How to Automate SMS Notifications in Belarus Using life:) and Bitrix24

A manager opens a deal card in Bitrix24, copies the client's number, switches to the life:) SMS interface, pastes the number, types the text, and sends. Delivery status—somewhere in the life:) cabinet; the CRM doesn't know. No automatic notifications based on funnel stages. We solve this with direct integration: sending from CRM, automation via robots, returning delivery statuses to the card. Our experience shows that after setup, companies save up to 80% of managers' time and eliminate manual copy-paste errors. This typically translates into savings of $200–$500 per month per manager, depending on volume. Get a consultation on your configuration—we'll choose the optimal protocol and robot scheme. We guarantee project delivery within agreed timelines and provide a 30-day support period for all integrations.

How to Connect life:) SMS to Bitrix24 via messageservice?

life:) (brand of Turkcell, operator #3 in Belarus) provides an SMS gateway through two protocols. HTTP API—a REST interface for sending SMS via HTTP/HTTPS requests with JSON payload. Simple integration: one request, one message. Suitable for transactional SMS and small volumes (up to a few hundred messages per day). SMPP (Short Message Peer-to-Peer)—a binary protocol with a persistent TCP connection using PDU frames. Advantages: higher sending speed (up to 100+ SMS/sec), built-in delivery reports over the same connection, lower latency. Suitable for bulk mailings. The choice depends on volume:

For most implementations we use HTTP API. We connect SMPP for bulk mailings via CRM marketing when a single campaign sends 5000+ messages.

Connection via the messageservice module:

messageservice.sender.add({ CODE: "life_sms_by", TYPE: "SMS", HANDLER: "https://your-domain.com/handler/life-sms.php" }) 

The handler receives requests from B24 and translates them to the life:) API:

1. Gets POST from B24: message_to, message_body, message_id.
2. Normalizes the number to format +375XXXXXXXXX (life:) API requires international format).
3. Sends request to life:) API: endpoint, authorization data, number, text, Sender ID.
4. Gets response: message ID, queue status.
5. Saves mapping message_id (B24) ↔ msg_id (life:)).
6. Returns confirmation to Bitrix24.

<?php // life-sms.php $params = json_decode(file_get_contents('php://input'), true); $phone = normalizePhone($params['message_to']); $response = sendSms($phone, $params['message_body'], 'YourSenderID'); storeMapping($params['message_id'], $response['msg_id']); echo 'OK'; 

Why is Registering a Sender ID Important?

life:) Belarus requires registration of an alphanumeric sender name. According to official life:) SMS documentation, Sender ID is mandatory for sending. The procedure:

• Application through a life:) manager or corporate client account.
• Name—up to 11 Latin characters. Cyrillic is not supported in Sender ID.
• Attachments: copy of company registration certificate, description of mailing purpose.
• Approval time—5 to 10 business days.
• Multiple names can be registered: one for transactional, another for marketing SMS.

Without a registered Sender ID, the life:) API rejects the send request. We ensure correct application filing and support at all stages.

Receiving Delivery Reports from life:) SMS

life:) supports delivery reports (DLR) in two ways: Via HTTP callback:

• In life:) settings, specify a handler URL.
• When status changes, life:) sends POST with msg_id and status.
• The handler finds the related message_id in B24 and updates the status.

Via SMPP (when using SMPP protocol):

• DLR arrives over the same SMPP connection as a deliver_sm PDU.
• Parsing: id, stat (DELIVRD, EXPIRED, UNDELIV, REJECTD).
• Faster than HTTP callback—status arrives almost instantly.

life:) SMS delivery report statuses:

Without DLR processing, all messages in the CRM show as "Sent", even if the subscriber was unreachable for a week.

Belarus Phone Number Format

The handler normalizes numbers from the B24 database:

• +375251234567 → unchanged
• 80251234567 → +375251234567
• 375 25 123-45-67 → +375251234567
• 25 1234567 → +375251234567

Belarus mobile operator codes: 25, 29, 33, 44—life:) historically uses 25 and 29 (partially). SMS via the life:) gateway go to numbers of any operator—not just life:).

Setting Up CRM Robots for Automatic SMS

Typical scenarios: Sales funnel:

• New lead → SMS "{NAME}, your request has been accepted. We'll contact you within 15 minutes."
• Deal "Awaiting payment" → SMS with payment link (ERIP or bank acquiring)
• Deal closed → SMS with thanks

Service and reminders:

• Appointment booking → reminder one day before
• Missed call → automatic SMS

CRM field substitution in the text: #CONTACT_NAME#, #DEAL_TITLE#, #DEAL_UF_XXX#.

Cost Optimization

• Message length: Cyrillic—70 characters per segment (67 with concatenation). Every extra character after 70 triggers a second segment. Templates should fit within 70 characters.
• Duplicate filtering: add a condition in the robot—send only if the field UF_CRM_SMS_SENT is empty.
• Number validation: before bulk mailing, run the database through normalization and remove invalid numbers.

Implementation Timeline and Costs

What's Included in the Work

• Register life:) SMS as a provider via messageservice.sender.add
• Handler for B24 → life:) SMS API (HTTP or SMPP)
• Assistance with Sender ID registration in life:)
• Normalization of Belarusian numbers
• Delivery report processing (callback or SMPP inline)
• CRM robots for transactional SMS by funnel stages
• Bulk mailings via CRM marketing
• SMS templates with CRM field substitution
• Testing: manual send, robots, DLR, bulk mailing on a test segment

Our experience—over 30 successful Bitrix24 integrations with SMS providers. We are a certified Bitrix24 partner with proven expertise. Order automatic notification setup—it takes from 3 days. Cost is calculated individually based on the chosen protocol and number of scenarios. Contact us to discuss the details of your project.