10DLC Registration: Everything You Should Know

When comparing text messaging to emails or phone calls, it’s clear that email response rates are significantly lower. Phone calls from unknown numbers are also often ignored, largely due to the surge in spam and phishing attempts. Now, text messaging is reaching a similar tipping point, with spam creating new challenges and eroding trust between businesses and their customers.

People don’t want to be inundated with messages. Many companies are focusing on poor messaging strategies by whatever fraudulent means necessary, which is causing many issues for organizations that use business texting properly to increase communication and build trust with customers.

In the face of increased spam messaging, the principal mobile carriers in North America (Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile) have created what is known as 10DLC registration. In this guide, we'll show you everything you need to know about 10DLC registration, how it will benefit your organization, and how to make the registration process easy to navigate.

What is 10DLC Registration?

When you register your 10DLC, you get permission for your organization to legally send text messages to consenting subscribers. This is a requirement for all businesses that plan to send mass text messages in the US. In order to register your 10DLC, you’ll have to undergo an approval process through a Campaign Service Provider (CSP), such as Text-Em-All, who registers on your behalf through The Campaign Registry (TCR).

Essentially, your step-by-step process will look like this:

1. Application: You fill out an application form that gives the TCR key information about your business—such as its Employer Identification Number (EIN), name, address, and the type of messages (the campaign) you plan to use.
2. Review: TCR reviews the application and, if necessary, requests extra information or clarification. Your business is registered and the campaign use case is reviewed and scored.
3. Approval: Once the application is reviewed, the CSP can assign your business your own 10DLC(s).
4. Cost & Fees: TCR registration requires a one-time fee, then a monthly recurring fee for each campaign. Mobile carriers may also charge various setup fees and other surcharges to maintain service.
5. Compliance: In order to keep your 10DLC, you must comply with all relevant national laws and local regulations — especially getting permission from customers before messaging them. There may also be other legal requests from carriers and regulators that you need to comply with.

The process combines a mix of human input and modern automation. You may also have to submit additional documentation or undergo extra steps to get your 10DLC fully registered, depending on your business’s specific needs.

Certain businesses — perhaps even your own — may already be using their 10DLC to message customers despite not being registered. If you have a toll-free number or short code (both of which we’ll cover later on), you have nothing to worry about. If you don’t, however, your messages could land you in legal hot water.

Why is 10 DLC Registration Now Required?

The FCC has been pushing wireless carriers to fix the problem of spam (both calling and texting) for more than a decade. Before 10DLC, text messaging involved a 5-digit or 6-digit code for their campaigns. Customers were often asked to text a keyword through advertisements to get a short code, for example, “Text the word BUY to 12468.” In doing this, the customer opted into receiving automated messages from the company.

Although short codes were popular due to their speed, volume capacity, and low cost, they had several disadvantages. Short code numbers became a problem for many reasons, including:

Spam and Phishing Widespread

Spam sent via short code texts can be incredibly difficult to stop. That’s because thousands of businesses can share a single short code—making it nearly impossible to pinpoint who is and isn’t spamming. As texting has grown over the years to become the world’s most utilized messaging channel, short codes have become the primary method of spam and phishing attacks.

Bad Customer Experiences

Even customers who opt to receive texts are often inundated with many spam-like messages. This has led to a sharp rise in the number of complaints filed to mobile service providers and government entities.

Unfortunately, due to the aforementioned issue of short codes being shared among thousands of businesses, mobile carriers could rarely identify the culprits and bring them to justice. Then, 10DLC was born.

Mobile carriers have already tapered down the sharing of short codes. Now, they promote 10DLC as the top communication solution for businesses that bridges the gap between short code SMS (which is still prevalent in text message marketing) and user trust. 10DLC is the perfect channel for recipients who care for branded, non-marketing messages like job openings, weather alerts, appointment reminders, and information from their religious organizations.

Hold Spammers Accountable

10DLC registration helps ensure responsible messaging, legal compliance, and strict adherence to local regulations from brands leveraging mass SMS.

Now, with 10DLC registration, governing bodies have a better way to monitor fraud and phishing attempts. Requiring businesses to register their 10DLC and undergo an approval process allows carriers to screen out brands that engage in spam and fraud. In turn, the vast majority of businesses that use the service are legitimate and responsible.

