What is A2P 10DLC?: Mastering A2P 10DLC Registration and Compliance

Have you ever received an SMS from a business you didn’t recognise? 

You may have dismissed it as spam. But what if that was a crucial message? 

This is where 10DLC comes into play. 

10DLC is a new way for businesses to text. It’s designed to reduce spam and increase the authenticity of business SMS. 

But what exactly is 10DLC, and why should you care? 

In this article, we’ll tell you everything about 10DLC. We’ll also show you how to register and how 10DLC affects your business and consumers. 

Buckle up. This is what your business needs.

Also Read: 5 Simple But Surefire Ways to Grow Your SMS Marketing List According to Experts

What is A2P 10DLC number?

10DLC means 10-Digit Long Code. It’s a new way businesses in the US text customers. It’s a unique 10-digit phone number approved by mobile network operators.

When your business uses 10DLC, the text will show a 10-digit number as the sender. 

10DLC is better than regular long codes. It supports transactional and promotional messaging and can include any US area code. 

All the big carriers in the US use 10DLC. So you can expect more reliable delivery and better customer service. 

If you’re a regular person who only uses short codes and toll-free numbers, don’t worry. 10DLC doesn’t affect you.

You’re now thinking, “Why was 10DLC developed?”

Well, the simple answer is that carriers block shortcodes. Businesses need help to reach customers with shortcodes. But with 10DLC, you can text customers with a recognisable number that won’t get blocked.

That’s possible because the 10DLC looks like a personal phone number.

So how does this affect you and your customers?

How does 10DLC impact businesses and consumers?

We know that 10DLC is an incredible innovation for businesses. But it has its downsides too.

That’s why we’ll discuss both sides of 10DLC’s effect on your business and customers.

Pros of A2P 10DLC

Here’s how 10DLC benefits you and your customers:

• Lower monthly costs than shortcodes and toll-free numbers. ‍
• Send texts from a local number and get 4x more responses.
• Let customers reach you without extra charges and slow deliverability. 
• Earn greater trust from recipients by texting and calling on the same number. You can’t do this with shortcodes.
• Get a registered dedicated number tied to only your business. This protects your reputation.
• Stay recognisable by converting your existing landline numbers.
• Experience higher deliverability rates from your carriers.
• Send more A2P messages without hassles.
• Integrate with your website using simple lines of code.

Cons of A2P 10DLC

While 10DLC shines in the above ways, it presents the following challenges:

• You’ll pay extra charges for the number of texts sent.
• The longer number will be less memorable than shortcodes.
• Slower sending speeds.

Also read: 6 Promotional SMS Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

What is 10DLC registration, and how does 10DLC work?

We need to understand how 10DLC operates to know how to use it. We’ll discuss what you need to register for a 10DLC number.

Requirements for 10DLC registration and verification

To use a 10DLC number, you must first register your business with a messaging provider. And you’ll need to provide the following details for the business registration:

• Legal business name
• Brand name (if different from legal name)
• Country of registration
• Organisation type
• Tax Number/ID/EIN
• Business address
• Business website
• Stock symbol (if publicly traded)
• Stock exchange (if publicly traded)
• Business vertical

You’ll also need to register your campaigns. For that, you need the following:

• Use of your campaigns
• Use case vertical
• Campaign description
• Sample message(s)
• Additional campaign details

You’ll see why you need all these in the next section.

Steps to set up 10DLC for your business

Providing all the information in the previous section gives you a smooth 10DLC registration.

Who do you give the information to? You give it to the messaging provider. 

Step 1 

Your messaging provider will gather the information in a form. And they’ll send the details to the campaign registry.

What is a campaign registry?

Well, it’s a midpoint between your business and the network carriers. All businesses and campaigns must get verified with the campaign registry. If not, your messages won’t get delivered.

Step 2

Once you’ve registered your brand, you can register your campaign.

You’ll also do that with a form. See some information you’ll enter in the form:

Registering for 10 DLC attracts fees. We’ll discuss some of these fees next.

Costs and fees associated with 10DLC

It’s always great to count the cost before starting any project. 10DLC is no different. 

The fees you’ll incur vary depending on the messaging provider you choose. But we have compiled a list of fees from different providers to give you an idea of what to expect.

Some are one-time fees, while others are recurring fees.

One-time 10DLC charges

You’ll have to pay these one-off fees when you register for 10DLC:

• Brand registration: You’ll pay $4 to register your brand for 10DLC.
• Brand vetting: $40 is what you’ll pay to vet your brand with the campaign registry.
• Campaign registration: Some providers will charge you $30 upfront to register your campaigns for 3 months.

Recurring 10DLC charges

For as long as you use 10DLC, there are some fees you’ll continue to pay. Check these fees out:

• Inactivity fee: Some providers charge as much as $250 for this. Inactive campaigns are campaigns that are unused for over 60 days.
• Campaign fees: These monthly fees cost between $3 and $30. The cost depends on your campaign.

Please note that these charges may vary from one provider to the other. But one constant thing across providers is the compliance guidelines.

We’ll discuss them below.

Best practices for 10DLC compliance

There’s no use registering for 10DLC if you don’t comply with its regulations.

The businesses that get the best SMS marketing results in the US abide by some best practices.

We’ve highlighted a few below to help you:

• Always include the “https://” when adding links
• Don’t send the same message to large groups repeatedly
• Keep your messages short. 
• Ensure your messages sound like an actual human wrote them
• Always include the following in your message:

• Your company name
• Your message purpose
• An opt-out code

Common 10DLC mistakes to avoid

Since the 10DLC process is relatively new, making mistakes is easy. 

Not to worry, we’ve picked out a few that you should avoid.

Here they are:

• Don’t expect a definite registration turnaround time.
• Avoid ending messages with links.
• Avoid spelling or grammatical errors.
• Don’t include shortened URLs in your messages.

Ultimately, each provider and carrier has their own set of guidelines. They will spell these out during your registration.

Revolutionise your sms marketing strategy with SMSCountry’s 10DLC services 

After learning all about 10DLC registration, regulations, and fees, what next?

The next natural step would be to register for 10DLC.

We’d recommend a strategic partner that’ll help with your 10DLC registration and messaging – SMSCountry.

With a real human support team available via calls and emails, SMSCountry will guide you every step of the way.

SMSCountry’s easy web platform and fast API will deliver your campaigns in seconds. You can track your results with our robust reporting and analytics.

So what are you waiting for? 

Sign up for free and Schedule a free demo now.