[SalesForce] Relating Email SubscriberKey with MobileConnect Contact Key

For MobileConnect, we have SMS opt ins coming from 3 sources:

  1. Users text a keyword to shortcode and we know nothing else about them yet – Contact Key is mobile number
  2. Users opt in on an online form and we know nothing else about them yet – Contact Key is mobile number
  3. Current SF contacts who have the contact id as the Subscriber Key for Email – Contact Key is Subscriber Key in Mobile Connect after import

When we have a current customer that already exist as a contact in Marketing Cloud with a Subscriber Key that opts into SMS and we import this customer into MobileConnect, we have the scenario where we now have the same contact that was previously opted in with their mobile number as the Contact Key (from option 1 or 2 above) AND opted in with the Subscriber Key as the Contact Key. The mobile number is the same for both Contact Keys.

Is there a way upon import to Mobile Connect of opt ins with Subscriber Key as the Contact Key to overwrite the existing record that has the mobile number as the Contact Key so that we don’t have this customer listed twice in Mobile Connect? Or is there another way that we should be relating the email Subscriber Key with the mobile number Contact Key?

Best Answer

You can Import a MobileConnect Contact from Email Contacts 2 ways; explained here.

By Importing all known SubscriberKey contacts with mobile numbers into Mobile Contacts, Mobile Connect will match them (using Mobile Number) as they interact/subscribe, rather than creating a new contact record.

Note: If you already have a SMS subscription method (eg: Text 'START' to 'number'), then you should not import new contacts into that keyword, as it subscribes contacts on import. Instead, import them into a stage or holding keyword that you have no intention of using for outbound messages - for example "IMPORT".

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