SMS and RCS Registration

Completing 10DLC registration unlocks SMS in careCycle. Once approved, you can send text messages from AI campaigns and directly from the Inbox. Welcome messages, appointment reminders, plan updates, and one-off member conversations all run from your Receptionist's number.

10DLC, or 10-Digit Long Code, registration is a federal requirement for all business SMS in the US. Carriers use it to verify legitimate senders, and messages from unregistered numbers are filtered out.

Registration is a one-time setup. careCycle's carrier partners handle the filing on your behalf with zero cost passthrough.

Submit Your Registration

careCycle includes a guided registration flow in the app that walks you through every field, in four steps: Brand, Verification, Campaign & RCS, and Complete. Your progress saves as you go, so you can leave and come back.

Navigate to Settings > Messaging > Registration & Compliance.

What You'll Need: Brand Registration

The first step registers your business. Everything here must match your tax records exactly, so have a recent tax document handy:

• Business information: display name, legal company name, company type (private or public), business email, and website (must be a working https:// address).
• Tax information: your EIN in XX-XXXXXXX format. Public companies also provide a stock symbol, exchange, and business contact email.
• Primary contact: first name, last name, and phone number of the person responsible for the registration.
• Business address: street, city, state, and 5-digit ZIP.

After you submit, brand verification usually completes in under a minute, and the page updates automatically.

What You'll Need: Campaign & RCS

Once your brand verifies, the second step describes how you message members:

• Campaign description: what you send and who your audience is, at least 40 characters.
• Message flow: how members opt in, what types of messages they receive, and how they opt out. This is where your compliant opt-in story (below) gets written down.
• Terms & Conditions URL and Privacy Policy URL from your website.

Timeline: Brand verification is typically under a minute, and campaign and RCS carrier review typically completes within 24 hours. Occasionally carriers take longer, so start this in parallel with selecting your Receptionist's number, so you are cleared for SMS by the time your book of business is imported.

If carriers raise issues with your submission, our team will reach out directly with what needs to be adjusted. There is no need to chase status. We will keep you informed.

You can also customize the opt-out message appended to your texts from the final status screen. Custom opt-out messages are capped at 160 characters and must include the word STOP.

If you run into major questions, confusion, or blockers while filling out the form, contact your Forward Deployed Engineer or support@carecycle.ai.

FAQs

Optionally Register for RCS

While registering for 10DLC, you can also opt into RCS, or Rich Communication Services, in the same flow.

RCS is the modern successor to SMS, supported natively on iPhone and Android, and it transforms what your messages can do.

Benefits of RCS

• Verified branding. Messages display your logo, business name, and brand colors, with a verified checkmark.
• Rich media. Send images, PDFs, carousels, and quick-reply buttons.
• Better deliverability and read receipts. RCS messages show delivered/read status and route over data rather than the SMS network.
• Higher engagement. RCS messages typically see significantly higher response rates than plain SMS.

To register for RCS, the Campaign & RCS step collects your agent branding, with a live phone preview as you fill it in:

• Agent identity: display name, agent type (Multi Use is recommended and covers both marketing and member care), a short description shown in members' messaging settings, and a longer description submitted to carriers.
• Branding assets: a square logo (224 x 224 pixels recommended, JPEG or PNG), a banner image (1440 x 448 pixels recommended), and your brand color.
• Contact & links: contact email, website, and optional phone number and terms/privacy links (these default sensibly if left empty).

careCycle handles the rest.

For carriers and devices that do not yet support RCS, your messages automatically fall back to standard SMS, so there is no downside to enabling it.

Proving Compliant Opt-In

Carriers require proof that your members consented to receive SMS.

The number one reason 10DLC registrations get flagged is coupling SMS opt-in language with TCPA voice opt-in language. They must be separate, with their own checkbox or verbal capture.

Every opt-in must meet five requirements:

1. Optional. Not a condition of submitting a form, completing a call, or making a purchase.
2. Revocable. Members can opt out at any time with clear instructions.
3. Clear. It must be obvious that the member is consenting to SMS.
4. Self-contained. SMS opt-in cannot be bundled with voice or TCPA opt-in.
5. Specific. Describe the types of messages members will receive.

careCycle supports two opt-in paths: landing page and verbal.

Path A: Landing Page Opt-In

If you collect leads through a web form, you need a compliant landing page.

We built a reference implementation at carecycle.ai/esh that you can use as a model, including the privacy policy, terms of service, and the checkbox structure carriers expect.

Your form needs two separate checkboxes, each unchecked by default.

Checkbox 1: Marketing and SMS Opt-In

This checkbox is optional.

By checking this box, I consent to receive marketing and promotional text messages from [Company Name], including information about insurance services and coordination with a licensed agent. Message frequency may vary. Message and data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help or STOP to opt out. Consent is not required for purchasing products or services.

Checkbox 2: Terms and Privacy Agreement

This checkbox is required.

I agree with the [Terms of Service] and [Privacy Policy].

Replace [Company Name] with your DBA, and link Terms of Service and Privacy Policy to your own pages. If you do not have compliant Terms and Privacy pages yet, you can model yours on the example site. Your account manager can share source templates.

Path B: Verbal Opt-In

If your agents capture consent during enrollment calls, that verbal opt-in counts, provided the script meets the five requirements above and the consent is documented on a publicly accessible landing page, such as https://yourwebsite.com/sms-consent.

Recommended agent script

You will receive a text from one of our virtual assistants to welcome you to your plan, provide next steps, and give you a space to ask any questions before your package arrives from the carrier. Any questions you ask will go directly to me, your agent, so we can help you faster. You can reply STOP to opt out or HELP for help. Terms and Privacy are at [yourwebsite.com]. Do you agree?

Member: "Yes."

Great, you will receive informational text messages from our agents at the phone number you provided.

The call recording becomes your record of consent. careCycle stores these recordings in the customer's record for audit purposes.

Automatic SMS Compliance

Once you are registered, the platform handles ongoing compliance in every message:

• Sender identification. Your business name or consumer-facing DBA is prepended to each message automatically.
• Opt-out handling. "Reply STOP to opt out" is appended automatically, and members who reply STOP are added to your doNotSMS list instantly.
• Deliverability monitoring. For large-scale campaigns, we proactively monitor SMS deliverability and intervene with carriers when rates drop.

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