Texting has become a necessary tool in today’s political and public affairs campaigns. But, it’s important for campaigns to use texting responsibly and follow best practices to ensure you are compliant with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). “The Promise of Texting Without the Pitfalls: Texting & TCPA Compliance” attendees heard from experts Bill Raney, Copilevitz & Canter, Adam Bowser, Arent Fox LLP, Caitlin Contestable, political.law, and moderator Jaimey Sexton, The Sexton Group, as they gave an overview of the issues surrounding texting programs and compliance, the status of the AAPC lawsuit on TCPA and auto-dialing to cell phones, and answered audience questions during the “AMA” (ask me anything) closing. 

This webinar has been archived for playback. AAPC members can click here to view all webinar archives. 

Key Lessons from the Webinar: 

• Application-to-Person vs. Peer-to-Peer texting: Application-to-Person refers to messaging sent by applications with little human intervention (AKA autodialers) and requires the express written consent of the mobile device owner.  Peer-to-Peer messaging requires human intervention, that means the human is simply hitting send on each message, but does not require express opt-in from the device owner. Most importantly, Application-to-Person messages are governed by the TCPA, while Peer-to-Peer are not. 
• Play It Safe: Class action lawsuits are expensive! Even when you have the express written consent of the device owner, it is best to use a double-opt in process to ensure that you have that individual’s permission to be contacted. This will help you safeguard yourself against the possibility of someone claiming they received your text messages without providing consent. 
• A Little Bit of Compliance is Worth A Lot of Litigation: It’s better to be safe than sorry. Involve your lawyers from the beginning of your texting campaign processes in order to ensure that you are compliant with TCPA from the beginning. The same goes when hiring a vendor – Ask that vendor if they comply with TCPA, and have your lawyers review their processes prior to using their services. 

Access the full recording to learn more about texting & TCPA compliance.  Accompanying handouts are also available within the webinar recording.

This webinar is eligible for credit* toward AAPC’s Business Fundamentals Certificate program.  Learn more about the Certificate program here. 

*Business Fundamentals Certificate Program registrants who attend this webinar will be awarded one (1) C4 Finance/Accounting/Legal credit.