# Set up texting: register, get your number, and manage your lists

**URL:** <https://the.wallet.forum/t/set-up-texting-register-get-your-number-and-manage-your-lists/305>\
**Category:** Engage Subscribers\
**Created:** [October 15, 2026, 8:28pm UTC](https://the.wallet.forum/t/set-up-texting-register-get-your-number-and-manage-your-lists/305 "2026-10-15T20:28:57Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Customer\_Success](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Customer\_Success](https://the.wallet.forum/u/Customer_Success)\
**Post date:** [October 15, 2026, 8:28pm UTC](https://the.wallet.forum/t/set-up-texting-register-get-your-number-and-manage-your-lists/305/1 "2026-10-15T20:28:58Z")

</div>

Before you can text customers, three things need to be in place: your business is registered with the phone carriers, you have your own number, and you have lists of people who agreed to hear from you. This guide walks through all three, in that order.

Wallet · Merchant guide

**1. Register**  
Carriers check every business that sends texts. You fill in one form; approval can take days or weeks.

**2. Get your number**  
Your own business number, used only by you, for every text you send and receive.

**3. Build your lists**  
Keywords, sign-up signs and uploaded lists all feed the people you can text.

## Step 1: Register your business

Go to **Engage Subscribers \> SMS/MMS \> Setup \> Registration**.

**Step 1) Regulatory Requirements** asks for your organization’s details, how many texts you expect to send, and your address. Fill it in exactly as your business is legally registered.

| Section | What to get right |
| --- | --- |
| Registration Type | Pick the kind of organization you are (for example a private business with a tax ID). Choosing the wrong type is the most common reason a registration is rejected. |
| Business Name, Type, Industry, Tax ID | Exactly as on your tax and company records. |
| Website URL and Privacy Policy URL | Carriers look at both. The privacy page should say how you use text messages. |
| Messaging Volume | Low or high volume. The form shows the daily limits and speed that come with each, so pick the one that fits how much you’ll send. |
| Address Details | Must match your legal company records exactly. A mismatch is a common reason for rejection. |

Then read and accept the **Terms of Service** on the right, and click **Accept & Submit**.

**Register early.** Carrier approval usually takes days and can take a few weeks, and a rejection restarts the clock. If you’re planning a launch or an event, register as soon as you sign up, not the week before.

## Step 2: Get your number

Go to **Engage Subscribers \> SMS/MMS \> Setup \> Phone Numbers** and click **Request New Business Number**. Choose a number you like. You can request a number once your business’s texting registration is approved, and it’s ready as soon as you claim it. The number is yours alone: no other business shares it or sees its messages.

### Set up how your number speaks

Click **Configure** (the cog) on your number. The settings are locked until you untick **Lock Settings** ; they lock again when you save.

| Setting | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Company Name Prefix | Your business name, added to the start of marketing texts so people know who’s writing. |
| Message Footer | Added to the end of marketing texts, for example “Msg&Data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help, STOP to cancel.” |
| Help Desk Keyword | The word customers text to reach a person (for example SUPPORT). See the Live Chat and Help Desk guide. |
| Help Desk Queue Response | The automatic reply they get straight away, for example “Someone will be with you in a moment!” |

### Your number’s tools

Each number has a row of tools on the Phone Numbers page:

| Tool | What you’ll find |
| --- | --- |
| Inbound | Every message people have sent to your number, with totals for STOP, START and HELP requests. Set the dates to see more than this month. |
| Outbound | Every message your number has sent, with a summary. |
| Keyword Lists | The opt-in keywords that use this number. |
| Keyword List Sources | The sign-up sources for those keywords. |
| Vouchers | Voucher campaigns sent from this number. |
| Unsubscribed | Everyone who has opted out of this number. You can’t text them from it, and this list can’t be edited. |
| Help Desk Tools | A website support button and QR code. |
| Archive | Hides a number you no longer use. |

## Step 3: Build your recipient lists

Go to **Engage Subscribers \> SMS/MMS \> Audience \> Recipient Lists**.

1. Click **Create New List of Recipients** , give it a name you’ll recognise, and choose which of your numbers it sends from.
2. Add people one at a time with **Add Recipient** , or upload many with **Upload More** (download the CSV template inside it first).
3. **Message These Recipients** starts a text to the whole list. **Export** downloads it. **Config** changes the name, number or status (Active or Inactive).

People who join through an **opt-in keyword** or a **sign-up sign** are listed under those keywords and sources, not here. See _Get customers to join your text list with a keyword_ and _Print SMS sign-up signs_.

## Good to know

**Uploading a list moves the numbers, not the permission.** You must already have each person’s agreement to receive texts from you before you upload them. If you’re not sure, use a keyword or a sign-up sign instead, so people opt in themselves.

**STOP and HELP are handled for you.** Anyone who replies STOP is unsubscribed automatically and appears under Unsubscribed. HELP gets your help reply.

**Marketing texts go out in the daytime.** Promotional broadcasts are held to daytime hours in your customers’ time zones, so a late-evening send may wait until morning.

**Keep an eye on your allowance.** The bar at the top of the messaging pages shows how many message segments you’ve used this billing period.

## Why it matters

**Texting only works if the carriers trust you.** A careful registration, a recognisable sender name and lists of people who really asked to hear from you are what get your messages delivered instead of filtered. Get these three right once, and everything you send afterwards lands.

## Related guides

- [Get customers to join your text list with a keyword](https://the.wallet.forum/t/get-customers-to-join-your-text-list-with-a-keyword/286)
- [Send a text message to all your subscribers](https://the.wallet.forum/t/send-a-text-message-to-all-your-subscribers/291)
- [Print SMS sign-up signs for your counter, tables and events](https://the.wallet.forum/t/print-sms-sign-up-signs-for-your-counter-tables-and-events/301)

Questions? Ask in **Engage Subscribers** and we’ll help.

* * *

_Merchant guide. A plain-language explanation of SMS setup, not a substitute for the terms in your agreement or the carriers’ rules._