Text and SMS marketing · TCPA
The words that prove you knew.
This is the shortest rulebook on the site and the one with the least room to argue. Seventeen phrases, and most of them are not marketing copy at all. They are the things somebody writes in a brief, a training deck or a Slack message before a campaign goes out.
“Purchased list”, “we do not honor stop”, “no consent required”. In a dispute these do not read as sloppy phrasing. They read as a record of intent. Below is the full list the engine runs.
A screening tool, not legal advice. Your compliance officer or counsel has the last word.
6 of the 17
Ignoring opt-out
The right to stop receiving messages is the centre of the statute. Copy saying it does not apply is the most quotable thing a sender can write down.
- no opt-out needed
- no opt out needed
- cannot unsubscribe
- we don't honor stop
- we do not honor stop
- ignore stop requests
7 of the 17
Where the numbers came from
Consent attaches to a person, not to a number, and it does not transfer with a file. A purchased or scraped list is the fact that turns a volume problem into a liability per message.
- purchased list
- bought this list
- scraped list
- scraped numbers
- text anyone
- blast every number
- unlimited texts to any number
4 of the 17
Saying consent is not needed
It is. These phrases usually appear in internal copy rather than in the message itself, which is exactly why this rulebook is worth running over a brief and not only over a send.
- no consent required
- consent not required to text
- guarantee
- guaranteed
What every piece has to carry
Refusals are half of it. The engine also checks that these are present, and flags a piece missing any of them:
- Opt-out instructions (reply STOP)
- Help instructions (reply HELP)
- The sender's identity
A clean scan is not a compliant piece. Copy with none of the 17 phrases and none of these still fails.
The questions people ask first.
All nine rulebooks, 390 phrases, published in full →
Another trade? Real estate’s 167 → · Mortgage’s 51 →
Does TCPA apply to marketing texts?
Yes. It is the statute behind opt-out handling, consent and identification in text message marketing, and the obligations attach per message.
Can I text a list I bought?
Consent attaches to a person and does not transfer with a file, so a purchased list is not consent. This is the single most common way a sender creates exposure at scale.
Why does the engine flag internal copy?
Because that is where these phrases live. Nobody writes “we do not honor stop” in the message. They write it in the brief. In a dispute it reads as a record of intent, which is why it is worth running a brief through the gate and not only a send.
What has to appear on every piece?
Opt-out instructions, help instructions, and the sender’s identity.
Run it on something you already published.
Free, no sign-in, nothing kept. Or put it in your browser and right-click any copy you write.