Outbound: Keywords Guide

Distribute information, easily add to groups, gather RSVPs, and more with our Custom Keywords feature.

Brian Knollman avatar
Written by Brian Knollman
Updated over a week ago

Any keyword you set up in Gloo will send back a single response when someone texts in the associated keyword(s).

Unlike Gloo's smart Quick Responses, which are topic oriented and trigger a response based on language processing, keywords have to be texted in exactly as you set them up.

Pro Tip: Head over to this article for advice on how to maximize your use of Keywords.

Set up a new Keyword automation

  1. Under your Messaging menu, navigate to Outbox and click Keywords. Click New Keyword.

  2. Name your Keyword.

  3. Set up any keywords you want associated. These are the word(s) that a user would text in to receive the Keyword reply. Keywords can be single words or entire phrases- as long as it is texted in exactly and alone, it will send back the appropriate response.

    Type each word or phrase and hit "enter" or "tab" after each one. Keywords are not case sensitive and punctuation does not matter in keywords. However, spaces do matter! Use variations with and without spaces.

    Important: Make sure not to use any keywords that are already in use for a Series or other Keyword. In addition, avoid keywords that are related to Gloo's natural language processing features (like Prayer Requests and Quick Responses). For example, "Pray," "Give," and "Service Times."

    Pro Tip: Set up multiple options for your keywords, including misspellings. That way, even if a user texts in the keyword slightly wrong, it will still send them the correct response! Check out our Best Practices article for more tips on setting up effective Keywords.

  4. Set up a response for the Custom Keyword. This will be the text message someone receives when they text in your keyword. You can use the 5 icons below the message to shorten any URL's, personalize the message with recipients' names, include emojis, and add images and videos. When you're finished, click Create.

Turn off a Keyword

You can turn any of your Keywords on and off. Simply switch the black toggle button. Keywords that have been turned off will be greyed out.

View Interactions on your Keywords

  1. Click on # Interactions.

  2. Select the time frame you want to see interactions from.

  3. See who, what day and time, and what keyword a person texted in on this specific Keyword.

Export data on Keywords

  1. Click Export once viewing Interactions.

  2. Choose the time frame you want to export data from and click Download Now.

Add people to a group easily from a Keyword

  1. Click Add People to Group once viewing the Interactions. Note that this button only shows up if your keyword has had at least one interaction. If the button isn't showing, try adjusting the timeframe.

  2. Select which group you want these people to be added to and click Add to Group.

Note: You can also add someone to a group with Effects.

Add effects to your Keywords

  1. Click Add Effect.

  2. Select which Effect(s) you want to enable through your Keywords. In this case we'll be using the first Effect to automatically add anyone who texts in this Keyword to the "mission trip interest" group. When finished, click Create.

Note: If someone texts in a keyword as their FIRST text in, Gloo will respond with your keyword response and automatically amend the response sent back with your onboarding path 1 response.

You'll never have to worry about someone falling through the cracks no matter what they text in the first time!

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