--- title: "Create an SMS keyword rule" method: POST path: "/v1/sms/keyword-rules" tags: ["sms-keyword-rules"] --- # Create an SMS keyword rule `POST /v1/sms/keyword-rules` ## Request - Base URL: `https://us1.platform.bird.com` - URL: `https://us1.platform.bird.com/v1/sms/keyword-rules` - Auth: one of: - HTTP bearer - API key in cookie `bird_session` Creates a workspace keyword rule. Use it to replace the default opt-out, opt-in, or help reply for one country, or to add a `custom` keyword. Your rule takes precedence over the default for the same country and keeps default keywords unless you add more. Opt-out and opt-in keywords cannot be assigned to another operation. ## Headers - `Idempotency-Key` string - `X-Workspace-Id` string - `X-Organization-Id` string ## Request body - SMSKeywordRuleCreate - `operation` string, required: What Bird does when an inbound message matches the rule. - `stop` unsubscribes the sender from further messages. - `start` resubscribes them. - `help` replies with your support information. - `info` replies with your program information. It behaves exactly as `help` does and is separate so a country whose INFO answer must differ from its HELP answer can carry both. Where Bird ships no `info` rule for a country, INFO is one of that country's `help` keywords and answers with the `help` reply. - `confirm` marks a double opt-in reply. It sends nothing today, so answer it from your own handler. - `custom` replies with the text you configured and has no other effect. Bird's built-in rules fix the operation for `stop`, `start` and `help`; you can change their reply but not what they do. The same holds for `info` in any country where Bird ships an `info` rule. This is an open enum. Accept unrecognized values. - `country` string, nullable: The country this rule applies in, as an ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. It matches a message two ways: one received on any of your numbers in this country, and one sent by a subscriber whose own number is in it, wherever they text you. Rules for the country a message arrives in always outrank rules for the country its sender is in; within each, your rule wins over Bird's keywords for that country. To confine a rule to one of your numbers, set `number` instead. Required for `stop`, `start` and `help`, because those replace what Bird ships for one country and a worldwide rule would replace every country's. Omit it only for `custom`, which then applies everywhere you send. Derived from `number` when you supply an E.164 number and leave this out; a short code carries no country, so a rule for one must name it. - `language` string, nullable: Which language this rule replaces, in countries where Bird ships keywords in more than one. Required there and rejected elsewhere. Listing the country's rules shows whether it applies and which languages are available. - `number` string, nullable: Narrows the rule to one number you hold, in E.164 format or as a short code. Omit to cover every number you hold in the country. The number must be one of yours and able to receive messages. - `keywords` string[]: Extra keywords to match, on top of the ones Bird already ships for this operation and country. Omit to keep Bird's keywords and change only the reply, including keywords Bird adds later. You cannot remove one of Bird's keywords, and a keyword Bird has bound to another operation cannot be reused here. Required for `custom`, which inherits none. - `reply` string, nullable: The message to send back when a keyword matches, except on a `confirm` rule, which never sends one whatever this is set to. Set it to null together with `confirmed_self_managed` to send nothing at all. - `confirmed_self_managed` boolean: Set this with `reply: null` to confirm you send this reply from your own system, which switches Bird's auto-reply off for the rule. Required to send no reply, and rejected when a reply is given, so the two can never disagree. ## Response `201` The created rule. - SMSKeywordRule - `id` string, required: Identifier of a keyword rule. An `sks_` id is one of Bird's defaults, which you can read but not change; an `skw_` id is a rule your workspace created. - `scope` 'system' | 'workspace', required: Whether the rule is one of Bird's defaults (`system`) or one your workspace created (`workspace`). A `workspace` rule takes precedence over Bird's default for the same country, so it is how you replace a reply without losing the keywords Bird ships. - `operation` string, required: What Bird does when an inbound message matches the rule. - `stop` unsubscribes the sender from further messages. - `start` resubscribes them. - `help` replies with your support information. - `info` replies with your program information. It behaves exactly as `help` does and is separate so a country whose INFO answer must differ from its HELP answer can carry both. Where Bird ships no `info` rule for a country, INFO is one of that country's `help` keywords and answers with the `help` reply. - `confirm` marks a double opt-in reply. It sends nothing today, so answer it from your own handler. - `custom` replies with the text you configured and has no other effect. Bird's built-in rules fix the operation for `stop`, `start` and `help`; you can change their reply but not what they do. The same holds for `info` in any country where Bird ships an `info` rule. This is an open enum. Accept unrecognized values. - `country` string, nullable: The country the rule applies in, as an ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code. A rule for `NL` covers messages received on your Dutch numbers, and messages from a subscriber whose own number is Dutch whichever of your numbers they text. Rules for the country a message arrives in always outrank rules for the country its sender is in; within each, your rule wins over Bird's keywords for that country. `number` confines a rule to one number. Null means the rule applies worldwide, which is allowed for `custom` operations only. - `language` string, nullable: The language this rule covers, in countries where Bird ships keywords in more than one. Canada has separate English and French rules, so a Canadian rule names which one it replaces and the other keeps Bird's reply. Null in countries with a single set. - `number` string, nullable: Narrows the rule to one of your numbers in E.164 format, instead of every number you hold in the country. Null means it applies to all of them. - `keywords` string[], required: The keywords this rule adds. For one of Bird's defaults this is the full set Bird ships. For a rule you created it is only what you added on top. It never restates or removes Bird's keywords, so `effective_keywords` is what actually matches. - `effective_keywords` string[], required: Every keyword that matches this rule: Bird's keywords for the same operation, country and language, plus the ones you added. This is what an inbound message is compared against. Keywords Bird adds later join it without you changing anything. - `reply` string, nullable: The message sent back when one of the keywords matches, except on a `confirm` rule, which never sends one. Null when the auto-reply is switched off, which `reply_disabled_at` distinguishes from a rule that has not been given one. - `reply_suffix` string, nullable: Text appended to your reply that you cannot change: the rates and opt-out wording carriers require on a help response. Your reply is sent in front of it, and both count against the length a single message allows. Null when the operation carries none. - `reply_disabled_at` string, date-time, nullable: When the auto-reply for this rule was switched off, or null if it is on. Switching it off records that you send this reply from your own system, which is what Bird points to if a carrier asks why no reply went out. - `mandatory` boolean, required: Whether what this operation does is fixed. When true you can change the reply but not the behavior. An opt-out keyword always unsubscribes the sender, whichever rule matched it, because carriers and regulators require it. - `created_at` string, date-time, required: When the rule was created. - `updated_at` string, date-time, required: When the rule was last changed. On one of Bird's defaults this is when Bird last changed the keywords or the reply for that country. ## Other responses - `400`: Bad request - `401`: Authentication required - `403`: Insufficient permissions - `404`: Resource not found - `409`: Resource conflict - `422`: The request has invalid field values, violates a business rule, or carries a query parameter the endpoint does not declare. Field validation errors use `type: validation_error` and include the affected fields in `details`. Business-rule errors identify the failed rule in `type`. - `429`: Rate limit exceeded - `500`: Internal server error - `503`: The service is temporarily unavailable. If `Retry-After` is present, wait for that delay before retrying; otherwise, retry with exponential backoff. Reuse the same idempotency key and request when retrying a mutation. --- [API](https://skmtc.dev/messagebird/apis/bird-api.md) · [All operations](https://skmtc.dev/messagebird/apis/bird-api/llms.txt) · [OpenAPI document](https://skmtc.dev/messagebird/apis/bird-api/revisions/6dfce1179799?raw)