Create a Bulk Email Message
This explains how to write and save a message to be sent to a group of customers.
Before You Begin
Your company must be set up to use Unified Billcom and Bulk Messaging must be turned on under .
Context
To send email messages to a large group of customers at once you need to have a message template created first. You can use an existing Word document or follow these steps to create the template within Trash Flow. Once that template is created you can send them to all customers or only some (e.g.all your active monthly customers, everyone on the WEDNESDAY TRUCK 2 route, etc.) by using the options on the or Send a Bulk Email to Customers On a Route. When sending the email you will need to pick one of these four categories to describe what you are sending:
- Immediate Service Notifications
- Holiday Schedule and Service Time Changes
- Regulation Changes
- Promotions and/or New Services
Important Note
U.S. law, the Trash Billing agreement you signed with us at Ivy Computer, and credit card terms of service all address what is and isn't permitted when sending emails out to a large group of customers. To avoid problems, please keep the following guidelines in mind. In no particular order:
- You're not allowed to send dunning/debt collection messages via email, e.g. "Pay this bill by the 10th or we will cut off your service." However, it's fine to include a due date on your bills along with a notification that service will discontinue if the bill is not paid by a certain date.
- Never include threatening, discriminating, or vulgar language when emailing customers—that's the quickest way to lose emailing privileges.
- Be careful about sending duplicate/very similar messages to customers in a short period of time. Email programs often flag these as junk and send them directly to the spam folder.
- Never request that customers send you sensitive information like credit card numbers, SSNs, or driver's license numbers via email.
- Customers can set preferences on TrashBilling.com for which types of email they would or wouldn't like to receive. You can also set those preferences on the E.F.T. Tab of their account. Please note that a customer's wishes here must be respected.
Every batch of messages will be checked by employees at Trash Flow to ensure they are indeed the type selected, and any abuse or misuse of the bulk emailing feature will result in the feature being suspended.
Steps to follow
- Click .
- Type the message you want to send. The document editor within Trash Flow will let you use basic formatting like text font and size, boldface and italic text, lists, hyperlinks, etc.
- You can use the Tag menu to customize the letter for each customer, including their name, address, etc.
- You can use the Insert menu to insert images (like a company logo) or create tables (like a change to rate structure) with the rich text editor.
- Click when finished.
- If desired you can then click , sending a copy of the email to a known email address to see what it will look like.
When you're done
You are now ready to send this message to a group of customers defined by the filtering options in the customer list or route sheet
For Trash Flow Mobile users: Report options on Trash Flow Mobile will work just as described in this article and appear in the same order. The user interface is slightly different to accommodate how we use tablets and phones; for more details, or to learn more about accessing your data from a phone or tablet, see Using Trash Flow Mobile.
Further Resources