Jacob Morrow
2024-08-07 12:10:33
In an era where communications have become instant with the help of technology, every business is trying to connect with their customers in the best possible way. Text messages are a great solution since they arrive at your customers’ mobiles, ensuring visibility and engagement. And the greatest thing is that you can easily set up a global SMS strategy to reach users from all around the globe.
However, with great power comes great responsibility. Almost every region in the world has text message laws that you need to adhere to. In this article, we will dig deeper into the world of SMS compliance and give you useful tips on how to set up a successful international SMS campaign.
What is SMS Compliance?
SMS compliance is a broad term that refers to the adherence to laws, regulations, and guidelines that try to regulate SMS marketing. These SMS marketing laws are specifically designed to protect consumers from spam and fraudulent texts, as well as practices that threaten their privacy. For this reason, it is crucial that your business recognizes these laws and tries to ensure that your marketing campaigns are legal and ethical.
Nevertheless, you might still be wondering what is their actual importance for your business. The truth is that your brand has more to gain than just complying with the SMS regulations. The main benefits of adopting these practices are:
Legal Protection: Adhering to SMS marketing laws protects your business from the numerous legal consequences and penalties set by these regulations. If your company is found guilty of violating the region’s specific laws, you will have to pay a significant amount of money in fines, which is often devastating for businesses.
Customer Trust: Compliance also builds customer trust. When customers see that they need to give SMS consent, they rest assured that your business respects their privacy and communicates responsibly. Therefore, they are more likely to engage with your brand and trust your future communication. This is the reason why you need to learn and use text message opt-in language that cultivates trust.
Operational Efficiency: This is one of the hidden benefits of adhering to text message regulation. If you take the time to research and follow the compliance guidelines, then you streamline your SMS campaigns and you reduce the risk of having your texts blocked by the carrier. In time, this will lead to higher delivery rates and fewer disruptions in your campaigns as your text won’t get flagged as spam.
Brand Reputation: All of your actions, should contribute to your brand reputation as it can have significant consequences for your business. Remember that non-compliance can damage a brand’s reputation, making it extremely difficult for you to recover. This happens because negative publicity can spread rapidly with the use of the Internet and social media. For example, a brand will face a major backlash and lose numerous subscribers if word gets out that they are using non-compliant techniques.
Summary of International SMS Rules
The thing about text message laws is that they aren’t unified for the whole world. Instead, every region and country has different regulations. Therefore, you must research the laws in effect in the specific region where you are planning on launching your global SMS campaign. In this section, we are going to summarize some of the regulations and rules from different parts of the world.
#1 United States
In the US, SMS compliance is governed mainly by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). In addition to this, The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA) has also some rules specifically for SMS. These regulations set strict guidelines that try to protect consumers from unwanted communications from businesses.
The key elements of SMS regulations in the US are the following:
- Consent: Every brand has the right to send promotional text to their customers. However, SMS consent from the recipients is mandatory before the businesses can send their campaigns. You can get your customers’ consent through various channels, such as online forms or text-in keywords. Either way, remember to use the appropriate text message opt-in language.
- Opt-Out: Every message sent from a brand must be two-way, thus giving recipients an easy way to opt-out. For instance, your customers should be able to text "STOP" to unsubscribe from your future promotional messages.
- Content Restrictions: When it comes to promoting in the US, there are certain restrictions on the type of content you can send. In more detail, you cannot send campaigns that contain or promote gambling, drugs, alcohol, adult content, some financial products, and firearms.
#2 European Union
In the EU, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) sets stringent rules for SMS marketing. In essence, the GDPR is one of the most comprehensive data protection regulations globally. One thing you need to remember about it is that its effect applies to all 27 countries that belong to the European Union. Therefore, if your customer base is in Europe, then you are probably bound by the GDPR.
The key elements of the SMS marketing laws in Europe are the following:
- Opt-In: SMS consent is at the center of the GDPR. Brands need to provide clear and detailed information about what the consent is for and how the users’ data will be used. In addition to this, businesses need to make all this information readily available in their privacy policy.
- Opt-Out: Similarly to opting in, every business needs to provide an easy way for recipients to opt out of their text message campaigns.
- Data Protection: Another key element of the GDPR is that all businesses must ensure proper handling and storage of personal data. This means that brands need to implement data protection techniques and maintain a Personal Data Breach Register among others.
- Limits: Brands can only collect the data they need for their operation and no more than this.
#3 China
In China the SMS regulations are strict, reflecting the country’s prioritization of data privacy and security. For this reason, you need to research thoroughly the laws that apply to SMS marketing before you send your promotional text to your customers.
The key elements of the regulations in China are the following:
- Template Registration: All businesses are required to register templates of their messages before they can send them to their contact list. All unregistered templates are rejected, therefore it’s important to follow this process.
- Long Codes: Businesses need to send their promotional texts via long codes. In addition to this, texts must include at least one Chinese Character Signature to prevent it from getting blocked. Including the UNICODE brackets 【】is an easy way to bypass this issue.
- Content Restrictions: Just like in the US, there is some type of content that you can’t promote in China. This includes gambling, adult content, violence, loans, immigration, adult supplies, and politics among others.
- Consent: In China, you also need to obtain consent from the recipients before you send them promotional texts. Use the text message opt-in language to give them all relevant information.
#4 Latin America
Latin America is a region that contains numerous countries. However, unlike the EU, countries in Latin America have diverse regulations. Nevertheless, if you study the text message laws of each country, you can spot some common themes.
