Create new filtered mobile contact list with automation

Question

I've currently got an import automation which imports files dropped in an SFTP location. It adds them to a mobile list I have called SMS_Master. It works fine.

Our marketing team then has to filter this list based on the contents of a custom column, U_Custom. This contains the unique job number for the list that was imported. So they have to filter SMS_Master using

U_Custom = 'XYZ-12345-ABC-01'

This works, and produces a list of just these people to be used for an SMS send. But ideally, I'd like for the automation to do the above for me (or create a list and transfer the records to it) after it has imported them so SMS_Master. Is there a way of doing this?

For example, I have a similar automation for creating Data Extensions - it imports the file from SFTP to a master data extension, logs this event in another data extension, creates a data extension using the latest entry on the log as the name, then updates a query definition to

SELECT *
FROM DE_Master
WHERE JobNo = 'thatname'

And then runs it. Is there something similar I can do for a MobileConnect list?

Answer 1

Once you have your Filter list created in Mobile Connect, then under Automation Studio, you can Refresh Mobile Filtered Lists :

You could build the process with SQL and other imports, but that would duplicate the effort in having to build queries, data extensions, imports etc.

Give the Refresh Filter a try and let me know if it doesn't fit your needs.