If you’ve thought about sending Texts in the last few years, you’ve probably heard about 10DLC. But what exactly is it? 10DLC stands for 10 Digit Long Code, and it’s a way for long-distance carriers, like AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, to crack down on spam texts from bad actors. It’s meant to regulate the Texting market and make sure that legitimate organizations and campaigns can have their Texts delivered to voters.
Registering for 10DLC is important to ensure that your Texts are delivered to your audience. Registering also lowers your price per Text, keeping your costs down.
It can take up to 10 days to verify 10DLC registration. It depends on the number of registrations received by the carriers at any given time, but the process typically doesn’t take more than a couple of days. Even if you’re not sure if you want to text, it’s helpful to get registered early so we can be ready to send Texts when you are!
It might seem intimidating to start the registration process, but at Stones’ Phones we will fill out most of the application for you – there are just a few specifics you will need to supply. We’re here to make sure that registering for 10DLC is a breeze! The process starts by filling out a simple form with campaign information. This includes a campaign description, some sample text messages, and information about the campaign’s website.
There are two entities that vet organizations for 10DLC. The first is Campaign Registry, and all groups who register for 10DLC must be compliant with Campaign Registry. This includes nonprofit organizations and government groups.
The second entity is Campaign Verify, and only political campaigns and PACs need to register with Campaign Verify. They collect campaign finance filing information in order to deliver a secure PIN to campaigns to complete their registration. The campaign finance filing information should be easily located by your campaign treasurer.
In order to be compliant with Campaign Registry, you must have a website that meets their requirements. The first is that every field on the website that collects contact information must include a field to collect cell phone numbers with a consent statement.
The consent statement should include:
A checkbox
The purpose of your messaging program and the types of messages that subscribers can expect to receive
Clear language that explains how often subscribers will receive messages
A hyperlinked statement to your Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions
The consent statement must read: “By providing your phone number, you are consenting to TEXTS to that number from [Insert Org./Campaign Name]. Msg & data rates may apply. Msg frequency will vary. Reply HELP for help, STOP to end. Terms & Conditions / Privacy Policy”
All websites should include a privacy policy that states how the website collects and uses personal information. There are two important aspects that must be covered by the privacy policy:
You must explicitly state that your organization does not share or sell personal information with third parties without consent except when legally required to do so.
Your privacy policy must share information about how to opt out of text messages.
A sample opt out statement would read:
"SMS Opt-Out: If you are receiving text messages from us and wish to stop receiving them, simply respond with “STOP” to the number from which you received the message. Once we receive your message, you will no longer receive further text messages from us."
In addition to a privacy policy, your website will need to include a Terms and Conditions section. This will need to outline costs, message frequency, cancellation, support, and recap the privacy policy. Stones’ Phones has a handy Terms and Conditions guide that is ready to upload to any website!
Once your 10DLC registration is approved, you’re ready to move on to messaging! All text messages must include “Reply STOP to opt out”. This is included in the 160-character count for messages. The good news is that if you want to send a message longer than 160 characters, Stones’ Phones is able to send texts with an unlimited character count. However, we recommend keeping longer texts to 500 characters to ensure that voters read the entire message.
In addition to the language of your message, you can add on digital persuasion pieces, links to websites or RSVP forms, and even high-definition videos embedded directly in the text! Adding media to your text is a great way to make your message stand out and engage voters more directly.
Texting is a great way to get your message out to a large number of voters quickly. Don’t let the 10DLC registration process hold you back- reach out to Stones’ Phones today and we will get you ready to text!