When Vonage is your SMS gateway, the SMS Conversations inbox now shows your Vonage text conversations. You can read each conversation, see whether your texts were delivered, reply from the Vonage number of your choice and start new conversations, all without leaving the CRM. Texts you send from a record, from Compose SMS, from a workflow or from the Vonage chat appear in the same inbox.
Contents
1. Before You Start
2. Open the Inbox
3. Read a Conversation
4. Reply and Choose the From Number
5. Start a New Conversation
6. Texting from a Record
7. How It Works
8. Frequently Asked Questions
1. Before You Start
You will need:
At least one active Vonage account under Settings → VOIP Settings → Vonage, with an application and a phone number.
Vonage selected as the SMS gateway under Settings → VOIP Controls → SMS Configuration, with Enable Send SMS turned on.
Access requirements: the inbox follows the Conversations permissions of your role (who can open the inbox and who can send). These are on for every role unless an administrator has turned them off.
If SMS Conversations is missing from the menu, or the page says it needs an active Vonage account, ask your administrator to check the two settings above. If they are correct, contact Dazos support.
2. Open the Inbox
From the left menu, open Conversations → SMS Conversations. The page title reads Communication › SMS Conversations.
Area | What it shows |
Chats (left) | Your Vonage conversations, newest first. A record name is shown when the number matches a record; otherwise the number. A blue badge counts unread texts. |
Conversation (middle) | The messages of the selected conversation and the reply box. |
Record panel (right) | The record the conversation is linked to, with Close and Link. |
Use the Open and Closed tabs to switch between active and closed conversations.
Tip: Conversations that existed before this feature was turned on are listed too, so the inbox is not empty on the first day.
3. Read a Conversation
Click a conversation to open it. The latest 20 messages load first; scroll up to load older ones.
Under each message you see:
Detail | Meaning |
Date and time | When the text was sent or received. |
via (number) | The Vonage number the text went through. |
Account | The Vonage account that number belongs to. |
Delivered / Sent / Undelivered | For texts you sent: what Vonage reports about delivery. Undelivered (in red) means the text did not reach the phone. |
New replies appear on their own within about 20 seconds while the conversation is open. Use the magnifier at the top of the conversation to search inside it.
4. Reply and Choose the From Number
Type your reply and click Send. The From list shows one number per Vonage account. It is already set to the number of the conversation's latest message, so the customer sees the same number they have been texting.
1. Check the From number (change it if you want to reply from another line).
2. Type the message. Emoji are supported (smiley icon).
3. Click Send. The message appears in the conversation and the conversation moves to the top of the list.
Important: If Vonage refuses a text, the inbox shows Vonage's reason and keeps your text so you can try again. Nothing is reported as sent unless Vonage accepted it.
5. Start a New Conversation
Click the pencil next to Chats, then type a record name or a phone number in the search box. Pick a record, or the number itself (offered once you type at least 10 digits).
Choose the From number, type the message and click Send. The conversation is added to the list.
6. Texting from a Record
You can also text a customer from their record. Every text sent this way appears in the inbox.
Show Conversations. On a record, open the Communication tab and click Show Conversations. The conversation loads 20 messages at a time, and From is preselected with the number of the latest message.
Send SMS. The Send SMS button on a record opens Compose SMS. Choose the From number (one per Vonage account), type the message and click Send SMS.
Workflow Send SMS tasks and the chat under Settings → Vonage also send through Vonage, and their texts appear in the inbox.
7. How It Works
Where messages are kept
Message text stays at Vonage. The CRM keeps only a short index of each conversation: the customer number, the linked record, the unread count, Open or Closed, and the number and account of the latest message. When you open a conversation, the CRM reads its messages from Vonage.
What updates the list
A text a customer sends to your Vonage number (it adds to the unread badge).
A text you send from the inbox, Show Conversations, Compose SMS, a workflow or the Vonage chat.
Several Vonage accounts
Each Vonage account has one number. With several accounts, the From list shows each number with the account name, and each message names the account it went through.
8. Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can I send or receive pictures through Vonage? Not from the CRM yet. Text and emoji work.
Q: A text I sent shows "Undelivered". What should I do? The phone did not receive it, for example because the number cannot receive texts. Check the number on the record and try again, or contact the customer another way.
Q: How quickly do new replies appear? Within about 20 seconds while the conversation is open. The badge in the list updates on its own as well.
Q: Why is a conversation shown with a number instead of a name? No record with that number was found among the modules in your Name lookup priority. Use Link in the record panel to link it.
Q: What happens if I switch the SMS gateway away from Vonage? The inbox follows the selected gateway. Your Vonage conversations are kept and come back when Vonage is selected again.
Q: The page says SMS Conversations needs an active Vonage account. Why? No Vonage account is active with both an application and a number. An administrator can fix this under Settings → VOIP Settings → Vonage.
Need Help?
If you run into issues:
1. Check that Vonage is selected under Settings → VOIP Controls → SMS Configuration and that Enable Send SMS is on.
2. Check that your Vonage account under Settings → VOIP Settings → Vonage is active and has a number.
3. Contact Dazos support with the conversation number and the time of the message, and reference CRM-3930.