Customer texts, quiet hours and STOP opt-outs

Overview#

TradesWork texts customers at the key moments of a job: when it's booked, the day before, when the technician is on the way, when an estimate or invoice is ready, and after payment. Each text carries the job's One Link. You choose which of these go out and set quiet hours so customers aren't texted at night.

Every text respects consent. A customer who replies STOP gets nothing more until they reply START, and the office can record that a customer asked not to be texted. This applies to every text TradesWork sends: automatic job texts, review requests, automations, follow-up sequences and missed-call text-back.

Before you start#

• Customer Texts settings need settings.manage. Owners and admins have it.

• Phone and texting setup (Settings › Phones) needs phones.manage. Owners and admins have it.

• Marking a customer as "asked not to be texted" needs customers.write. Dispatchers and customer service have it.

• Texting must be connected and your company needs a texting number. In the US, a company with its own phone account also needs an approved texting registration before texts go out.

Steps#

Choose which automatic texts go out#

1. Go to Settings › Communications › Customer Notifications. This opens the Texts card on the Settings page.

2. Check the Provider section. It says which provider you send through and from which number, or that texting isn't connected.

3. Under Automatic texts, check the ones you want:

   • Booking confirmation: when an appointment is scheduled. The customer can reply C to confirm or R to reschedule.

   • Day-before reminder: with the arrival window.

   • On my way: when the technician starts driving. Sent even during quiet hours.

   • Estimate ready: with a link to review and approve.

   • Invoice and text-to-pay: with a link to pay.

   • Job complete recap: with the summary and shared photos.

   • Payment receipt: when a payment goes through, with a link to the receipt.

4. Set Quiet hours: From and Until, in your company's time zone. The default is 9 PM to 8 AM. Automatic texts that fall in quiet hours wait until they end.

5. Click Save text settings.

Understand STOP and START#

• A customer who replies STOP (or STOPALL, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END, QUIT, REVOKE or OPTOUT) is opted out right away. Nothing is texted to that number again.

• A customer who replies START (or UNSTOP or YES) is opted back in.

• If the carrier reports that the number unsubscribed, TradesWork records that too.

• Replies of C confirm the next visit. Replies of R add a note on the job asking the office to call and reschedule. TradesWork answers both with a short confirmation.

See and record a customer's text consent#

1. Open the customer's page.

2. Find Texts: near the top. It shows Can text, Opted out or "No mobile number on file".

3. For opted-out customers it shows why: "Replied STOP", "Unsubscribed with the carrier" or "Recorded by the office", and the date.

4. If a customer asks you not to text them, click Customer asked not to be texted and confirm. Only the customer can turn texts back on, by texting START.

Consent for leads#

• Leads from Angi, Thumbtack, The Home Depot, Yelp, lead emails and inbound texts can be texted, because those services collect the homeowner's consent to be contacted.

• Website forms and webhooks must send smsConsent: true before TradesWork texts the lead. Ask for consent on the form.

• Referral and portal forms have their own consent checkbox.

Register for texting (A2P 10DLC)#

US carriers block business texts from local numbers until the business and what it texts about are registered.

1. Go to Settings › Phones › Phone Numbers, Call Recording & Texting.

2. Find 4. Register for texting (A2P 10DLC). Its badge shows the state: Not sent yet, Business sent for review, Business approved, Texting use waiting on carriers, Approved or Needs changes.

3. Fill in Business type, EIN (blank for sole proprietor), Legal business name (must match the IRS record, including LLC or Inc), Doing business as (optional), Website (must be live and show the business name), and the address.

4. Fill in the contact: Contact first name, Contact last name, Job title, Contact email and Contact mobile.

5. Choose What you text about. "Appointment texts, estimates, invoices and replies" is recommended.

6. Write the Description of your texts, at least two Sample messages (one with "Reply STOP to opt out"), and How customers agree to texts (opt-in).

7. Click Send registration. If it comes back as Needs changes, fix what it says and click Fix and resend.

Business review takes a few minutes to a few days. Carrier review usually takes a few days, sometimes up to about two weeks. The card lists the registry fees, which are passed through at cost. Sole proprietors without an EIN register a different way; TradesWork support walks you through it.

Settings that change this#

• Settings › Communications › Customer Notifications: automatic texts and quiet hours.

• Settings › Phones › Phone Numbers, Call Recording & Texting: your number, texting registration and Missed-call text-back.

• Settings › Marketing › Customer Portal & Reputation: review request texts.

• Settings › Marketing › Follow-Up Sequences: follow-up texts for unsold estimates.

Tips#

• Keep On my way and Day-before reminder on. They cut no-shows and "where are you?" calls.

• Put "Reply STOP to opt out" in your sample messages. Carriers check for it.

• If texting isn't connected yet, technicians can still share the One Link from their phones.

Troubleshooting#

• Texts show "Texting isn't connected, so nothing was sent." → No provider is connected. → Follow the setup steps in Settings › Phones › Phone Numbers, Call Recording & Texting, or contact support if phones aren't switched on for your account.

• "Your company doesn't have a texting number yet" → Get a number in Settings › Phones, or contact support.

• "Texting is limited until your texting registration is approved" → Finish the A2P 10DLC registration and wait for approval.

• "The customer replied STOP, so nothing was sent." → Only the customer can opt back in by texting START.

• "There's no mobile number on file for this customer" → Add a mobile number to the customer.

• A text went out late → It fell in quiet hours and waited until they ended.

FAQ#

Can I opt a customer back in for them? No. Only the customer can, by texting START. This protects you under texting rules.

Do marketing automations respect STOP and quiet hours? Yes. Every text goes through the same checks.

Can I send a text blast to all customers? Not yet. See What's coming for marketing.

Coming from ServiceTitan#

• ServiceTitan's appointment texts and reminders map to Settings › Communications › Customer Notifications.

• Opt-outs work the same way: STOP to opt out, START to opt in. The ServiceTitan import doesn't bring over past text opt-outs yet. Until it does, mark customers who asked not to be texted with Customer asked not to be texted on their page.

• Different: texting registration is a form in Settings › Phones, with its status shown step by step.