Best Practices for Formatting SMS Messages

SMS Character Limit

We recommend a limit of 140 characters per message.

The actual character limit for notification text in the Mindful UI is 500. However, any notification that contains more than 140 characters will be split into multiple parts by the carrier. For example, a notification that contains 300 characters would be sent as three SMS messages.

A2P 10DLC Considerations

For clients using regular 10-digit phone numbers (known as "ten-digit long codes" or "10DLCs"), Mindful's carrier partners require the number to be registered with the Campaign Registry, which is used by the majority of US mobile carriers to validate the authenticity of application-to-person (or "A2P") SMS traffic.

If your brand is using 10DLCs, please complete this form so that we can ensure that the 10DLC campaigns are submitted as soon as possible.

What is A2P 10DLC?

A2P 10DLC (Application-to-Person 10-Digit Long Code) messaging is a new system of requirements established by major US mobile carriers to support the growing number of businesses texting their clients, while protecting end-users from unwanted messages.

10-digit long code phone numbers (10DLC) have traditionally been intended for Person-to-Person (P2P) SMS traffic only.

With the launch of A2P 10DLC across all major mobile carriers in the US, all SMS traffic from virtual number providers (such as Concierge), will be considered A2P traffic. Registered numbers can expect low filtering and increased deliverability and throughput.

There are two important requirements under the A2P 10DLC system:

• Brand registration: Businesses identify who they are to mobile carriers.
• Campaign registration: Businesses register what type of messages they are sending (their use case), such as notifications, appointment reminders, reservation updates, etc.

What Information Does Mindful Need?

To help with activating your number, the Mindful team will need the following information:

• Email address of the company contact submitting the form
• Company name and address
• Business type (sole proprietorship, corporation, etc.)
• Business Registration Number/Tax EIN & Type (DUNS or Business License)
• Industry
• Company website
• Regions of operations
• Contact information for two company contacts
• Campaign information if you are registering a toll-free number (TFN)

What is a campaign?

In the context of A2P 10DLC registration in the US, a Campaign defines the types of messages an organization will be sending to their end-users. End-users may be existing or prospective customers, guests, employees, contractors, vendors, etc.

Examples of different Campaign types include:

• 2FA: Any authentication or account verification such as OTP
• Account Notifications: Notifications about the status of an account or related to being a part of an account
• Customer Care: Existing customer support and account management
• Delivery Notifications: Information about the status of a delivery
• Higher Education: Message campaigns from colleges, universities, and other educational institutions
• Marketing: Promotional content such as sales and limited time offers
• Mixed: A campaign that covers multiple use cases such as Customer Care and Delivery Notifications (mixed campaigns will have lower throughput).
• Polling and voting: For conducting polling and voting, such as customer surveys. Not for political use.
• Public Service Announcements: PSAs to raise audience awareness about a given topic
• Security Alert: Notification of a compromised system (software or hardware related)

For assistance in defining your campaign details, contact a Mindful representative.