> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/text-settings/text-business-hours.md).

# Text business hours

How marketing text campaigns use business hours in your organization timezone, what quiet-hours warnings mean, and how to continue a send without pausing.

By default, **marketing** text campaigns in Manager are meant to **start** (and finish) during **business hours** in your [organization timezone](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/account-settings/adjusting-timezone-and-time-format): **8:00am to 9:00pm**. Quiet hours are **9:00pm to 8:00am**. That window matches common TCPA marketing hours and protects deliverability for large blasts.

{% hint style="info" %}
**Business hours follow your org timezone.** If send or schedule times look wrong, confirm [Adjusting Timezone and Time Format](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/account-settings/adjusting-timezone-and-time-format) before changing the campaign.
{% endhint %}

## How to schedule a marketing SMS inside business hours

{% stepper %}
{% step %}
Open [Texts](https://manager.cymbal.co/text), create or open a text campaign, and finish your message and audience.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}
Choose **Schedule** (or **Send** when you are ready to go live now).
{% endstep %}

{% step %}
Pick a start time that falls inside **business hours** (8:00am–9:00pm) for your organization timezone. Prefer a window where the blast can also **finish** before 9:00pm.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}
Confirm the schedule. If the campaign may run into quiet hours, review any warning before you continue.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

## What happens if you send during or into quiet hours

{% stepper %}
{% step %}
Open the text campaign and choose **Send** or **Schedule** with a time during quiet hours (9:00pm–8:00am), or with a blast that may still be sending after 9:00pm.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}
Manager shows a quiet-hours warning. During quiet hours the dialog notes that **TCPA quiet hours are 9pm to 8am**. A send that may finish after 9:00pm shows a related warning.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}
To let this campaign keep sending through quiet hours without pausing, check **Send during quiet hours without pausing** or **Send beyond quiet hours without pausing** (wording depends on whether you are already in quiet hours or only at risk of running past 9:00pm).
{% endstep %}

{% step %}
Cancel if you want to pick a safer time instead. Only continue with the override if you intend for this campaign to keep sending through quiet hours.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

Without that per-campaign override, the campaign pauses when quiet hours begin.

## What is not limited the same way

These paths are treated differently from a normal marketing blast:

| Situation                                                                                  | Outside business hours                                                |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| [Inbox](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/inbox-two-way-sms) replies to a fan (two-way SMS) | Allowed — human replies are not the same as a marketing campaign send |
| SMS marked **transactional** in campaign targeting                                         | Allowed — transactional sends skip the marketing business-hours gate  |
| Single-recipient SMS where the product treats the send as one-to-one                       | Allowed — same family of exceptions as transactional / two-way        |

Keyword automations, [Welcome SMS](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/sms-best-practices/welcome-sms), and other automated SMS still follow their own setup rules — this page is about **campaign send and schedule** for marketing texts.

## Organization-wide exception

There is **no Settings toggle** in Manager for you to turn business-hours enforcement off for the whole organization. You can still override **one campaign at a time** with the quiet-hours checkbox on Send or Schedule.

If your team must regularly schedule or send marketing SMS outside business hours without that per-campaign step, ask your **Cymbal contact** (or [Support](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/support)). Staff can enable an organization exception when it is appropriate. Even then, Manager may still show quiet-hours warnings so you confirm before a large send.

## Tips

* Set timezone correctly first — business hours are evaluated in the organization timezone, not each teammate’s laptop clock.
* Prefer scheduling marketing SMS so the send **starts and finishes** between 8:00am and 9:00pm when possible.
* Use the per-campaign quiet-hours checkbox only when you intentionally want that blast to continue through quiet hours.
* Use [Inbox](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/inbox-two-way-sms) for back-and-forth fan replies any time of day; use campaign Send/Schedule for blasts.
* For cost and volume after you send, see [Text usage metrics](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/text-settings/sms-usage-metrics).

## Related

* [Adjusting Timezone and Time Format](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/account-settings/adjusting-timezone-and-time-format)
* [How to Launch an Effective SMS Campaign](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/sms-best-practices/how-to-launch-an-effective-sms-campaign)
* [Inbox (two-way SMS)](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/inbox-two-way-sms)
* [Text usage metrics](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/text-settings/sms-usage-metrics)
* [Carrier rate limiting on Text campaigns](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/text/text-settings/carrier-rate-limiting-on-text-campaigns)
* [Support](https://docs.cymbal.co/help/support)