FAQ
Frequently asked questionsHow do I Sign-Up or Register?
Visit the Sign-Up page by clicking on the Sign-Up Menu Item on the top right-hand side of the page. Fill in all of your details and verify your phone number and email address and you will have access to your Iwin Portal Dashboard. Depending on the specific promotions we run from time to time you will also receive some free SMS credits that you can use to familiarise yourself with the platform.
How do I Login into my account?
Visit the Login page by clicking on the Login Menu Item on the top right-hand side of the page. Fill in your username and password and you will have access to your Iwin Portal Dashboard. Alternatively, you can bookmark http://sms.iwin.co.za and this will take you directly to the Iwin mobile communication portal.
What payment methods can I use?
You can pay for SMS credits using either a Credit Card of EFT purchases. Our payments are secured so you can rest assured that your card use on our site is safe. After having signed on to our transactional portal at http://sms.iwin.co.za, you can simply click on the Buy Credits button to purchase one of the Bulk SMS Bundles from our catalogue.
Your remaining SMS credit balance is always be displayed in the top right-hand corner after login.
For Short Code payments, you will be invoiced by Iwin on a monthly basis.
Do you allow for replies to an SMS?
Yes we do, people who receive a SMS from you can reply to the SMS. You can view these replies in your Outbox.
Which Mobile Network Operators does Iwin support?
Iwin supports:
- Vodacom
- MTN
- Cell C
- Telkom Mobile
I didn't receive my account activation email, what do I do?
Iwin sends an email for account activation, if you don’t receive this:
- Check your spam/junk email to see if it has been placed there
- Contact support to ask them to resend the activation email
I forgot my password, how do I reset it?
Click Forgot Password and an email will be sent to Reset your password.
Bulk SMS FAQ
How do I purchase SMS credits with a Credit Card?
Log into the Iwin Portal at http://sms.iwin.co.za and visit the Buy Credits page on the Dashboard.
This will display the present catalogue of prepaid bundles available for purchase and you can select any and proceed to buy a bundle by clicking on the Buy button located in the catalogue entry.
You will now be prompted to enter your card details. Once the transaction is complete your credits will be loaded onto your account and will immediately be displayed in the top right-hand corner as your new Bulk SMS credit balance.
How do I purchase SMS Credits using an EFT Payment?
How can I upload my contact lists / phonebooks?
Upload your contact list in a .csv format.
If you currently have files in an excel format you can save them as .csv.
To save files in a .csv format got to Save As > Type > CSV (Comma delimited) (*.csv)
Do my SMS credits expire?
No they do not expire. Purchase credits and then use them as needed.
My campaign and schedule is created but no messages are sent
Your message may be borderline in terms of length. A single SMS text message unit is 160 characters long. If you use some of the message tokens in your contact list (phone book) in your message, some of your messages may exceed this single message constraint and you may therefore not have enough messaging credits to send all messages. Also, remember that multiple lines in a message mean that each new line adds an additional character over and above your message text which may also result in a single message overrun.
What number will the recipients of the Bulk SMS see?
The recipients of the Bulk SMS will see a 15 digit number as the sender of the SMS.
The from number’s first 11 digits (with the country code) are fixed per operator and the last 5 digits are auto-generated to support reply message handling.
How do OPT OUTs work?
A recipient of the SMS has the option to OPT OUT of receiving more messages from the same company.
They can reply STOP or OPT OUT to the message and then they will not be able to revieve any further messages from your company.
You can check who has OPTed OUT on our portal by looking at the OPT OUT Report.
Can I send an SMS to a country outside of South Africa?
Currently Iwin only supports networks within South Africa.
International messages cannot be sent from Iwin.
Are there any other costs for Bulk SMS?
No, Bulk SMS credits are purchased in advance and have no set up fees or monthly rental. Your credits never expire.
How long does it take for the SMSs to be delivered?
The SMS is delivered instantly. That means that Iwin has delivered the message to the relevant Mobile Network Operators’s SMSC (messaging gateway). This is usually a guarantee that the message will be delivered to your contact immediately. Under certain load conditions, the message may be delayed by the Mobile Network Operators’s SMSC and it will be delivered to your contact as soon as possible.
Short Code FAQ
What is the difference between a Shared and Dedicated Short Code?
Dedicated Short Code: A 5 digit number which people can SMS into which is only used for your company.
Shared Short Code: A 5 digit number which people can SMS into which can be used for more than one company. The SMS is differentiated with a Keyword (such as “Competition”) which then directs the SMS to your company.
How do I Request a Short Code?
To request a Short Code visit the Short Code page and press “Request a Short Code Now”.
A form will open and once you have filled in all of the details and submitted the request a member of the Iwin team shall get back to you.
How does the Revenue Share for Short Codes work?
The sender of the SMS is charged a value ranging from R1-R30 to send the SMS.
The networks take a certain amount of this, which can be seen on the Short Code page, and then Iwin takes a minimal management fee per SMS. The rest of the amount from the SMS is then for you.
How long does it take to receive my revenue share?
It takes between 30-90 days.
The networks pay Iwin within 30-60. Iwin pays you within 30 days of this.
How much can I charge for an electronic competition entry?
R1.50 per electronic entry into a competition.
This is according to the CPA (Consumer Protection Act) in South Africa.
Can I request a Short Code which works in other countries?
Iwin currently only operates in South Africa.
If you have a specific use case please contact info@globetom.com and we will try to help you.
REST API FAQ
What is a RESTful API?
A RESTful API or Application Programming Interface is an integration tool which can be used to link your systems and processes to Iwin for uniformity of your information. REST stands for Representational State Transfer and is really an integration interface for services provider over the internet. It is really simple to use to get access to the Iwin platform from, for example, your own web portals. See our documentation and examples by clicking here.
How can I integrate with Iwin's API?
Get your developers to view our API documentation on Apiary or contact us and we will assist you.
Where can I find API documentation?
Get your developers to view our API documentation on Apiary or contact us and we will assist you.