Consumer trust also gets a boost with 10DLC registration. With fears of fines and legal repercussions for spamming, businesses only send the most relevant, noteworthy messages to their recipients. This improves user experiences and overall confidence in text message communication.

All in all, 10DLC improves the quality of messages businesses send, reduces spam, and holds brands accountable when they misuse SMS messaging. Bad actors, spammers, and fraudsters take note — your days are numbered under 10DLC.

Benefits of 10DLC for Businesses

Registration ensures that your messages are delivered more consistently. Businesses can also access faster message delivery speeds and increased daily limits. For local numbers, 10DLC is no longer optional. Any company using business texting over a local number for mass texting must register through their CSP (campaign service provider).

1. Improved deliverability: 10DLC numbers are less likely to be blocked or filtered by mobile carriers, which can help improve the deliverability of text messages and reduce the risk of messages being lost or delayed. All with faster messaging throughput.

2. Reduced costs: 10DLC numbers are less expensive than short codes, which can help businesses save money on their text messaging campaigns.

3. Greater flexibility: 10DLC numbers can be used for many messaging scenarios, including appointment reminders, marketing campaigns, and customer service interactions.

4. Better customer engagement: With 10DLC, businesses can send personalized and timely messages, improving customer engagement and reducing the risk of customer churn.

5. Enhanced security: Certain sectors like finance and healthcare require enhanced security measures to safeguard sensitive communications. With your 10DLC registered, your clients can rest assured all communications are safe, reliable, and coming directly from your business.

6. Scalability: Growing businesses will have more concerns tomorrow than they do today. Registering your 10DLC early gives you a consistent, trustworthy number that customers can use to connect to your business throughout the years. Plus, if you need to add more lines for new departments, you can always register more 10DLCs down the road.

Overall, 10DLC is a cost-effective and reliable solution for business texting and organizations that need to send high-volume SMS messages and improve customer engagement.

How Does the 10DLC Registration Process Work?

The Campaign Registry (TCR) is the central hub for registering 10DLC messaging campaigns. The Campaign Registry (TCR) works with North American mobile operators and companies in the messaging business to register text messages. The registry supports a sanctioned 10 Digit Long Code (10DLC) text messaging Campaign ecosystem and provides visibility into the messaging source and content, allowing mobile carriers to offer a more reliable and straightforward messaging service for Campaign Service Providers (CSPs) and Brands.

To apply for 10DLC registration, you must work with a CSP, like Text-Em-All, who operates the service for sending your messages.

Step 1: Registration

On behalf of its customers, the CSP registers brands and campaigns on The Campaign Registry (TCR) and receives a unique Campaign ID. This process involves collecting information about the brand, what types of messages it intends to send, and which company category they fall into. It also involves selecting 10DLC numbers for the campaign.

Step 2: Publishing

The DCA uploads numbers with associated Campaign IDs to a shared industry database that enables the services needed to support that number. This ensures that SMS/MMS messages can be routed correctly via the MNOs.

Step 3: Live

The brand can now message end users as a fully vetted sender via a fully sanctioned process.

While registering your 10DLC is a relatively quick process, there are a few factors that can delay your progress. For instance, your registration may be held up if you:

• Submit inaccurate or incomplete business information
• Choose the wrong campaign type
• Fail to comply with carrier regulations

This makes it crucial to review regulations and double-check all the information you provide. By ensuring accuracy, you can ensure a timely registration so that your business can start reaping post-registration benefits.

Already stuck with another provider? Here's how to get your registration moving.

What might these benefits look like in practice?

Consider this example: When a consumer research company wanted to take a new politician-to-constituent communication software online, they needed to register their 10DLC to get their platform legal. The company had to get the service up and running before the 2022 election cycle. After registering its 10DLC, the organization was able to take its platform live without fear of shutting down or receiving penalties.

How Do I Get Started With 10DLC Registration?

Before starting the registration form provided by your CSP, you’ll need the following information.

