PCO Text is a tool that enables you to send text messages to every person with a registered mobile device in your Planning Center Online (PCO) lists. PCO Text is a website application that works on desktops, tablets, phones and all modern browsers.
Currently, the cost to integrate PCO with text messaging in Australia is somewhat prohibitive at approximately 45c per message! This is far too expense, so PCO Text has been built to make it possible for Australian churches to send text messages to their PCO lists at a fraction of this cost.
PCO Text runs on a secure server in Sydney and uses https/SSL to encrypt all data transferred between your device and the website. Industry standard Oauth2 is used to authenticate users with PCO and send text messages to the mobile carrier for delivery.
We only store essential information on our secure database. This consists of your username, organisation ID, and organisation name, which we obtain when you connect with PCO. To authenticate users and protect against fraudulent activity, we use temporary session cookies. These cookies are necessary to authenticate with PCO and deliver the services you've requested, and we use them solely for this purpose. These cookies are permanently removed from your computer as soon as you close your browser. We also store an encrypted oauth2 security token for the purposes of sending scheduled messages at a future date. You have full control over the PCO permissions you have granted and can revoke access at anytime at: https://api.planningcenteronline.com/access_tokens. For more information on session cookies, refer to this article.
Text messages are charged at a very low rate of just AUD 5c per 160 character message per mobile. No ongoing contracts, setup costs or fees. Text messages longer than 160 characters use additional credits as described below.
Note: Actual credits charged may vary slightly if dynamic fields are used in the text message. You will not be charged for any unsubscribed people.
A sender ID is the name or number displayed on a recipient's phone when they receive an SMS. In Australia, custom sender IDs require approval before use. This regulation aims to prevent scams and protect consumers from fraudulent messages. If you request a custom sender ID, we will seek approval from the mobile carrier and advise you once it has been reviewed. If you do not wish to use a custom sender ID, your text messages will be sent from +61480807950, so we suggest adding a note to the end of your messages to say who it is from.
Yes, as long as you use the default number of +61480807950, all replies will be sent to your email address. In Australia, however, people cannot respond to custom sender IDs.
SMS spam filtering only happens on Android phones, and it’s controlled by the phone itself, not the carrier or messaging provider. These filters use machine learning models trained on message content, frequency, sender behaviour, and sometimes user reports. Unfortunately, that means there’s no universal “whitelist” or flag we can set to prevent messages from being filtered — even when you’re using a dedicated number and including a clear opt-out.
Here are a few tips to help reduce spam filtering: Keep message content clear and conversational as real-world, useful content is more likely to be trusted. Avoid overly short messages as these tend to be flagged more easily. Include consistent branding like your organisation name at the start or end. Make use of the opt-out option and ask you churchgoers to add +61480807950 and any custom sender IDs as contacts to their phone.
When the Opt-out option is selected, an opt-out message is appended to your SMS messages containing a link to the website Opt-out pcotext.com/stop. When someone unsubsribes, we automatically block any further messages being sent to that number, to help you stay compliant with Australian spam laws.
Any person in your church who is authenticated to access the "People" component of PCO can use PCO Text. They simply need to connect with PCO Text and any messages they send will be incorporated into your monthly bill. They will only be able to see the lists they have access to in PCO. Note that a user with administration privileges to PCO must establish the PCO Text connection first and then non-admins can join. Administrators can set the Planning Center permission levels required for users within their organisation to send messages.
Billing is monthly and you only pay for exactly what you use. Each calendar month you will receive a bill for all text messages sent from PCO Text. If you have multiple people using PCO Text, a single bill will be sent to your nominated billing email address and include all text messages sent by your organisation. Bills are requested to be paid within 30 days to the specified bank account in the invoice. Bills can either be paid via a bank deposit or automated by direct debit.
My name is Ray Forlin and I'm the Executive Pastor at Subi Church in Perth, Western Australia. My first career was as a Software Engineer and now I use my skills gained in that area to build helpful systems for churches. I'm not affiliated with any software company. I also run and maintain church4kids.com - a free sign-in system for churches. Feel free to check it out!
Send me an email at support@pcotext.com or call me on +61408447590.
Ready to give it a try? Visit pcotext.com.