio as the phone partner to provide your marketing phone number. You could choose between:

Local Number – A number with a specific area code, making it appear local to your target market

Toll-Free Number – A number starting with 800, 888, 877, etc. (Note: Additional charges applied in your Twilio account for toll-free numbers)

The selection process:

  1. After connecting your account, you were presented with available phone numbers
  2. You could refine your search by entering an area code or preferred digits
  3. Once you found a number you liked, you clicked "Use This Phone Number for Messages" to proceed

Recording Your Main Greeting

Your Main Greeting was the first thing callers heard when they dialed your Messages phone number. This greeting typically requested that callers enter an extension followed by the pound sign.

Recording process:

  1. Navigate to Automation → Messages and click the Greeting tab
  2. Click Record New Greeting
  3. Enter a descriptive name for your greeting
  4. Call the Audio Message phone number provided and enter the recording extension
  5. Record your greeting, then press * to save it
  6. Hang up and wait about 10 seconds for the Next button to appear on screen
  7. Click Next to save your greeting

Important note: The phone number and extension used for recording were separate from your actual Messages phone number and extensions. Each recording had a unique recording number and Recording ID Code.

Setting Up Extensions

Extensions allowed callers to reach different departments, request specific information, or trigger automated follow-up sequences.

Automating Workflows with Extensions

Extension workflows automatically triggered actions when callers selected specific extensions, saving time and ensuring consistent follow-up.

Why this mattered: Instead of manually entering contact information after every call, the system captured caller data, organized contacts by interest area, and launched complete follow-up sequences automatically.

Setting up extension automation:

  1. Navigate to Automation → Messages
  2. When adding or editing an extension, select the Trigger Intelligent Actions checkbox
  3. Configure your automation options:

Automatic Contact Creation:

  • Select Create a new contact if one does not exist
  • Enter the First Name and Last Name for identifying these contacts
  • The system automatically added a number to the last name to prevent duplicates (e.g., "Baking Class 1," "Baking Class 2")

Tag Assignment:

  • Select Add a Tag to the caller's contact record
  • Choose the desired tag from the dropdown
  • Use different tags for each extension to easily identify contact sources

Workflow Triggers:

  • Select Run a Workflow
  • Choose your desired workflow from the dropdown
  • The workflow executed automatically when callers selected that extension

You could combine all three options on a single extension. All selected actions would run when someone called.

Following Up on Calls with Text Messages

You could set up workflows that sent text follow-ups to people who called your Messages system.

The process:

  1. Set up your extension to trigger a workflow (using the extension automation process above)
  2. Create a workflow that started with an Opt-in for Texting step
  3. Add text message steps with your follow-up messages or series of texts
  4. Include other workflow actions as needed (source assignment, flags, notifications)
  5. Connect the workflow to your extension

This allowed you to automatically follow up with callers via text, ensuring no leads fell through the cracks.

Sending Text Messages

Messages included basic text messaging capabilities using your Twilio phone number. Text messages could be:

  • Sent manually from contact records
  • Triggered automatically through workflows
  • Used for follow-up after phone calls

Troubleshooting Messages

Texts Not Sending

If clicking the Send button on a text message did nothing, the issue was typically with your Twilio account.

Troubleshooting steps:

  1. Go to Automation → Messages
  2. Click the Settings tab
  3. Click Test Connection and look for "Test Connection Succeeded"
  4. If you saw an "Oops" error, the issue was with your Twilio.com account

Twilio account issues to check:

  • Is the account active?
  • Are there sufficient funds available?
  • Is there a current, valid credit card on file?
  • Are there any errors or warnings in the account that need to be addressed?

Once the Twilio account was in good standing, you would retest the connection in Messages Settings.

Canceling Messages

You could cancel your Messages account at any time through Automation → Messages → Settings → Permanently Cancel Messages.

Critical information about cancellation:

  • Your phone number was paid separately through your Twilio account
  • You needed to log into Twilio separately to cancel the phone number and stop billing
  • AllClients was not responsible for Twilio cancellation or any charges incurred on your Twilio account

Transitioning to Current Text Messaging

If you're ready to move from Messages to the current text messaging system, here's what's different:

Current system advantages:

  • Three SMS provider options (Textmagic, ClickSend, Twilio) instead of Twilio-only
  • Simplified setup process focused on text messaging
  • Better provider options for small businesses
  • Dedicated Text Messaging Center interface
  • Improved notification options
  • No phone system complexity if you only need texting

What you'll need to do:

  1. Sign up with an SMS provider (Textmagic, ClickSend, or Twilio)
  2. Obtain a dedicated SMS phone number from your provider
  3. Connect your provider credentials in the CRM
  4. Configure your notification preferences

See the complete process: Setup: Text Messaging

Questions and Answers

Q: Can I still use Messages if I'm already set up?

A: Yes. If you're currently using Messages, it will continue to work. However, we recommend transitioning to the current text messaging system for improved features and support.


Q: Why was Messages discontinued?

A: The system was replaced with a more streamlined text messaging solution that offers better provider options, simpler setup, and improved features specifically for SMS marketing and communication.


Q: Will my message history transfer to the new text messaging system?

A: No. Message history from Messages does not automatically transfer to the new system. You'll start with a fresh message history when you set up the current text messaging solution.


Q: Can I keep my Messages phone number when I switch?

A: Your Messages phone number is managed through Twilio. If you continue using Twilio with the new text messaging system, you may be able to use the same number, but you'll need to coordinate this directly with Twilio.


Q: What happens to my extensions and greetings if I cancel Messages?

A: All extensions, greetings, and phone system configurations are permanently deleted when you cancel. The current text messaging system does not include phone system features (extensions, greetings, voicemail) - it's focused solely on SMS communication.


Q: Can multiple automation options work on the same extension?

A: Yes, in Messages you could combine contact creation, tag assignment, and workflow triggers on a single extension. All selected actions would run when someone called that extension.


Q: What happened if a contact already existed when "create new contact" was enabled?

A: The system would use the existing contact record and apply any tag assignments or workflow triggers to that existing contact without creating a duplicate.


Q: Could someone call the same extension multiple times?

A: Yes. If the contact already existed, the tag assignment and workflow would still trigger each time they called, allowing for repeated interactions.

Guide Type: Reference Guide

Estimated Time: N/A (Legacy feature - reference only)