Initiating SMS Conversations with Multiple Recipients

This guide explains how to initiate new SMS and MMS conversations with multiple recipients from Microsoft Teams. There are two methods available, each suited to different workflows. The table below provides a quick comparison.

Before You Begin

Make sure the following prerequisites are met before initiating SMS conversations with multiple recipients.

• Your organization’s Global Admin must have deployed either the Unified Connector App or the legacy SMS Connector App to your MS Teams client. For setup instructions, see Adding the SMS Connector App into Teams. or Adding the Unified Connector App into Teams.

• Your Enterprise Admin must have enabled your Teams user for the SMS service and assigned at least one SMS phone number or added you as member of an SMS Group.

• Familiarize yourself with the end-to-end SMS experience by reading SMS and MMS (Texting): Intro to End User Experience.

Method 1: New Conversation (via Embedded SMS Page)

The New Conversation feature is built into the embedded SMS page and is available in both the legacy SMS Connector App and the Unified Connector App. It allows you to start a fresh multi-recipient SMS thread directly from the SMS page.

This method supports two send modes: Broadcast (each recipient receives an individual message) and Group Text (all recipients are part of the same conversation and can see each other’s replies).

Steps

1. Open the SMS Connector App in Microsoft Teams
   

2. Select the desired SMS CallerID

   1. from the dropdown menu. If only one number is assigned to you, it will be pre-selected.
   

3. Click “New Conversation” and enter multiple recipients by typing their phone numbers or contact names, pressing Enter after each entry. You can also paste a list of numbers directly into the recipient field.
   

4. 1. Compose your message in the text box and click the send icon.

SMS Broadcast vs Group Texting

Your message will be sent as a group text only when both of the following conditions are met:

(1) Your sender phone number supports group texting.

(2) Your service provider has Group Texting enabled for your enterprise. Contact your Service Provider to turn this on.

If either condition is not met, the message will be sent as a broadcast — delivered as an individual SMS to each recipient separately.

Method 2: AI-Powered Chat Tab

The Unified Connector App includes an AI-powered Chat tab that lets you initiate SMS conversations with multiple recipients using plain, everyday language. Instead of navigating menus and fields, simply describe what you want and the AI assistant handles the rest.

This method sends messages as Group Text only. For details on group texting requirements and behavior, see Group Texting.

Availability:

The AI-powered Chat tab is available exclusively in the Unified Connector App. If you are currently using the legacy SMS Connector App, contact your administrator about upgrading.

Separators (Legacy SMS Connector App)

When pasting phone numbers into the recipient field (Method 1), the following separator characters are supported:

• Comma ,

• Semi-colon ;

• Colon :

• Carrier return (Enter key)

Number Format Rules (Legacy SMS Connector App)

When pasting numbers, the numbers will be cleaned up and reformatted this way:

• Extra characters like +, dash, parenthesis and space will be auto-cleaned up.

• Normalized to an 11-digit phone number applicable to US and Canada and US Territories.

• Mal-formatted numbers will be ignored and not copied to the recipient list.

• A maximum of 10 numbers is allowed into the recipient input box.

Related Articles

• SMS and MMS (Texting): Intro to End User Experience

• Group Texting

• Using the SMS Page within the App