As a small or medium-sized business, staying on top of the latest regulations can be a challenge, but one you can't afford to ignore. The new 10DLC (10-Digit Long Code) regulations implemented by major US cellular carriers are a prime example. 10DLC was introduced to combat text spam and ensure legitimate business messaging to US phone numbers using 10-digit local numbers. 

What is 10DLC?

10DLC is a system designed by US mobile carriers to regulate and improve how businesses send text messages to their customers, adding oversight, reducing unwanted messages for consumers, and improving the deliverability of text messages. It allows companies to use typical (10-digit) local phone numbers for texting, striking a balance between the expensive short codes and the limitations of traditional long codes. Examples of text messages sent by businesses include marketing campaigns, appointment reminders, shipping notifications, appointment confirmations, and general communications with customers. 

With 10DLC, businesses must register their company (referred to as “brand”) and intended use (referred to as “campaign”). A “campaign” is the use case of your outgoing SMS messages. For most customers, we recommend using a “mixed use” campaign for up to five use case types. 

For 10DLC compliance, “campaigns” refers to any use of SMS, not just the traditional term “campaign,” which implies broad outreach and other marketing activities. As a result, if you use any SMS, even for direct communication, such as texting customers, you will need to register that use case as a campaign.

The registration process allows for higher message volumes and better delivery rates. The regulation aims to benefit both businesses and customers by providing a more reliable, trustworthy, and efficient method for text messaging.

Please note that mobile carriers will initiate new fees due to 10DLC regulation, including registration charges, maintaining campaign authorization, and text message traffic. 

The Benefits of 10DLC

10DLC introduces several benefits for SMBs: 

• Enhanced Trust and Legitimacy: The measures driving 10DLC compliance aim to reduce unwanted spam and fraudulent SMS messages. Ensuring your phone numbers are registered will drive increased trust and legitimacy in the communication between your company and your customers and reduce the risk of message blocking by upstream carriers.
• Support for Higher Messaging Volumes: Unlike traditional P2P (Person-to-Person) messaging, 10DLC supports higher message volumes, making it suitable for business needs.
• Increased Customer Engagement: Using a local phone number to text your customers brings an added layer of trust and familiarity. Customers are more likely to trust and engage with messages from area codes they recognize.
• Improved Customer Experience: 10DLC texting provides a better customer experience for those you are trying to reach. Being able to call or text the same number means your customers always know how to reach you. Local numbers can add to the perception that your business is accessible and easy to reach.

Steps to 10DLC Compliance

Organizations that send text messages from a hosted phone provider or messaging platform must comply with 10DLC regulations. Failure to comply will result in blocked messages, fines, and other penalties. Even if your organization does not send marketing or promotional messages, your organization still must complete the registration process. The upstream carriers will block and impose penalties on any business sending an SMS from an unregistered phone number, including one-off messages sent to clients and internal communications.

Follow these two steps to complete your registration:

1. Review FluentStream’s 10DLC FAQ hub for more information: www.fluentstream.com/10DLCFAQ/  
2. Complete the Customer Brand and Campaign Registration Form provided by FluentStream and use the Customer Guide: Registration Form Best Practices to help boost chances of speedy approval

Registration must be completed by November 1, 2024, to avoid disruption to your texting service. The registration approval process may take up to three weeks, so we encourage customers to take action immediately to avoid disruption to your texting activities.

Please visit our 10DLC FAQ hub for more information: www.fluentstream.com/10DLCFAQ/ and contact us with any questions. FluentStream is here to support you.