SMS Deliverability Audit for Agencies: A Per-Client Checklist

When an agency runs texting for several clients, deliverability problems rarely arrive all at once. One client’s reminders start slipping. Another’s promo underperforms and nobody can say why. By the time someone investigates, the campaign is over and the client is asking questions.

The fix is to stop treating deliverability as something you look at after a bad send. Instead, audit each client’s texting setup on a schedule, the same way you would review ad accounts or website health. A short audit catches most issues while they are still cheap to fix.

This guide gives you a five-part audit, a scorecard you can copy, and a simple way to report delivery so numbers mean the same thing across clients. If a specific message has already failed and you need to troubleshoot it, start with our guide on why business texts fail to deliver.

Why deliverability has to be judged client by client

It is tempting to look at one blended delivery number for the whole agency. That hides the real picture. Each client has its own sending numbers, its own registration, its own audience and its own reasons for texting. A dental office sending appointment reminders to recent patients faces very different risks than a gym sending a New Year promotion to a list collected over five years.

So the audit runs per client. For a small agency with eight texting clients, that can mean one client per week on a rolling schedule, which keeps the workload light.

Part 1: Sender identity

Start with the question carriers ask first: who is sending, and are they registered to send this kind of message?

• Number type. Is the client using a local 10-digit number, a toll-free number or a short code? Each has its own approval process.
• Registration. For US local numbers, is there an approved A2P 10DLC brand and campaign, and is every sending number attached to it? A number that was bought but never linked is a common gap.
• Use case fit. Does the registered campaign description still match what the client sends today? Businesses add new message types over time without updating their registration.
• Correct account. Is the number sitting in the right client workspace and provider account? Mix-ups happen when agencies set up many clients quickly.

Registration rules are set by carriers and change periodically, so confirm current requirements with your messaging provider. CTIA publishes industry messaging principles that are useful background.

Part 2: Consent trail

Deliverability and consent are linked. Messages sent to people who never agreed tend to draw complaints and STOP replies, and carriers notice those signals.

Check that for each client you can answer:

1. Where did each contact opt in? Form, checkout, keyword, in person.
2. What did they agree to receive? Reminders only, or marketing too.
3. When did they agree? A timestamp stored on the contact.
4. Do opt-outs stick? STOP replies should suppress the number in every workflow and campaign, including future imports.

Marketing texts in the US generally require prior express written consent under the TCPA, and the FCC publishes consumer guidance on unwanted texts. This isn’t legal advice; have each client confirm their consent language with counsel.

Part 3: List health

Even with good consent, lists decay. People change numbers, carriers recycle them and some contacts were landlines all along.

Look for these warning signs in each client’s audience:

• Contacts who have never received a delivered text.
• Numbers with several failures in a row.
• Large imports from old spreadsheets or a previous CRM.
• Segments nobody has texted in a year or more.
• Duplicate contacts with slightly different formatting.

Retire numbers that repeatedly fail, and send a light re-permission message before texting long-dormant segments. A clean list of 2,000 engaged customers usually beats a messy list of 10,000.

Part 4: Message fit

Carriers filter on patterns. Review a sample of each client’s recent messages against a short checklist:

• The business name appears at the start of the message.
• Content matches the registered use case.
• Links use the client’s own domain, not a generic public shortener.
• Marketing messages include opt-out wording such as “Reply STOP to opt out.”
• No all-caps shouting or stacks of exclamation points.
• Offers are specific and honest, with no misleading urgency.
• Sending times respect local quiet hours.

A fictional example from a bakery client, Rise & Crumb:

Risky: “LAST CHANCE!!! Free cookies, click tinyurl.com/abc”

Better: “Rise & Crumb: Our fall menu starts Friday. Preorder pumpkin loaves at riseandcrumb.com/fall. Reply STOP to opt out.”

Part 5: Sending patterns

Volume changes can trip filters even when everything else is correct.

• Spikes. A client who normally sends 200 texts a week suddenly sending 8,000 in an hour looks unusual. Ramp large campaigns up in batches.
• Throughput. Registered campaigns come with sending limits. Check that big sends fit within them, or expect queuing.
• Timing clusters. Many automations firing at exactly the same minute can create bursts. Stagger them.

Report delivery the same way for every client

Delivery numbers only help if they are comparable. A campaign checked five minutes after sending shows different results than the same campaign checked the next morning, because statuses keep updating.

Set a few reporting rules for the whole agency:

• Fixed window. Measure delivery at the same point after each send, for example 24 hours.
• Clear definitions. Count delivered, undelivered and failed separately, and keep messages still pending visible rather than hiding them.
• Keep error codes. Store them with the contact so patterns show up over time.
• Track opt-outs per send. A rising STOP rate is an early warning.

Copy this client deliverability scorecard

Client:                         Audit date:
Number type(s):                 Registration status:
Use case still matches? Y/N     Numbers linked to campaign? Y/N
Consent source recorded? Y/N    Opt-outs suppressed everywhere? Y/N
Contacts with repeat failures:  Dormant segments:
Messages reviewed (sample of 10): pass / needs work
Delivery rate (24h window), last 3 sends:
Opt-out rate, last 3 sends:
Actions and owner:
Next audit:

Share a short version with the client. It shows you are protecting their channel, not just pressing send.

Making audits easier to run

Audits go faster when texting, contacts and consent live in one system. In SaaSVisionary, SMS campaigns are available from the Pro plan, and each client connects their own Twilio account, so message usage and registration fees are billed by Twilio. A workflow automation rule can tag contacts after repeated failures, pause campaigns for numbers that opted out and alert the account owner when opt-outs jump. Replies from every client number land in a shared unified inbox, so nothing sits unread on one phone.

Frequently asked questions

How often should an agency audit SMS deliverability?

A quarterly audit per client works for most agencies, with a lighter monthly check of delivery and opt-out rates. Run an extra audit whenever a client adds a new message type, moves numbers, changes providers or plans an unusually large campaign. Rotating clients through a weekly slot keeps the work manageable.

What is a good SMS delivery rate?

There is no official benchmark, and results depend on list age, number type and audience. A well-registered sender texting a recent, opted-in list typically sees the large majority of messages delivered. Rather than chasing a universal number, compare each client against their own history using the same reporting window.

Does A2P 10DLC registration guarantee delivery?

No. Registration is usually required for business texting from US local numbers and greatly reduces blocking, but carriers still filter messages that look spammy, lack consent or stray from the registered use case. Treat registration as the foundation, then maintain good lists, honest content and steady sending patterns.

Who is responsible for SMS compliance, the agency or the client?

Usually both play a part. The client is the brand sending the messages and typically owns consent and message purpose, while the agency often manages setup and sending. Put responsibilities in writing, keep consent records accessible, and have clients review their messaging practices with their own legal counsel.

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