If you use Twilio to send automated texts through SmartPlans in Command, there are some legal compliance related restrictions that you need to be aware of, and to take action on. There are a few states in the US that limit which days you are legally allowed to send automated texts to consumers on. The general idea with these laws, in these specific states, are that you can't send automated texts on Sundays, and there are specific State or Federal holidays that you are restricted in this way as well.
- These restrictions are not based on where you live, as an agent, but where the contacts you are sending text messages to live.
Because of this, we have built a setting in Command that allows you to select if any of your contacts live in any of these States. If you select that they do, or if you don't take action, we will set automatic limits on the system sending these texts out on days when it is not allowed. If a SmartPlan was supposed to send a text on a restricted day, the system will hold that text until the next available date (see the bottom of the settings page to see special rules for edge cases, as when a Federal holiday falls on a weekend).
- On the settings page, as you select the states your contacts live in, you will be able to see exactly which days are not allowed based on your selection.
| If you don't take action on this page, the system will default this setting to "Unknown" which restricts automated texts from sending out on Sundays and major Federal holidays. |
To select the States your contacts live in to comply with automated text date restrictions:
1. Log in to https://agent.kw.com with your KW login credentials.
2. Click your name, at the top right of the page, then select Settings from the drop-down.
3. On the left side of the page, open Command Settings, then open SmartPlans, and select Time & Date.
4. In the Text Date Restrictions Section, you will see the question that will determine your restrictions:
Do any of your contacts live in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, or Utah? There are 3 options:
5. Make your selection and click Save, at the top right of the page.
Yes, my contacts live in at least one of these States
1. When you select that at least some of your contacts live in at least one of these States, this will open up a checkbox selector to denote which States your contacts live in. Select any States that apply.
2. As you select States, you will see the actual dates that are restricted for the specific State(s) you select. You will notice that some dates are restricted by some States, but not by others.
3. Also, see the Additional Details section, below the table, to see details around edge cases. These mainly deal with situations where restricted holidays fall out weekends, where there are special rules about when to send automated text messages on those dates.
No, none of my contacts live in any of these States
1. If none of your contacts live in any of these States, select No and there will be no restrictions.
Unknown, I don't have a good idea if they do or not
1. If you are not sure about all of your contacts, keep the setting on the Unknown. This will restrict Sundays and major Federal holidays. This is a nice safe option that keeps you in compliance, at least with the major restricted days that are universal to all of these State regulations.