10DLC, explained for sales teams
What 10DLC is and why it exists
10DLC stands for 10-digit long code: an ordinary local phone number used to send business text messages. US carriers created the 10DLC system so business texting from local numbers would be registered and traceable, which lets them block spam without blocking legitimate businesses.
Registration happens through The Campaign Registry. First you register your brand, which is your business identity: legal name, EIN, address, and website. Then you register one or more campaigns describing what you send, who receives it, and how they opted in. Your phone numbers are linked to an approved campaign, and carriers use that record to decide how much traffic to accept from you.
Carriers now block or heavily filter business traffic from unregistered local numbers, so registration is no longer optional for teams that text leads at any volume.
What carriers look for in a campaign
Most rejections come down to a mismatch between what a campaign says and what a reviewer can verify. Reviewers read your campaign description, sample messages, and opt-in description, then check them against your website. Before submitting, make sure these line up.
- A working website that matches your registered business name
- A privacy policy that says mobile numbers and opt-in data are not shared with third parties for marketing
- An opt-in description showing exactly how people agree to receive texts, such as a web form with a consent checkbox
- Sample messages that identify your business and include opt-out language like "Reply STOP to opt out"
- A use case that matches what you actually send, such as marketing or customer care
Staying compliant after approval
Approval is the start, not the finish. Carriers keep monitoring opt-out rates, complaints, and message content, and a campaign that drifts from its registered use case can be suspended. Content involving sex, hate, alcohol, firearms, or tobacco is heavily restricted, and public link shorteners are often filtered, so use your own domain for links.
TCPA rules apply alongside 10DLC. Marketing texts generally require prior express written consent, telemarketing messages are limited to 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the recipient's local time with some states setting narrower windows, and opt-out requests must be honored promptly. Text2Sale records STOP replies automatically, blocks future messages to opted-out numbers across every campaign, and gives you quiet-hours sending windows.