Navigating Compliance and Deliverability

In today's digital landscape, SMS marketing remains one of the most effective channels for reaching customers directly, with open rates as high as 98% compared to email's average of 20%. However, with this power comes significant responsibility. Carriers and regulatory bodies have implemented strict guidelines to protect consumers from unwanted messages.

This guide addresses common concerns for businesses looking to implement SMS marketing campaigns while maintaining compliance and ensuring optimal deliverability.

Understanding Consent Requirements

The foundation of any legitimate SMS marketing campaign is proper consent. There are two primary types of consent:

Express Written Consent: This is the gold standard and what you should aim for. It involves the consumer explicitly agreeing to receive marketing messages. For example, when a customer checks a box on a form stating, "I agree to receive promotional SMS messages."

Established Business Relationship: If you have existing customers who have previously done business with you, you have an established business relationship. However, this alone is not sufficient for SMS marketing under current regulations. Unlike email marketing, where an established business relationship may sometimes provide implied consent, SMS marketing specifically requires express written consent regardless of your existing relationship with the customer.

Important Legal Clarification: Having a current business relationship does not give you the right to text customers who haven't explicitly opted in to receive SMS marketing. The TCPA (Telephone Consumer Protection Act) requires prior express written consent for all marketing text messages, even to existing customers. Penalties for violations can range from $500 to $1,500 per message sent without proper consent.

Key Takeaway: Always prioritize collecting express written consent with clear opt-in language that specifies:

• The type of messages they'll receive
• The approximate frequency
• That message and data rates may apply
• How to opt out

Opt-Out Mechanisms

Including "Reply STOP to opt-out" in your messages is not just good practice—it's required. Here's what you need to know:

1. Legal Requirement: The TCPA (Telephone Consumer Protection Act) and CTIA (Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association) guidelines require all marketing messages to include clear opt-out instructions.
2. Automatic Processing: Most SMS platforms (including the one mentioned in your query) automatically process STOP requests and prevent further messages to those numbers.
3. Confirmation Messages: While your platform may not allow you to send messages to numbers that have opted out, carriers typically send a one-time confirmation message like "You have been unsubscribed and will receive no more messages." This happens at the carrier level, so you don't need to worry about sending this confirmation.
4. Additional Opt-Out Keywords: Beyond "STOP," your system should also recognize variations like "CANCEL," "UNSUBSCRIBE," or "QUIT."

Managing Invalid Numbers

Having approximately 5% invalid numbers (disconnected or landlines) is common and generally not problematic if handled properly:

1. Carrier Filtering: Carriers and SMS aggregators automatically filter out obvious landlines and invalid numbers.
2. Delivery Reports: Monitor delivery reports to identify and remove undeliverable numbers from future campaigns.
3. List Hygiene: Regularly clean your list by removing numbers that consistently fail to receive messages.

Best Practice: Before sending a large campaign, consider using a phone number validation service to identify and remove invalid numbers, improving your delivery rates and reducing unnecessary costs.

Volume and Frequency Considerations

Sending limits per day apply to your 10DLC application. For any Alive5 SMS account, you should be able to send at most 1,000 text segments

1. Gradual Scaling: If you're just starting, begin with smaller volumes (50-100 messages per day) and gradually increase as you establish a positive sending reputation.
2. Consistent Timing: Avoid sending all messages at once. Spread them throughout business hours to appear more natural to carrier filtering systems.
3. Frequency Limits: Many successful SMS marketers send monthly or even bi-weekly without problems, provided they have proper consent.

Number Rotation Strategies

Number rotation can help with deliverability in certain circumstances:

1. When to Consider Rotation: If you're sending more than 200 messages per day from a single number, rotation might be beneficial.
2. Rotation Frequency: For your volume (200-400/day), rotating every 1,000 messages is reasonable. Some providers recommend rotation every 200-500 messages for higher volumes.
3. Number Warming: New numbers should be "warmed up" by sending smaller volumes initially before using them for larger campaigns.

Important Note: While number rotation can help, it's not a substitute for proper consent and valuable content. Carriers are becoming increasingly sophisticated at identifying spam regardless of number rotation tactics.

Message Content Guidelines

1. Do not use URL shorteners such as bit.ly. Alive5 has built in shorteners.
2. Keep messages under 160 characters when possible and reduce text credit usage
3. Clearly identify yourself at the beginning
4. Provide specific value proposition
5. Include a clear call to action
6. Always include opt-out instructions

Understanding SPAM blocking

The risk of carrier blocking depends on several factors:

Lower Risk Factors (you have these):

• Sending to previous customers
• Proper opt-in procedures
• Clear opt-out instructions
• Moderate volume (200-400/day)
• Infrequent sending (quarterly)

Higher Risk Factors (watch out for these):

• High complaint rates (people replying with "STOP" or reporting as spam)
• Poor list quality (too many invalid numbers)
• Misleading content or false promises
• Sending during non-business hours
• Excessive message frequency

Implementation Checklist

Before launching your campaign, ensure you have:

• Verified all numbers have provided consent
• Cleaned your list to remove obvious invalid numbers
• Crafted compliant message content with clear identification and opt-out instructions
• Set up proper tracking of delivery rates and opt-outs
• Planned a gradual send schedule rather than all at once
• Established a process for handling replies and questions
• Created a suppression list for numbers that have previously opted out

Conclusion

With proper consent practices, clear opt-out mechanisms, quality list management, and valuable message content, your proposed campaign is realistic and should not trigger excessive spam filtering or carrier blocks.

Remember that SMS marketing is a privilege, not a right. By respecting consumer preferences and following industry best practices, you can maintain a positive reputation with both carriers and customers, ensuring the long-term viability of your SMS marketing channel.

Disclaimer: This guide provides general information about SMS marketing best practices as of March 2025. Regulations and carrier policies can change. Always consult with your legal team for the most current guidance specific to your situation.