The key elements include:
- SMS Consent: Prior consent is essential, just like in most regions of the world. All brands need to get clear and explicit consent from recipients before they can send messages to them.
- Short Codes: In countries, such as Brazil and Colombia, companies can use shortcodes to send their promotional texts. These shortcodes can be either dedicated or shared, with no restriction.
- Opt-Out: In most Latin American countries, companies should utilize easy mechanisms for recipients to opt out of every text message.
#5 Middle East
In the Middle East, regulations vary widely depending on which country you want to promote to. But just like in other cases, you can find some common aspects that apply in all Middle Eastern countries.
The key elements include:
- Local Laws: Since the SMS regulations vary so vastly in Middle Eastern countries, it is essential to research each country’s laws separately. This is the only way to ensure that your business will comply with them.
- Restricted Content: Be extremely wary of the content you include in your SMS campaigns as there are some restrictions. For example, gambling is prohibited in both Saudi Arabia and Algeria. Other restricted content includes politics, religion, and adult content.
- Sender ID Regulations: In Morocco, your brand’s sender ID shouldn’t exceed 11 characters and it shouldn’t contain special characters, numbers, and spaces.
Global SMS Compliance Guide
Looking into the specific region’s regulation is just the first step to creating a successful international SMS campaign. In this section, we are digging deeper into the things that you need to look for and avoid to achieve complete SMS compliance.
What to Look For:
-
Explicit Consent: The no.1 rule you should follow is
to ensure that your recipients have explicitly opted-in to receive
messages. Use text message opt-in language to let them know what they
should expect from you, and how you are going to use their data.
-
Clear Opt-Out Options: It is equally important to
provide easy and immediate ways for your recipients to opt-out. A
great example is to include the line "Reply STOP to unsubscribe" in
your texts to allow all users who want to unsubscribe, quickly
complete the task.
-
Transparent Sender ID: Your customers should be able
to tell that they’ve received an SMS from your brand at a glance. For
this reason, you need to identify your business in every
message.
-
Respect Quiet Hours: When you are crafting a global
SMS campaign, make sure to avoid sending messages during late-night
hours in the recipient’s time zone. This shows respect for their
privacy and makes your communication feel less intrusive.
-
Localized Content: Internation marketing campaigns
require localization. This means that you should tailor your messages
to not just comply with local laws and regulations but to also respect
the region’s cultural norms.
What to Avoid:
-
Buying Lists: There are third parties that sell you
whole lists of phone numbers. However, this practice is not only
unethical but often illegal, which can lead to severe
consequences.
-
Misleading Information: Never hide information from
your recipients when you try to get them to opt in. Instead, focus on
providing them with value that motivates them to subscribe to your
list.
-
Over-Messaging: Try to craft an SMS strategy that
won’t tire your recipients. Don’t send too many messages that might
backfire.
-
Ignore Data Protection Laws: Study the SMS marketing
laws and make sure that you are compliant with them.
SMS Sending Best Practices
In the previous parts, we have covered the basics of how to build an international SMS campaign that complies with the regulations. In this section, we are taking a look at some specific examples. Here are some effective text messages that you can also adopt for your SMS strategy:
The first example is to send a confirmation message, whenever a user subscribes to your list. This way, you are reaffirming their subscription and preventing any misunderstandings that might cause negative feelings toward your brand. A good practice is to also provide an opt-out method in this initial text.
Another great example is to always include your business name in the message. One of the most common practices is to begin your text with [Brand Name].
Make sure that your texts include an opt-out method. A great example is to provide a straightforward opt-out method at the end of your text. In this particular example, users must text you back with the word "STOP" to unsubscribe.
An easy way to increase engagement and reduce the likelihood of recipients opting out is to add personalization elements to your texts. Moreover, you can select to send only relevant information to your customers, such as the status of their orders.
How to Ensure Global SMS Compliance
There is no denying that crafting a successful international SMS campaign requires many considerations. Apart from the SMS regulations, you need to ensure that your texts cater to your specific audience. If you use the right text message opt-in language, they will choose to subscribe to your SMS list. Fortunately, you have an exceptional tool at your disposal to help you create SMS templates for your global SMS campaigns.
EngageLab is a great platform for reaching an international audience. The app is compatible with carriers from more than 200 countries, ensuring that you can reach your customer regardless of their location. If you respect the SMS marketing laws of the region, EngageLab will lead to even greater results.
Get Started For FreeThe great thing about EngageLab is that it has a user-friendly interface that allows you to create templates and send your text messages in just a few simple steps. In this section, we are going to show you how to create a template that complies with SMS regulations in this amazing app.
How to use EngageLab
Create an account on EngageLab. Once you complete your registration, you will be redirected to your console. From there, click "SMS".
Click the "Send Related" option from the sidebar to expand it. Locate and click the "Template" option.
In this screen, you will see all the templates that you have already created. Click the "Create Template" button to start a new one.
To create your template, first select the content type. Then, type the name that will help you identify it among your other templates, and write the content of your template. Click the "Sign Name" button to add your brand’s name at the beginning of your text. Once you are ready, click the "Save and submit for review" button.
The Bottom Line
Navigating the complexities of SMS compliance is essential for your business. By understanding and adhering to international SMS rules, you can unlock the power of SMS marketing for a global audience. In this guide, we have given you useful tips and pieces of advice to keep in mind while creating your campaigns. If you are looking for a tool that has built-in templates, specifically catering to compliance, we recommend EngageLab. Create your account today to get the most out of this exceptional app.
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