> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.riiwards.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Send a Flash Sale text message to your SMS subscribers > Write, test, approve and send or schedule a Flash Sale text to your SMS subscribers, choose who receives it, and review costs and delivery in the history. A Flash Sale is a short text message you send to your SMS subscribers, for example a same-day discount or a last-minute opening. You write and test the message, choose how many subscribers receive it, approve the cost, and then send it now or schedule it during your SMS Sending Hours. This page walks through each step and explains the history and billing details. > [!NOTE] > > Flash Sales need an active SMS subscription. If SMS is not set up, the menu item is locked and shows "SMS Feature Required". Click **Enable Feature** or see [Set up SMS](https://help.riiwards.com/sms/set-up-sms.md). SMS Flash Sales are part of the Marketing+ plan and higher. In your dashboard, click **Send Flash Sale** in the left menu. The top of the page shows **SMS Status: Turned On** when you are ready to send. ![Send Flash Sale page with the Edit and Test SMS, Select Recipients and Approve Flash Sale steps](https://mintcdn.com/riiwards/mTvES1xpwmIHjJTD/images/flash-sale.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=mTvES1xpwmIHjJTD\&q=85\&s=9820d56c770edb88efb80f0eb2332020) Send Flash Sale: Send or Schedule and history on the left, the three-step composer on the right ## Before you start Click **Important Flash Sale Info** at the top of the page for a quick summary: * **Each Flash Sale is charged separately when sent.** Before sending you see the cost per recipient and the total cost. Flash Sales are not part of your monthly [SMS Plan](https://help.riiwards.com/sms/sms-billing.md). * **Message cost**: longer messages or some special characters may cost more. The cost per recipient is shown while you edit. * **Delivery credits**: messages that can't be delivered (for example, because a phone number is unavailable) are credited toward your next Flash Sale. * **Unsubscribe**: keep "Reply STOP to unsubscribe." in every message. * **Test first**: send a test SMS to see how it looks on a phone. ## Create and send a Flash Sale **1. Edit and test the message** In **1 Edit & Test SMS**, type your offer in the phone-shaped box. The counter above it shows the length (for example "126 / 160") and the cost per recipient. Keep `|name|` (your SMS business name) and "Reply STOP to unsubscribe.". * **Save** stores the message. You must save before you can approve. * **Preview** shows the final text with the placeholders filled in. * **Reset** restores the default message. * **Send Test SMS** sends the message to your **Test SMS number**. Enter the number (1 plus 10 digits) and click **Save** next to it. The test number must be subscribed to your Rewards Club. **2. Select recipients** In **2 Select Recipients**, the total number of SMS subscribers is shown in brackets. * **Do not send to subscribers who: Received any Flash Sale recently** keeps you from texting the same people too often. Choose the window (1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 14 or 30 days; 7 days is the default). Uncheck the box to make all subscribers available. The blue circle shows how many subscribers **remain**. * **Set number of recipients** limits how many people receive this sale. It starts at everyone remaining. * When you send to fewer than everyone remaining, choose a **Priority**: **Longest since last Flash Sale** (default), **Joined recently** or **Random**. **3. Approve the Flash Sale** In **3 Approve Flash Sale**, check the **SMS cost** for your recipients and the amount **Charged when sent**. Click **Approve Flash Sale**. Approve stays disabled until the message is saved. To make changes after approving, click **Cancel approval**. **4. Send now or schedule** Once approved, the left side says "Flash Sale is ready to send." * Click **Send Now** to start sending right away. * Click **Schedule**, pick a **Date** and **Time**, and confirm. You can only schedule within your **SMS Sending Hours** (see [SMS settings](https://help.riiwards.com/sms/sms-settings.md)). > [!NOTE] > > Texts are only sent during your SMS Sending Hours, in the time zone you set in **Account Settings > SMS Settings**. Check your hours before you send. ## Change or cancel a scheduled Flash Sale A scheduled sale shows a **SCHEDULED FOR** box with the date, time and number of recipients. * Click **Reschedule** to pick a new date or time. * Click **Cancel Schedule**, then **Cancel sale** to stop it. The sale will not be sent. Click **Keep schedule** to leave it as it is. * The message is locked while scheduled. To edit it, cancel the schedule first. ## While the sale is sending When a sale starts, a **Sending Flash Sale** window shows its progress: first waiting to be picked up, then sending, then "Sale completed." with a summary: | Item | Meaning | | - | - | | **Recipients** | How many subscribers were texted. | | **Excluded** | Subscribers skipped because of the recent Flash Sale rule. | | **Limited to** | The number of recipients you set. | | **Priority** | The priority you chose. | | **Cost charged** | The amount charged for this sale. | | **Rate** | The cost per recipient. | | **Credit applied** | Delivery credits used from earlier sales. | You also receive an email when the sale is sent. If a payment fails or a technical problem stops the sale, you get an email about that instead. ## Flash Sale History **Flash Sale History** lists past sales with date, time, number of recipients ("rec.") and batches ("bat."). Click **Show More** for older sales and the refresh icon to update the list. Click a sale to open **Flash Sale Details**: the message, recipients, total charged, cost details and each batch sent. ![Flash Sale Details window showing the message, recipients and Send to More button](https://mintcdn.com/riiwards/mTvES1xpwmIHjJTD/images/modal-flash-sale-details.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=mTvES1xpwmIHjJTD\&q=85\&s=bf9df580612a733f54aafbbf9c10b1a0) Flash Sale Details for a past sale ### Send the same sale to more subscribers If you limited the number of recipients, you can send the same message to another batch later. Open the sale in **Flash Sale History** and click **Send to More**. Subscribers who already received this Flash Sale are excluded automatically, then you set the number of recipients, approve and send as usual. ## Billing and credits * Each sale is charged when it is sent, using the card on file. * The price per recipient and the total are always shown in step 3 before you approve. Click **How SMS Billing Works** or see [SMS billing](https://help.riiwards.com/sms/sms-billing.md) for details. * If some texts can't be delivered, a credit is applied toward your next Flash Sale. Credits expire after 90 days. * Click **View SMS Billing History** to see past charges. ## Tips for a good Flash Sale * Keep it short: one offer, one time window, one action ("Show this text to redeem"). * Say who it's from. `|name|` adds your SMS business name automatically. * Use at most one emoji. Emojis and special characters make the message count as more texts. * Test on your own phone before sending. ## Related > [card] [SMS settings](https://help.riiwards.com/sms/sms-settings.md) > > Set your SMS name and sending hours. > [card] [SMS billing](https://help.riiwards.com/sms/sms-billing.md) > > How SMS plans, top-ups and Flash Sale charges work. > [card] [Customize SMS messages](https://help.riiwards.com/sms/customize-sms-messages.md) > > Change the default Flash Sale text. > [card] [Newsletters](https://help.riiwards.com/marketing/newsletters.md) > > Send an email to all members. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.