Glossary
Reference document. Skim or search.
Plain-English definitions for the 10DLC terms you'll run into while setting up messaging on AgentMessage. Where a term maps to something AgentMessage does for you, the definition says so.
10DLC. Short for "10-digit long code." The carrier-approved framework for sending business text messages (A2P) from standard 10-digit US phone numbers. If your agent texts US recipients, this is the system it runs on.
A2P. "Application-to-Person." Messaging sent from a business application, like your agent, to a person's phone. The opposite is P2P.
Age gate. A check on your website that asks the visitor to confirm their date of birth before reaching content or an opt-in form for age-restricted products. Required for alcohol, tobacco/vape, and firearms messaging.
Brand. The legal business entity that messages come from. Every campaign sits under exactly one brand. You register your brand first, before any campaign. See FAQ for how many brands you need.
Campaign. A specific messaging program registered under a brand. It describes the use case (marketing, account notifications, and so on), how people opt in, sample messages, and the compliance details carriers review. A brand can have several campaigns.
Carrier. AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon, the major US wireless networks your messages travel over. Also called an MNO (Mobile Network Operator). Carriers set the rules that 10DLC enforces, and they review and approve your campaign.
CP-575. The IRS letter issued when your EIN is assigned. It carries your exact legal business name, the name brand verification matches against. If you can't find it, the IRS can issue a Form 147C as a replacement. Matching this name is the single biggest factor in passing verification.
CSP. "Campaign Service Provider." A company registered with The Campaign Registry that files brands and campaigns on behalf of businesses. AgentMessage is your CSP, you never log into the registry or a carrier yourself.
CTA. "Call to Action." The description of how people opt in to receive your messages, where consent is collected and what they agree to. Sometimes called the "message flow." See Write a call-to-action that passes.
DBA. "Doing Business As." A trade name your business uses publicly that differs from its legal name. In registration, your legal name (from your CP-575) is what gets verified; a DBA goes in a separate field and doesn't replace it.
Dedicated campaign. A campaign that covers exactly one use case. The opposite of Mixed. Useful for isolating time-critical traffic, like 2FA, from a larger batch.
EIN. "Employer Identification Number." The nine-digit federal tax ID the IRS assigns to your business. You need one to register a brand on AgentMessage. If you don't have one, see I don't have an EIN.
HELP. The standard keyword people can text to get support information. Your HELP reply must include your brand name and a way to reach you. AgentMessage defaults this to HELP on the campaign form.
Identity status. The verification result on a brand: Self-declared, Verified, Vetted Verified, or Unverified. A campaign can only be registered under a brand that is Verified or Vetted Verified. See Brand statuses, explained.
Lifecycle status. Where a brand is in its life: Pending, then Active (or Deleted). This is separate from identity status.
Mixed. A campaign that bundles 2-5 standard use cases under one record. Convenient when your agent sends a few different kinds of message; the compliance review covers all the bundled use cases together.
MMS. "Multimedia Messaging Service." Picture and rich-media messages. Covered by 10DLC the same way SMS is, and billed as its own unit.
MNO. "Mobile Network Operator." Same thing as "carrier", AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon.
Opt-in. A person's explicit consent to receive your text messages. It has to be clear, specific to messaging, and not buried inside an unrelated agreement. This is the cornerstone of 10DLC compliance.
Opt-out. A person withdrawing consent, typically by texting STOP (also END, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, QUIT). It must be honored immediately and stay honored.
P2P. "Person-to-Person." Ordinary texting between two people. Not subject to 10DLC registration. The opposite of A2P.
Privacy policy. A document published on your website (you provide its URL on the campaign) describing how you handle people's data, including the 10DLC requirement that SMS opt-in data is not shared with third parties for marketing. A missing or weak SMS clause here is a common rejection reason.
Public-company verification. An extra step for brands registered as Public for-profit, tied to your stock ticker, that confirms public-company status and can strengthen your standing. In AgentMessage this is what "Authentication+" refers to. It is not an ID-photo, selfie, or quiz check.
Segment. The unit messages are billed in. One SMS segment is roughly 160 characters; a longer text splits into two or three segments. AgentMessage prices sends per segment, see agentmessage.io/pricing.
Self-declared. An identity status meaning the registry accepted the brand but hasn't fully confirmed it against IRS records yet. It usually resolves to Verified on its own; if it sticks, it needs the same fix as Unverified, most often a legal-name correction.
SHAFT. The content categories carriers restrict on 10DLC: Sex, Hate, Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco. Sex and Hate content is banned; Alcohol, Firearms, and Tobacco are allowed only with proper age-gating. Cannabis (including CBD) is also banned regardless of state law.
SMS. "Short Message Service." Standard text messaging. The traffic 10DLC governs.
Snowshoeing. A spam pattern where the same traffic is spread across many phone numbers to dodge per-number limits. Carriers watch for this and suspend over it. More numbers do not raise your throughput, see How throughput works.
Suspension. A carrier or registry action that stops an active brand or campaign, usually triggered by spam complaints, content violations, or phishing-like patterns. Different from a rejection, which happens before approval. Resolving a suspension goes through AgentMessage, see Contact support.
TCR / The Campaign Registry. The central registry where all 10DLC brands and campaigns are recorded. AgentMessage files with TCR on your behalf; you don't interact with it directly.
Throughput. How fast you can send, segments per second and per day. On AgentMessage it's set by the lower of two things: your account's send-rate tier (which rises automatically as your usage grows) and the carriers' caps on your brand. See How throughput works.
Unverified. An identity status meaning the registry couldn't confirm your business. The usual cause is a legal-name mismatch versus your CP-575; the next is an EIN too new to appear in the IRS lookup. See Fix an Unverified brand.
Use case. The category describing what a campaign sends, Marketing, Account notifications, Customer care, Delivery notifications, 2FA, and others. You pick it on the campaign form; the list is fixed by the carriers. Specialty categories not in the dropdown go through support. See Pick a use case.
Verified. An identity status meaning the registry confirmed your business against IRS records. Required before you can register campaigns.
Vetted Verified. A brand that is Verified and has completed external carrier vetting that produced a trust score, which can unlock higher carrier throughput. This isn't a self-serve button; if your volume needs it, contact us.