Engage

What Guidelines Should I Follow for Texting My Customers Through Engage?

Best practices and general guidelines for ensuring compliance with TCPA regulations

Engage users must familiarize themselves with and comply with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and Twilio Messaging Policy to uphold the smooth functionality of Engage, and guarantee a positive customer experience while interacting with your company.

 What is TCPA?

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act, TCPA, enacted in 1991, restricts unsolicited telemarketing calls and faxes, requiring businesses to obtain customer consent, follow solicitation rules, and respect the National Do Not Call Registry to avoid legal consequences. Compliance with TCPA guidelines is crucial for businesses engaging with customers through voice calls or texts.


Texting Guidelines:

  • Recipients have the right to withdraw their consent to receive calls or SMS messages in any reasonable manner, at any time.
  • Prior to sending messages to your customer, you must obtain an agreement from the recipient to communicate with them. You must make it clear to the recipient that you intend to send messages, and what type of messages you are going to send. 
  • You should keep record of the consent, such as a copy of the document or form that the message recipient signed.
  • If you do not send an initial message within a reasonable time frame to the recipient, you will need to reconfirm consent in the first message sent to the recipient. 
  • Companies must offer opt out options.

 💬 All Engage accounts are set up with default opt-out language 💬

If a recipient replies with any of the following, they will not receive any more messages from any of the connected phone numbers from your Engage sender pool: STOP, STOPALL, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END, or QUIT

  • Upon receiving an opt-out message, our carrier Twilio will establish a block list entry. Subsequently, any further efforts to message the blocked number will result in an error response, preventing the delivery of any messages.

Tip:

  • If you encounter undelivered messages in Engage, don't hesitate to contact our Technical Support Team for assistance.
  • It's important to note that not all failed messages are solely due to TCPA compliance or message agreement issues. 
  • Single word messages will trigger the block. For example replying "STOP" will stop the customer from receiving messages from you, but replying "STOP PLEASE" will not.
  • Customers can opt back into messaging with your Engage numbers by replying with opt-in language.

 💬 All Engage accounts are set up with default opt-in language 💬

 If a recipient replies with any of the following they will start receiving messages from you again: START, YES, and UNSTOP


Prohibited Message Categories:

Certain message types are strictly prohibited on SMS and MMS platforms in the US and Canada to maintain a safe messaging environment. Refrain from engaging in the listed forbidden activities, which apply to both message content and business type. For more details refer to this article.

Category Examples
High-risk financial services
  • Payday loans
  • Short term high-interest loans
  • New loan soliciting
  • Third-Party loans
  • Student loans
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Stocks and investing platforms
Third-party lead generation services and marketing
  • Companies, NGOs or political campaigns that buy, sell, or share consumer information
  • Affiliate lending
  • Affiliate marketing
  • Deceptive marketing
Debt collection or forgiveness
  • Third-party debt collection
  • Debt consolidation
  • Debt reduction
  • Debt relief
  • Credit/debt repair
“Get rich quick” schemes
  • Deceptive work-from-home programs
  • Risk investment opportunities
  • Pyramid schemes
  • Mystery Shopping
  • Multi Level Marketing (MLM)
Illegal substances/articles
  • Cannabis
  • CBD
  • Kratom
  • Paraphernalia products
  • Vape/E-cigs
  • Fireworks
Prescription drugs
  • Drugs that require a prescription
Gambling
  • Casino apps
  • Websites that offer gambling
  • Sweepstakes
  • 50/50 Raffles
  • Contests
  • Betting/Sports picks
"S.H.A.F.T." use cases and electronic smoking devices 
  • Sex
  • Hate
  • Alcohol
  • Firearms
  • Tobacco
  • Vape/E-ciggs

Messaging Violation Outcomes:

  • Engage users who do not comply with the TCPA or Twilio messaging policy may risk having their communications blocked by our carrier, Twilio.
  • If your messages have been blocked due to a messaging violation, and you believe your messages follow the rules, please contact our Technical Support Team. We will gather information and examples from your account to assist you in resolving the issue with Twilio and getting your account back on track. 

This article serves as a valuable resource for understanding the rules, regulations, and best practices for secure messaging. For more in-depth information on messaging compliance and its impact on your business, please refer to the available articles. It is essential to familiarize yourself with relevant laws and industry standards before engaging with consumers to ensure a positive and compliant interaction.


TCPA Resources

TCPA Rules

Twilio Messaging Policy

How to Prevent Messages Being Blocked

Guide to Messaging Compliance