Texting is how customers want to communicate. They reply faster to a text than an email, they prefer it for appointment confirmations, and they actually read every one. Most tree service software either ignores SMS entirely or bolts on a generic SMS feature that can get your business cut off by the cell carriers without warning. ArborDash takes SMS seriously: it's built for the A2P 10DLC carrier registration system and the TCPA consent rules from the ground up, so your texts actually get delivered and your business doesn't get caught in a compliance fire drill.
Two-way texting works from the same inbox where you handle calls and emails. Customers can text your business number with questions, appointment changes, or 'hey can you come look at this tree' photos, and replies thread back into the customer record. Your team handles the conversation from the dashboard or the mobile app, and the entire thread is logged against the customer history.
Automated SMS handles the routine stuff. Appointment confirmations the day before, on-the-way ETAs when the crew leaves the previous stop, payment reminders when an invoice goes overdue, seasonal reminders for next year's pruning. Each automated send respects the customer's consent record — opt out and they stop, no exceptions, ever.
The compliance piece is the part nobody wants to talk about and nobody wants to deal with. As of late 2023, U.S. cell carriers require business senders to register their brand and use cases through the A2P 10DLC system, with a documented consent source for every recipient. TCPA layers on top of that with steep statutory damages for violations. ArborDash handles tenant attestation and per-customer opt-in tracking automatically: every consent source (web form, in-person signup, verbal phone agreement, customer portal) is logged, every recipient's status is enforced before sending, and we file the carrier registrations on your behalf as part of onboarding. No legal lawyers required, no reading three-hundred-page FCC orders.
What's included
- Two-way customer texting from the same inbox as calls and email
- Customer photo capture via MMS straight into the customer record
- Automated appointment confirmations with one-tap reschedule
- On-the-way ETA texts sent when the crew leaves the previous stop
- Payment reminders with one-tap-to-pay link
- Seasonal service reminders driven by job history
- A2P 10DLC carrier registration handled for you during onboarding
- TCPA-compliant consent tracking per customer, per channel
- Consent source enforcement — sends only to recipients with documented opt-in
- Universal opt-out keywords (STOP, UNSUBSCRIBE) honored automatically
How It Works
- During onboarding, we register your brand and use cases through the A2P 10DLC system with the carriers (typically takes 1–2 weeks).
- Existing customers are migrated with their consent source documented (legacy records, web form opt-in, in-person agreement).
- Configure automated SMS triggers (appointment confirmations, ETAs, reminders) for your business workflow.
- Your team handles inbound texts from the unified inbox — every reply threads to the customer record.
- Opt-outs are honored automatically and logged. Carrier registration stays current as you grow.
Why this matters — the carrier compliance trap
U.S. carriers (T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon) actively block business SMS that isn't registered through A2P 10DLC. They don't warn you — they just stop delivering messages, sometimes for months. We've seen tree care companies lose 30% of their messages overnight when their old SMS provider got flagged. ArborDash files your registrations correctly and enforces consent at the platform level so you're not the one explaining to a customer's lawyer why you texted them after they opted out.