The Sole Proprietor (SP) is one of The Campaign Registry (TCR) entity types. SP is designed to allow sole proprietors without an EIN to be able to register and send low-volume messages. Some businesses with EINs have been improperly registered as SP. Thus, TCR will require additional information and validation for existing and new SP registration to represent the actual SP. These changes are expected to take effect on November 3, 2022.

Due to the upcoming changes, the carrier will no longer accept SP registration until further notice. To avoid recurring charges, we recommend registering your brand and campaign after the changes are complete.

Details About the Upcoming Changes

In the current SP registration, a brand’s identity is set to SELF_DECLARED. For the new SP registration, TCR implements two steps of validation: Data Validation and OTP Validation.

Data Validation (Effective on November 3, 2022)

In the new compliance, SP brands must be registered by providing the following information:

  • The Brand Name of the SP business; 
  • First and Last Name of the owner of the SP business;
  • Valid US or Canadian Address includes Street, City, State, Postal Codes, and Country;
  • Email address of the SP business;
  • An active US or Canadian mobile phone number (A Mobile phone number can register up to three SP brands).

TCR will be reviewing submitted brands. When the data submitted passes data validation, you will be charged a one-time $4 registration fee for each accepted SP brand.

OTP Validation (Effective on January 12, 2023)

TCR requires the responsible person behind the SP brand registration to be validated through an SMS OTP validation process. In other words, the mobile phone you registered will receive a one-time password to get your brand verified. Please be cautious that OTP PIN has an expiration of 24 hours. 

Once the SP brand passes the OTP Validation, the SP brand gets a “VERIFIED” status and is ready to register an SP campaign.

If your brand does not complete the OTP Validation within 30 days of being validated, the brand record will be disabled and will need to be re-submitted as a new registration.

Other New Requirements (Effective on November 3, 2022)

In order to register an SP brand, the following new requirements should be noted:

  1.  Brands with a Tax ID (EIN) cannot register as Sole Proprietors.
  2. For the Data validation, the physical address must be in the United States and Canada. A valid address can be only used for no more than 10 brands.
  3.  For OTP validation, the mobile phone number must be a US or Canadian wireless phone number. One phone number can be used for no more than 3 brands across TCR.
  4.  Only one campaign is allowed per SP brand, with a maximum of one associated phone number.
  5.  The SP Campaign monthly fee will be adjusted to $2.00.

How to Register a New SP Brand and Campaign in Textr Team

To register a new SP brand in Textr Team, you should follow the above two steps of registration. 

In the Data Validation, you should provide valid and relevant information about your brand. After your brand information is verified, you will enter the OTP validation. SP brands will remain in an “UNVERIFIED” status until they pass OTP Validation. It is important to verify the OTP PIN in time. Upon successful OTP Validation, the brand will be assigned a “VERIFIED” status and is allowed to register a campaign. Then, you can assign a phone number to your verified campaign.

How Will These Changes Impact Your Existing SP Brand

For existing SP brands, your status will be changed to “UNVERIFIED” after January 12, 2023, which means you cannot register any campaigns.

You should update your brand information regarding Data Validation requirements and pass OTP Validation by verifying the one-time password. When you get the “VERIFIED” status, you can register a campaign. And only 1 phone number can be associated with one campaign.

If you do not update your brand information and complete OTP Validation by February 28, 2023, your SP brand and campaign will be deactivated by TCR on March 01, 2023.

We know this is a significant change in how you do business, and Textr Team will continue to post the latest updates from TCR and streamline your registration process. Should you have any concerns, please contact us at [email protected]. Thank you!