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Deliverability Error Guide

A guide to common deliverability errors

Andrea Liebsch avatar
Written by Andrea Liebsch
Updated over 2 months ago

Deliverability Error Prevention & Best Practices

Preventing Errors:

  • Ensure that patient contact information is accurate and up-to-date

  • Test messages before sending them to a large group to identify and fix any issues

  • Review message content and sending practices to ensure they are compliant with carrier

Best practices:

  • Consent

    • Consent ("opt-in")

    • Revocation of consent ("opt-out")

      • Send opt-out option with initial outreach message

  • Sender Identification

    • Every message you send must clearly identify you (the party that obtained the opt-in from the recipient) as the sender, except in follow-up message of an ongoing conversation.

  • URL shortening

    • Do not send links that have been shortened using shared public URL shorteners (ex. bitly)

    • Do not send an unsecure links

  • Medication Naming

    • Medication names can sometimes trigger carrier filtering

      • Especially names of controlled substances

  • Message Length

    • Our Messaging Partners, Twilio recommend keeping messages under 320 characters to maximize deliverability.

By implementing these strategies, you can reduce the likelihood of errors occurring and improve the overall effectiveness of your text messaging campaigns

Error Code 30003

What does a 30003 error code mean?

30003 error code happens when the recipient you're sending to was not reachable at the time of delivery.

Possible reason for error:

  • The message was destined to a Prepaid mobile with insufficient funds

  • An invalid Postpaid number

Questions to ask:

  • Is the destination device powered on?

  • Does the device have sufficient signal? If not, power the device off, wait 30 seconds, and then power it back up.

  • Is the device connected to the home carrier's network? Twilio cannot guarantee message delivery on device roaming off-network.

  • Can the device receive non-Twilio SMS?

  • Can the device receive messages from another Twilio number (non-Alphanumeric Sender ID)?

Troubleshooting:

  • Attempt to send another text message to this user after 12-24 hours

  • If this does not work, and you can rule out all of the above issues, then escalate to Intercom

NOTE:

  • Higher deliverability are expected during outreaches

  • 3% error rate is normal

Error Code 30005

What does a 30005 error code mean?

30005 error code happens when the destination number you are trying to reach is unknown and may no longer exist, or T-mobile 'Shortcode Blacklist'

Possible reason for error:

  • The destination number you are trying to reach is unknown and may no longer exist

  • The device you are trying to reach does not have sufficient signal

  • The device cannot receive SMS (for example, the phone number belongs to a landline)

    • Subscriber account setting - A2P block

    • Prepaid out of funds

    • Account Canceled

    • Account Suspended

  • If carrier is T-mobile, then the user is probably opted-into 'Shortcode Blacklist'

Questions to ask:

  • Was the destination device powered on?

  • Does the device have sufficient signal? If not, power the device off, wait 30 seconds, then power it back up.

  • Is the device connected to the home carrier's network? We cannot guarantee message delivery on devices roaming off-network.

  • Can the device receive non-Twilio SMS?

  • Do they have a prepaid phone? Was the message sent to a Prepaid mobile phone with insufficient funds?

  • Is the user opted into 'Shortcode Blacklist'

Troubleshooting:

  • Attempt to send another text message to this user after 12-24 hours

  • If this doesn't work and you can rule out all of the above issues, then escalate to Intercom

  • If T-mobile and on Shortcode Blacklist:

    • The patient needs to call 611 directly from their T-mobile device experiencing the issue - or if using another device, call 1-800-937-8997 and request "Shortcode Blacklist" setting to be removed from their account

    • After the patient calls and requests "Shortcode Blacklist" setting to be removed from their account, attempt to send the patient a test message and make sure it goes through

Error Code 30007

What does a 30007 error code mean?

30007 error code happens when an account is not A2P compliant, or message content was flagged as going against carrier guidelines.

Possible reason for error:

  • Non-compliant accounts

  • Message content was flagged as going against carrier guidelines

    • Unsecure URL or link (ex. bitly link)

    • Excessive use of emojis

Questions to ask:

  • Is your account A2P compliant?

  • Did you send an unsecure link?

  • Did you send emojis in your message?

Troubleshooting:

  • If your account is not compliant, reach out to Intercom support

  • If you sent a message with a link or emojis, then attempt to resend the message without the link or emojis

    • If the problem persists, reach out to Intercom support

Error Code 30006

Error Code 30019

What does a 30019 error code mean?

30019 error code happens when a message exceeds the carrier's limit for character length (320 characters) and content size.

Reason for error:

  • Message has exceeded the carrier's limit for content size and/or character limit

Troubleshoot:

  • Reword the message using fewer characters or removing emojis.

Seeing another error code? Contact our support team at support@phamily.com

Downloadable version:

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Deliverability Error Guide Book.pdf
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