New requirements to prevent text message spam require small business owners to complete a verification of their business before they can send text messages from a business number. These requirements, known as 10DLC, look at several factors to determine if a business is legitimate or just a front for sending SMS spam messages. One of those factors is a website with a valid privacy policy. But do you really need a website just to send text messages? No, but not having a website does complicate things.
Verify your company or you can’t send text messages
Recently I received a message from my virtual phone provider, LinkedPhone, that unless I verified my business with an organization called The Campaign Registry (TCR) I would not be able to send text messages on my business phone line. This verification was being required as a part of new laws called 10DLC or 10-Digit Long Code. These new laws were put in place to cut down on unwanted spam messages and require small businesses to verify that they are a legitimate entity who isn’t using text messaging for spamming or scamming. But how exactly do you verify a business if you’re a mobile carrier?
Well, in the case of LinkedPhone they asked me for lots of information about my business, including the legal name of my business so they could verify that I was registered with the state as a business entity. They also asked for a link to my company website, which not only helps to show that I am a legitimate business with a professional presence, but also contains my company’s privacy policy. The privacy policy would become especially important during this process, as in order to pass the 10DLC verification you need to have some very specific wording in your privacy policy that details how your business handles text messages and how people can opt-out from receiving messages from you.
In fact, the first time I attempted the verification my business actually failed due to lacking this very specific language in my privacy policy. Unfortunately the rep from LinkedPhone didn’t tell me the specific language that was required until after I had failed my initial 10DLC check. Happily, however, after a quick update to the privacy policy to include the required lanuguage my business was able to pass the 10DLC verification and I can now send text messages to my customers, which I may do to offer support or answer pre-sales questions.
How are companies without a website supposed to verify their business?
If a company doesn’t have a website, it is possible to verify that a company is legitimate by using their social media accounts, however this process is more complicated because it is a lot easier to create a fake social media account than it is to create a fake company website. 10DLC requires that companies have a valid online presence while also having a valid privacy policy that details how phone number and user data is used by the business when sending text messages.
While it is possible to verify a business through a social media account, the process becomes more difficult due to the nature of social media. A brand new business with a social media account that has no followers is likely to be rejected because of the ease of creating fake social media accounts. Only businesses with a large social media following are likely to be verified by using social media alone and even then it’s not guaranteed. A company website is seen as a more permanent sign of a company’s presence and existence than a social media profile simply due to the effort it takes to have a professional company website launched compared to the effort required to launch a social media profile.
Even if a business has a well established social media presence with lots of followers, there’s still the issue of the privacy policy. The privacy policy needs to be added in a prominent way to your social media account, so this likely involves you either permanently featuring it in a pinned social media post or attaching the privacy policy to the about page on your social media account. While these options may allow you to verify your business with The Campaign Registry, they have drawbacks in that you’re wasting valuable space on your social media profile promoting a privacy policy instead of the content you really want users to see.
Having a website makes 10DLC verification and re-verification easier than using social media
While it is possible for a business to verify without having a website, a professionally designed website will make the verification process much easier than attempting to verify by using social media. In addition, there is always the possibility of a random check occurring at some point in the future that could result in your verification being removed if you decide to take down that pinned post with your privacy policy. While a truly random check is unlikely to happen, if a customer complains about text messages you’re sending or you change something with the structure of your business or brand it is possible a re-verification will be triggered. Whereas your social media is rapidly changing, a privacy policy on a website is a static document that will always be there should a re-verification be necessary. The last thing you want is to suddenly lose the ability to send text messages because your social media is no longer showing your privacy policy.
Make verification easier and establish a professional online presence with a custom website
While you don’t need a website to run a business, a professionally built website sends a signal to customers as well as other businesses, such as The Campaign Registry, that your business is trustworthy and an established business entity. Because a website takes more effort to create and launch than a social media profile, it sends a signal to customers that the business is not going to disappear overnight and that the business is a trustworthy long-term partner.
If your business doesn’t have a website or needs a website refresh, let the web design experts at Your Right Website build a custom WordPress website that’s designed around your business. We’ll establish your business as a trusted partner in the eyes of your customers and external entities like The Campaign Registry. Schedule your free web design consultation with us today!