The rise of WhatsApp, WeChat, Telegram, and other mobile instant messaging (IM) applications offered businesses tons of options to connect with their employees and customers. However, the benefits provided by IM apps come with a trade: companies must abide by text messaging compliance which will enable them to monitor SMS and archive them.
Failing to follow strict regulations will result in legal consequences that can hurt your financing and reputation. Mandatory compliance may appear complicated at first glance as business executives and the human resource (HR) department has to grasp the requirements asked by regulatory firms like the US-based FINRA and SEC.
Obligatory rules aren’t as complex as what businesses perceive in reality. Read this article to learn more about SMS compliance to avoid being penalized and ensure quality service for the community you’re serving.
- Express Written Consent
Before sending automated promotional text messages, businesses shall assure that customers give them their “express written consent” as stated in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The written content should be clear and conspicuous for recipients to understand what they’re signing up aside from not burying it in a pages-long form full of legalese.
Adherence to these guidelines is essential as failure to comply is a subject for TCPA violations; even the merely informational text messages require consent.
Requiring users to opt into your text programs as a condition to buy property, goods, or services is prohibited. A clear call-to-action regarding your opt-in method may allow you to get consent.
- Permissionto Import Contacts
Gather every contact in a compliant way. Be sure that all contacts have also agreed via express written consent, as it isn’t only for new connections or those your business had imported. Importing a subscribers list comes with permission from the clients who provided their phone numbers to the company.
- Confirmation Message
The first text message you should send among the users who signed up must be a carried compliance message that confirms their subscription and includes the following details: your identity, message frequency, the message, data rate that applies, and opt-out options.
- Call-to-Action Requirements
The inclusion of call-to-action prompting users to join your SMS campaigns requires the following information:
Automated Marketing Messages
Following the rules set by the express written consent, make sure your CTA clearly states that consumers don’t need to receive text messages as a requirement to purchase anything from your business.
SMS Campaign Purpose
Let the subscribers know the offers they sign up for, whether it is coupons or tips.
Message Frequency
Specify the approximate volume of messages your consumers will receive in a week or a month after signing up for your SMS campaign.
Message and Data Rates
Inform your subscribers who are bound to receive text messages from you that it has incurred charges. Thus, they need to pay a small fee by signing up for your program.
Terms and Conditions
Do not forget to outline all the terms and conditions either full beneath your CTA or provide a nearby link. It should contain the following:
- Company/brand
- Program identity
- Customer care contact info
- Product description people are signing up for
- Bold-typed opt-out instructions
Privacy Policy
Like Terms and Conditions, businesses have to list the privacy policies under the CTA or through a link provided.
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