Fax broadcast instructions for self service

Fax broadcast via self service

Using the GoFax Fax Broadcasting service, you can send multiple faxes at once, fast and hassle free. In order to send a fax broadcast you will need:

An online account with GoFax
Purchased GoFax Send credits

Using the self service option, you can access your account via the GoFax secure web portal, and following our step by step guide, manage and send your fax broadcasts.

Ensure you are compliant with relevant legislation

When sending fax broadcasts or fax marketing you will need to review the destination country you are sending faxes to ensure you comply with the relevant country's legislation governing fax marketing. In Australia, you must be compliant with the Do Not Call Register Act 2006 and the Fax Marketing Industry Standard 2011.

If sending marketing faxes in Australia, it is your responsibility as the fax sender to ensure your fax content, list of recipient fax numbers, sending time, and other components of your fax marketing, comply with relevant legislation.

View further information on the Do Not Call Register and requirements for business sending unsolicited marketing faxes .

View further information on the Fax Marketing Industry Standard.

GoFax provides two features at no extra charge to support our customers in achieving compliance. These features are below:

List washing against the Do Not Call Register

GoFax provides a free optional 'DNCR Washing' facility. When activated, this will prevent your account from sending faxes to fax numbers on the DNCR register. We recommend that you use this facility with any fax marketing sent to Australian numbers that have not opted in to receive communication from you (e.g. unsolicited marketing faxes).

This feature can be activated:

on your account under your " General Send Settings ", ticking the option "Always use Do Not Call Registry when sending faxes". When activated, this will 'wash' all faxes sent across your account or
for individual fax broadcasts by ticking "Use DNCR List Washing" on the "Broadcast Fax (CSV Upload)" page.

Adding the recipient’s fax number to the fax header

Another included feature of GoFax is the ability to "add the recipient’s fax number to the fax header". When sending marketing faxes in Australia, it is a legal requirement under the Fax Marketing Industry Standard 2011 to include the destination number that the fax is intended to be sent to.

To activate this feature:

Log in to your GoFax secure web portal
Go to the left main menu "Dashboard"
Go to "Send Fax Service", then "Manage Send Settings", select "General Send Fax Settings" and ensure "Add recipient’s Fax Number to Fax Header" is ticked.
Select "Save Changes".

Preparing your fax broadcast

1 . Ensure you have enough send credits for the broadcast.

Please consider the total fax recipient quantity and other factors such as the type of fax number, quantity of fax pages, high resolution settings, data sovereignty settings in your total credit estimate. As part of GoFax’s measures to prevent fraudulent activity, our system will only commence a fax broadcast if your account’s Send credit balance contains enough credits to send your fax document to 100% of the destination numbers. If you use our send service on a prepaid basis, please ensure you have purchased enough Send credits to cover the entirety of the campaign. See our Send credit pricing . If you have international destination numbers in your list, please check our online quote tool within your secure portal.

2. Format your destination fax list and block number lists.

Your recipient fax list and any block lists used must be saved in an Excel .csv format.

A 'block list' is a list containing any fax numbers which have opted out of receiving marketing faxes from your organisation; optional if you have already removed opted-out fax numbers from your destination list) you may not need a 'block list'. Please format your list of destination numbers and your block list as follows:

Include the fax numbers in the first column only, with "fax" as the first line.
Include the numbers in international format - e.g. if you are sending to 1234 5678 in Sydney (02), Australia, include the number as 61212345678
Do not include any special characters in your list document and avoid commas etc.

Formatting tips!

If you’re experiencing difficulty getting your fax numbers into the required international format, using Microsoft Excel various short cuts are available. You may notice that, once you remove all special characters and spaces from an Australian number, Excel will automatically convert it to a standard number format and strip the leading zero (so 02 1234 5678 becomes 212345678). Once it has done so:

Select the cells containing the numbers.
Right click and select "Format Cells" from the menu.
Select the "Custom" category in the "Number" tab.
Enter “61000000000” (nine zeroes) in the "Type:" field.

This will format your Australian numbers correctly for GoFax’s broadcast system to process.

3. Uploading and scheduling

Please note: GoFax recommends testing all fax documents prior to sending. Additionally, we recommend placing your account’s fax send queue "on hold" prior to setting a broadcast up. This will allow you to confirm your broadcast settings and prevent an accidental immediate sending of a broadcast intended to be scheduled for later. Be sure to re-activate the fax send queue once you are satisfied the broadcast setup is correct. To upload you fax broadcast:

Log in to your GoFax secure web portal.
Go to the main menu ( The Dashboard ).
Go to "Send Fax Service", then "Broadcast Fax (CSV upload)". The Bulk Faxes page will appear.

Under "Send Options", "Fax Document", select " Choose File" to upload your Fax Document.
Upload your "Destination Numbers CSV file" . This is your fax database formatted and saved as a Excel CSV- see instructions above.
If required, upload your "Block List Numbers CSV file". This is your fax unsubscribers formatted and saved as a Excel CSV- see instructions above.
Send Scheduling: Set the required date and time for commencement of your broadcast (leave blank if you wish to send the campaign immediately).
Send High Quality: By default, our system sends faxes at the standard fax resolution of 204 x 98 DPI (dots per square inch), which is sufficient for most fax content. Our system also offers the option of sending faxes at high resolution- 204 x 196 DPI (dots per square inch); also known as "fine" resolution). Please note: Additional 25% per page charge applies for high resolution fax page sending.
Tick "Use DNCR List Washing" if you need your fax lists washed against the Do Not Call Register.
Sender ID. Optional, maximum 11 characters, no spaces or special characters. e.g : enter your business fax number
Review the text between the "Send Scheduling" text box and "Send Now". If you are satisfied that your broadcast meets these requirements, click "Send Now". You will then be transferred to the "Current Active Faxes" queue. If you scheduled the campaign, it will show the date/time scheduled in the queue.

4. Monitoring

To monitor your campaign, go to "Send Fax Service", then select "Broadcast Fax Management".

This page provides live send information on your current campaign as well as on previous campaigns.