1. Gather Required Information:
   • Business Name
   • Business Address
   • Tax ID or EIN (Employer Identification Number). If you don't have one, you can register as an individual instead.
   • Contact Information (Email and Phone Number)
   • Use Case Description (e.g., appointment reminders, customer service messages)
2. Submit Registration Information:
   • Complete our registration form in-app and we will submit your registration details to The Campaign Registry (TCR) for approval.
   • This involves creating a Brand and a Campaign within TCR.
3. Await Approval:
   • TCR will review your registration information and approve or request additional details. This process may take a couple of days or longer if information is incorrect or incomplete.
4. Start Messaging:
   • Once your registration is approved, you can use your 10DLC number to send and receive messages.

If your organization doesn't have an EIN, you can still register. Individuals and sole proprietors register under their own information rather than a business tax ID, and the rest of the process works the same way.

At Text-Em-All, we’ve created a simple registration form for 10DLC registration using The Campaign Registry. We’ve been in the messaging space since 2005 and understand the importance of delivering urgent messages. You’ll find that we make the customer experience our number one priority. We’ll keep you informed throughout the registration process and reach out if more information is needed.

Are Toll-Free Numbers an Alternative to 10DLC?

Yes, there are several alternatives to 10DLC for businesses to send messages. The CTIA recommends toll-free instead of 10DLC. Verifying a toll-free number is a great way to tell mobile carriers who you are, what you do, and why you are doing what you’re doing. Unlike local number registration, toll-free verification is free; however, it can take up to 7 business days to complete. A restricted (unverified) toll-free number can't send messages. Carriers closed the window that once allowed limited sending during verification, so a toll-free number must clear verification before it can text anyone. And if a restricted number gets blocked, it can't be unblocked until verification is complete.

Another great reason for businesses and organizations to follow best practices and guidelines related to SMS compliance.

The complete list of alternatives includes:

1. Short codes
   A short code is a 5-6 digit number used to send texts to a large group of people. They are typically used for marketing campaigns and are best for high-volume, one-way messaging. However, short codes can be more expensive than 10DLC and have a higher rate of getting filtered or blocked.
2. Toll-free numbers
   As mentioned above, toll-free text numbers are a solid alternative to 10DLC. They also require verification, there's no cost to verify, and once verified they work for texting just like 10DLC numbers. Verification takes longer than 10DLC registration, and like a 10DLC number, a toll-free number can't send until it's approved.
3. Messaging Apps
   Native mobile apps like WhatsApp are available for smartphones and allow users to send text messages and voice messages, make voice and video calls, share photos and videos, and more. They use the internet (Wi-Fi or cellular data), thus eliminating the need for SMS or phone call charges. They are available on multiple platforms, including iOS, Android, and web browsers. The major downside is that these apps require both senders and recipients to download the app to send and receive messages, which has slowed adoption in the US.

Ultimately, the choice of which alternative to use will depend on the specific needs and resources of the business.

If you work in high volumes and can score an affordable toll-free number, it may end up being slightly more cost-effective than 10DLC registration. You’ll generally have to pay for high SMS usage on your toll-free phone line, however, so this is unlikely to be the case.

Certain organizations — such as charities — may want to register toll-free numbers for other reasons, like consumer trust. In such cases, you should still list your toll-free number on the 10DLC registry to expand your public communication options.

Common Misconceptions About 10DLC Registration

Ultimately, 10DLC registration is the best way to send SMS messages to your customers.

Need more convincing? Let’s dispel a few common myths about 10DLC registration:

• Misconception 1: “Only large businesses need 10DLC.” – 10DLC registration enables legally compliant communication on your customers' terms. So, when you leverage SMS, you make your business more available to your clientele, invite more consumers to engage with your brand, and enhance your deliverability.
• Misconception 2: “Registration is too complex.” – With Text-Em-All, you can register your 10DLC with basic company information you likely already have on hand. We’ve created an easy-to-follow registration form you can fill out in our app.
• Misconception 3: “10DLC is expensive.” – In comparison to alternatives, such as toll-free lines, 10DLC registration is usually the most cost-effective option in the long run. High-volume 10DLC registration can get more costly when campaign service providers pass the fees onto their clients, but unlike most SMS platforms, Text-Em-All refuses to charge our customers for 10DLC registration.

Contact Text-Em-All about your 10 DLC — the sooner you’re registered, the sooner you can message your customers.