Our Stance on 10DLC

10DLC Registration Update: Important Changes Ahead

As of December 1st (now extended to February 01, 2025), carriers are implementing industry-wide SMS texting enforcement. This requires all businesses to register their brand and messaging campaigns to prevent SMS blocking. While these changes aim to reduce spam and fraud, we understand they've created confusion and frustration across the business community.

Making Compliance Simple

At Clerk Chat, we're committed to streamlining these complex telecom requirements. Despite the carriers' shifting deadlines and requirements, we've developed solutions to make registration straightforward:

What We've Done:

• Created targeted email campaigns and in-app alerts

• Simplified registration from 10 steps to one form

• Provided individual customer outreach

• Published comprehensive guides and YouTube content

• Implemented a streamlined web widget

Required Actions for Your Business:

1. Complete Registration:

   • Admins/workspace owners: Navigate to Settings → Company Registration

   • Check status: Email support@clerk.chat

2. Review our detailed compliance guide - 10DLC Compliance & Brand Registration

The Future of Business Messaging

Looking ahead, RCS (Rich Communication Services) will transform business communication in 2025. With Apple and Android standardizing this protocol alongside major carriers, businesses can expect:

• Verified business profiles instead of phone numbers

• Interactive, two-way conversations

• Enhanced rich-media capabilities

• Improved consumer protection

While navigating 10DLC compliance may be challenging, we're here to support your transition and prepare for the future of messaging. Join us in embracing these changes for better, more secure business communication.

10DLC Compliance & Brand Registration

Overview

The current 10DLC regulations are incredibly complex and challenging for customers. At Clerk Chat, we prioritize simplicity and customer experience above all else. That's why we've developed automated systems to streamline the brand registration process while ensuring compliance with all regulatory and legal requirements.

The industry has seen numerous rejections, with registration processes taking weeks or even months. After analyzing these rejections, we’ve implemented process automations and AI workflows to simplify the process. As a result, our registration success rate now exceeds 98%

Below, we outline some common rejection reasons and the steps we've taken to overcome them.

What is 10DLC?

10DLC stands for 10 Digit Long Code. This refers to the number that your organization wishes to send texts from. It is a standard protocol employed by all major U.S. mobile carriers.

What is Brand Registration and why does my company need to worry about this process?

Businesses must register their 10DLC through The Campaign Registry (TCR), a process involving submitting details about the intended use of the number, the type of messages to be sent, and ensuring compliance with carrier guidelines. This registration is mandatory to avoid message blocking by carriers.

For businesses, understanding and utilizing 10DLC can significantly impact message delivery rates, customer trust, and compliance with carrier regulations. It represents a shift towards more regulated, secure, and efficient business communication via SMS.

What is Clerk Chat doing to address this issue?

Clerk Chat has developed a streamlined and simple process within its offering that gets a business brand registered more efficiently. The requested business information is sent on your behalf by Clerk Chat to The Campaign Registry, which U.S. carriers rely on to store information about your Brand (your company / organization) and your Campaign (the reason why your business is sending SMS messages).

As part of the process, your information is verified by independent third parties to be true and accurate. Once verified, your business can send valid SMS text messages without risk.

Clerk Chat Brand Registration Process

To register a company for 10DLC we require just the address and the EIN of the business.

Customer adds an Opt-In widget to their website, which is provided within the application.

Customer adds an Opt-In widget to their website, which is provided within the application.

Brand and campaigns are fully registered within 5-10 business days.

Brand Registration FAQ

What should I have readily available in order to register?

• Company address and contact info.

• EIN (or first nine digits of BN if Canadian company)

• Access to add an opt-in consent widget to your website (example here). Clerk Chat conveniently provides a copy of the code snippet during the registration process.

What if I only text employees, not groups of customers?

According to carriers, any type of A2P (application-to-person) SMS usage can be considered a "campaign" that requires 10DLC registration. That includes individual messages, even to employees instead of outside customers.

Why do I need to display the widget on my website?

Adding the consent widget to a new standalone, public-facing page is the most reliable way to satisfy the requirement that message recipients can easily opt-in/out. See Clerk Chat example here. The data is then stored within Contacts.

My company is based in Canada. Why do I need to register?

Companies outside the U.S. should register if they ever need to send SMS to any U.S. based numbers. Otherwise those messages may be blocked by U.S. carriers. You must enter the first nine digits of your BN (Business Number) in place of EIN within the registration form.

Does Clerk Chat verify any of the information?

Clerk Chat streamlines the registration process on your behalf. Simply follow the steps within the app to comply with U.S. carrier expectations. Clerk Chat helps ensure that your request is formatted properly, but does not verify your information in any way.

How long does this process take?

Clerk Chat proprietary workflows powered by AI can bring the timeline for verification down to 3-4 business days with a submission approval rate above 98%. The process is dependent on third parties by regulation, however, and in some cases can take upwards of 4 weeks to complete.

Where can I get additional help if I have questions about 10DLC registration?

Clerk Chat will keep you updated within the app. If the application is still pending, you will see an hourglass icon next to “Settings”. When complete, the icons will disappear, and the “Company Registration” menu will show your submission as complete. If your application is denied, the red x icon will reappear next to “Settings”. If denied, you can resubmit. If needed, Clerk Chat Support can help investigate why the submission was unsuccessful.

What if I do not want to submit my information or register my company?

These regulations apply to all types of organizations: government, non-profit, private, public. Failure to comply may result in fees or service throttling from U.S. carriers. Carriers will soon start to block unverified messages entirely. The goal of the regulations is to ensure that recipients of A2P (Application-to-Person) texts can trust the sender.

Once registered, can I send any text I want?

Once your company is registered, it still must comply with general rules around SMS messaging. SMS is a highly regulated channel and is subject to stringent regulations and carrier requirements. Certain message content is prohibited and wireless carriers will reject SMS and MMS messages containing prohibited content by default. Some of these topics include high-risk financial services, illegal substances, and hate speech. This list is not exhaustive, and should not be construed as legal advice. If in doubt, please consult with your legal counsel to make sure that your SMS program and message content comply with applicable laws.

How do I get started with 10DLC registration?

Within the Clerk Chat Teams app, a workspace owner or admin can navigate to Settings and select “Company Registration”. A short sequence of prompts will then provide guidance through the process.

TL;DR

10DLC Registration is required if your organization ever plan to send SMS to U.S. numbers, to identify as a legitimate SMS source; otherwise your messages might be marked as spam and blocked after December 1st, 2024.

We've made the approval process easy within Clerk Chat. Workspace Owners: Head to "Settings" and click "Company Registration." Follow the Prompts: It's a simple 2-step process to gather your company info.

Clerk Chat then submits on your behalf to The Campaign Registry (we currently have a 98% approval rate). The full process takes 5 to 10 business days.