The Compliance tab of the Phone Setup page assists with managing some industry regulations in regard to SMS marketing. Ringy compliance is not intended to be used for legal advice regarding compliance with TCPA or any other statute. Businesses should consult legal counsel for specific legal guidance about the adoption of any listed best practice or use any particular texting solution to meet compliance requirements.
Section 3: Identify the company you represent
- SMS regulations in the United States set forth by the CTIA (Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association) require that every text message you send must clearly identify the party that obtained the opt-in from the recipient as the sender, except in follow-up messages of an ongoing conversation. In other words, your SMS Compliant Company Name must be included in every text message until the lead texts you back.
- A company name typically refers to the officially registered name of your business entity with the appropriate government authority, such as the Secretary of State's office or its equivalent in your jurisdiction. We always need to ensure the company name entered is a legitimate corporation or an active, valid LLC.
- Your SMS Compliant Company Name must be verified and locked in within 8 days of creating your account to avoid any restrictions automatically being imposed.
- We recommend toggling on the option to add it to any messages you forget to automatically as this will ensure that your messages include it when required by law so that they may send. In your messages, you can use the #my_company_name keyword to insert your company name where you prefer. If the toggle is turned off and you do not use the keyword, #my_company_name, when it was required, your text message will be rejected due to it lacking Sender Identification.
Section 2: Use opt-out verbiage
- SMS regulations in the United States set forth by the CTIA (Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association) require opt-out verbiage to be present the first time you send someone a text message by any application used to communicate with a consumer. Other than the initial text message, opt-out verbiage must also be present on one text message per 30 day period unless the lead has texted you back. We'll automatically add this for you when it is required.
- By default, when you sign up initially, your opt-out message is "Reply 'quit' to stop." You can select an alternative opt-out message in the dropdown. You must contact support if you want to update it to something not on the Ringy suggested list. Nonetheless, your opt-out message must inform your contacts they can reply with one of these keywords to stop receiving texts from you: quit, stop, unsubscribe, cancel, end, or stopall.
- When a lead responds with an opt-out keyword, including “quit, stop, unsubscribe, cancel, end, stopall”, they are automatically blocked. You can still choose to call and email leads who have opted out of text messages at your own discretion, though, any attempt to text leads who have opted out of text messages will be rejected.
- You can view your opt-out rate for the past 7 days towards the top of the Compliance tab. This percentage is based on the amount of text messages sent overall versus the number of opt-out replies for the past 7 days.
- Below your 7 day opt-out rating percentage, refer to the “Why does my opt-out rate matter?” section. This section includes further examples to provide a frame of reference as to what your rating should be as well as examples of how to keep your opt-out rating down. Carriers and regulatory authorities view a high opt-out rating as a sign that such a user is contacting leads who did not consent to be contacted or whose consent is outdated.
Section 1: Get permission before texting your leads
- Make sure your leads consent to receive SMS messages from you before texting them. You are responsible for keeping proof of consent on file. If the lead provides consent using an online form, then the form should include the following:
- Product/program description
- Organization or individual being represented in the initial message
- Service delivery frequency or recurring messages disclosure
- Complete terms and conditions, link to complete terms and conditions
- Privacy policy or link to privacy policy
- How to Opt Out “Message and data rates may apply” disclosure