What is 10dlc registration?
In short: The 10dlc (10-digit long code) registration process is a way to supply the carriers with the information they need to provide your business fast SMS throughput and message management without spam getting in the way.
This doesn’t mean you’ll have the fastest level of throughput, but it does mean they aim to make it consistent and reliably delivered because they’ll get the spammers, smishers and no-gooders out of your way.
Of course, to do that effectively, they need to know who you are, and what/reason you’re sending SMS out into the world…via their network.
So, what’s the process?
Glad you asked! We’ve created this fancy schmancy diagram to spell out the process, along with a whole bunch of words below:
There is one form you’ll be asked to fill out, completely, yes we really do need your EIN and message content…but then we do the rest.
We take your information, supply it to The Campaign Registry (TCR, the U.S. carriers’ selected reputation management company). They then review the information, focusing on your federally registered company name, address and EIN (they need to match exactly) and your message content.—Is it righteous information? Is it providing or requesting information appropriately? Does it share personal information, contain phone numbers or URLs that don’t belong to you?—They’re basically making sure you’re not trying to trick, spam, scam or harass someone. Tell the truth, and we’ll help you if there’s any message content they have a problem with.
With that information, they supply a vetting score. The vetting score combined with the use case provided will determine the level of throughput, per each carrier, that will be provided to you.
Now that they’ve verified who you are and what you’re sending, they assign a unique campaign ID number to each of your campaigns submitted.
We will take that campaign ID number, and your 10-digit long code (i.e., phone number) and supply it to the carrier, so they can match up everything on their end to allow the messages to deliver at the tier level that’s been assigned to it.
To learn more about carrier tiers and use cases, check out our post here.
With this process, all of the charges from TCR and the carriers are added (line-itemed) to your CompleteSMS invoice. CompleteSMS doesn’t mark up any of the TCR registration or campaign fees, we just do all the work for you, because we like you.
If there are changes to your campaigns, you can just send us a quick support ticket and we’ll take care of the rest.
Now you’re ready to send your business SMS…
But, in an effort to keep you fully informed, there’s also an additional, minimal, per SMS monthly surcharge that will be passed through from the U.S. carriers.
As of this posting, the registration process only has to be completed if you send messages (any qty) in or out of the U.S. Other countries have their own forms of regulatory measures, but registration could be a likely next step.
You have a few questions? We’re here to help, as always, our friendly live support staff is available via chat, phone or support ticket. Or check out a few of the most commonly asked questions below.
What happens if my campaigns change, or I need to add or remove one?
Just tell us about it and we’ll get changes submitted to TCR, connect campaign IDs to numbers and relay the information to the carriers.
Make sure to remove/cancel old or unused campaigns so you don’t continue to be charged for the campaign from TCR. And on the flip side, it’s important to add new campaigns to TCR even if you’re using the same 10dlc, or your message content could be scrutinized and you could be blocked or fined. Each carrier has a different punishment, but the fines are being published as high as $10,000 per SMS/instance.
What if I change SMS software providers?
Well, to ease your mind, you won’t have to resubmit all of your brand and campaign information again, your information can transfer to the new provider, but you will need to let your new provider know that you have campaigns already registered, and provide them the Campaign IDs. The carrier will already know who you are, but they’ll need to connect you to the new service provide.
What if I don’t have an EIN?
That’s ok, but you’ll need to find a provider that will support the sole-proprietor TCR category.
Can I have more than one 10dlc (phone number) per campaign?
Yes, you can have up to 50 numbers per campaign, anything over that must have additional vetting, or another campaign registered for the remaining numbers.
Can I have more than one campaign type for my brand?
You sure can, it’s actually better that way if your messages are drastically different, for example, if you have one campaign that only sends out messages about sales you’re having on your service but you also need to send out appointment reminders, you’d want to set up two campaigns to make sure your messages don’t get blocked.
Why was my registration rejected?
Of course there’s a lot of possibilities on this one, but the most common are:
- The EIN can’t be found, or doesn’t match the legal name of the entity provided. The complete legal name isn’t the in-full or correctly spelled…yep, gotta add the LLC or the Inc. or whatever the company was legally filed as.
- If you don’t have a privacy policy that talks about SMS messages specifically.
- If you don’t have appropriate opt-in processes in place (learn more about TCR’s opt-in compliance requirements).
- If it’s publicly traded, we must have the correct stock exchange information.
- Or the use-case and the messages don’t align at all.
- Your business type is not allowed or your message content is against carrier policy.
Can I do anything to get a better vetting score?
Yes, you can pay to have additional vetting done from one of the provided options through TCR, but check with us first…we’ve registered a lot of companies, and we’ll be able to tell you if we think the number will be/could be improved.
What if I’ve registered and my messages still get blocked?
We will be right there to help investigate it, sometimes there are tricks and tips that we can share to try first, like:
- Is your url identifiable? Can the recipient see exactly where the url is pointed and if it belongs to the sender. Shortened urls are normally acceptable if they are branded.
- Where is the phone number or URL within your message? Try to avoid putting them at the end.
- Did you change your message from the provided campaign registration information?
- Etc…but, if those don’t work we’ll be in contact with TCR or the carrier to see what can be done to help rectify the problem.
Whether you choose to go with option one or option two, CompleteSMS wants your registration process to be as painless and seamless as possible. Let us know if you’re having any concerns or questions along the way.
