Sending SMS from Excel: what to watch out for

For anyone who does not want to build an integration, an Excel list is the quickest route. Four things decide whether it goes smoothly.

1. The number format

Excel is notorious: it strips the leading zero and converts long numbers into scientific notation. Set the column to text beforehand, or use the format with a country code. The latter is needed for international destinations anyway.

2. One column per item

If you want to personalise, split first name, date and time into separate columns. Cramming everything into one cell does not work.

3. Empty cells

Go through the columns you use in the message. One empty cell produces a message with a gap in it, and that gap goes to everyone with the same gap.

4. Duplicates

Exports from different systems often deliver the same number twice. Anyone who receives your message twice opts out sooner. Remove duplicates before you send.

Always send a test to yourself first with a few rows from the real file — not with invented sample data.