Log in to Duka Maps, select your duka, then open SMS from the Admin Menu. Confirm the duka name before taking action. Each duka has separate SMS settings, credits and records.
Open Settings. You need Manage SMS Settings permission. Automatic reminder controls also require the relevant Send SMS and Manage Customer Debts permissions.
Prepare Customer Messages
Duka Contact Number
This number appears in the footer of customer messages:
For Questions, Contact: 0712345678
If no contact has been saved, the form suggests the duka’s primary business phone number where valid. Confirm it or enter a different number, then click Save settings. A suggested number is not saved automatically.
Use a number customers can contact about their account or message. It is saved and displayed in the local 07/01 format.
Customer Debt-Payment Instructions
Enter the details customers should use to pay your duka, such as:
Till 123456
or:
Paybill 123456, Account: Customer name
The field has a Pay to: prefix. Enter the payment details after it; messages add that wording automatically.
These instructions are required for debt reminders and account notifications that leave outstanding debt. They appear on their own line before the contact footer. They are not added automatically to ordinary staff-composed messages.
The limit is 160 characters. Keep the instructions clear and short.
Paybill 4096917 is used for purchasing DukaMaps services. Enter your duka’s own collection details here for customers paying their debts.
Default Automatic Debt Reminders
Where available, choose:
- Off.
- Daily.
- Every 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 days.
- Weekly.
- Every 2 Weeks or Every 3 Weeks.
- Monthly.
This default applies to customers using Use duka settings. Customer-specific settings on Customer Balances override it.
The first routine reminder waits one full interval; enabling a schedule does not immediately message every debtor. Changing the default frequency or hour restarts the interval for customers inheriting that schedule. Monthly means a calendar-month interval, not a fixed 30 days.
Turning the duka default Off does not disable a customer’s separate custom schedule or an enabled promise reminder.
Preferred Sending Hour (Nairobi Time)
The From: list offers hours from 8 am to 8 pm. Choose when routine reminders should become eligible on their scheduled day.
For example, From: 10 am means the service can send a due routine reminder from 10 am, subject to its checks and processing time. It does not guarantee delivery at exactly 10 am and does not set the time for every kind of SMS.
Promise reminders become eligible from 8 am on the promised date. Enabled future promises pause routine reminders. Manage individual promises and schedules on Customer Balances.
Click Save settings after making changes. Reminder controls require the relevant SMS and customer-debt permissions as well as Settings access.
Example of a Customer Message
Example Duka
Hi Jane! Kindly remember to clear your outstanding debt.
Pay to: Till 123456
For Questions, Contact: 0712345678
This example illustrates where the settings appear. Actual debt reminders use the customer’s current balance and the defined wording. Staff do not edit the debt-reminder wording here.
Common Questions
Does saving the settings send an SMS immediately?
Saving contact or payment details does not send a message. Enabling a routine schedule starts its interval; reminders are processed when due.
Do individual customer schedules override these settings?
Yes. Manage them on Customer Balances. A customer using Use duka settings inherits this default; a Custom schedule uses that customer’s own frequency and hour.
Does the preferred hour control all messages?
No. It controls when routine automatic debt reminders become eligible. Promise reminders start from 8 am on the promised date. Manual reminders and selected account-entry or deletion notifications are attempted immediately. Composed messages follow their queue window.
Will a partial payment cancel a payment promise?
No. The promise remains active while debt remains. On the promised date, its reminder can include as you promised. Manage promises on Customer Balances.
Can I activate my own sender ID here?
No. A DukaMaps administrator verifies and activates your HostPinnacle account and approved sender ID. This Settings page manages customer contact details, debt-payment instructions and default reminder schedules.
An active main subscription is required to send SMS. Purchased DukaMaps credits never expire; sending pauses when the subscription expires and can resume after renewal. SMS credits are purchased separately from the main subscription.