What 98% Delivery Actually Means (And Why Most Platforms Can't Promise It)

Every texting platform throws around delivery numbers. "High deliverability!" "Industry-leading rates!" "Your messages will get through!"

But when you ask what those numbers actually mean—or how they're measured—things get vague fast.

Here's the truth: the difference between a platform that delivers 85% of your messages and one that delivers 98% isn't a rounding error. It's the difference between reaching your voters and watching thousands of messages vanish into the void.

Let's break down what delivery rate actually means, why most platforms can't crack 90%, and what infrastructure is required to consistently hit 98%.

What "Delivery Rate" Actually Measures

First, let's clear up some confusion. There are three very different metrics that platforms sometimes conflate:

When a platform tells you they have "98% delivery," the critical question is: 98% of what?

Some platforms report "sent" rates—which is like a mail service counting letters they put in the truck, not letters that arrived at homes. That number is nearly meaningless.

True delivery rate measures messages confirmed as received by the carrier and delivered to the recipient's phone. This is the only number that matters.

The Journey of a Text Message

To understand where messages fail, you need to understand the path they travel:

Your Platform → Aggregator → Carrier Gateway → Cell Tower → Recipient's Phone

At each step, messages can be:

• Filtered as spam
• Blocked due to rate limits
• Rejected for compliance issues
• Dropped due to network congestion
• Failed because of invalid numbers

A message that's "sent" from your platform can fail at any of these points—and most platforms have no visibility into where or why.

Why 98% Is the Gold Standard

Let's do some simple math.

Say you're running a Get Out The Vote campaign and need to text 100,000 voters the weekend before Election Day.

The industry average is under 85%. That means if you're using a typical platform, more than 15,000 of your voters never got your message.

Those aren't just numbers. Those are:

• Volunteers who showed up for a canvass that nobody heard about
• Donors who missed your end-of-quarter ask
• Supporters who didn't know where their polling place moved to
• Voters who would have turned out—if they'd gotten the reminder

The Compounding Effect

It gets worse. Most campaigns don't send just one message. They run sequences:

1. Introduction text
2. Event invitation
3. GOTV reminder
4. Election Day push

If you're losing 15% at each step, your cumulative reach craters:

With 85% delivery, you've lost nearly half your audience by message four. With 98%, you've retained 92%.

This is why delivery rate isn't just a technical spec—it's a campaign outcome multiplier.

The 5 Factors That Kill Delivery Rates

So why do most platforms struggle to break 85%? It comes down to five factors:

1. Carrier Filtering

Carriers like Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile run sophisticated spam detection algorithms. They're looking for:

• Messages sent too quickly from a single number
• Content that matches known spam patterns
• Links to flagged domains
• High opt-out rates from recipients

When carriers flag your traffic as suspicious, they don't just block individual messages—they can throttle or block your entire campaign.

2. Poor 10DLC Registration

10DLC (10-Digit Long Code) registration is now required for all business texting. But not all registrations are equal.

A rushed or incomplete registration results in:

• Lower trust scores from carriers
• Stricter rate limits
• Higher filtering rates
• Potential for sudden blocks

Many platforms push campaigns through with minimal registration, hoping carriers won't notice. They notice.

3. Number Reputation

Your phone numbers have a reputation with carriers, just like email addresses have reputation with spam filters.

Shared numbers (used by multiple campaigns) inherit everyone's sins. If another campaign on your shared number sends spammy content, your messages get filtered too.

Dedicated numbers with clean history and proper warm-up deliver consistently better.

4. Message Content Issues

Certain content patterns trigger carrier filters:

• URL shorteners (bit.ly, tinyurl) - heavily flagged
• ALL CAPS - spam signal
• Excessive punctuation!!! - spam signal
• Certain keywords - varies by carrier
• Missing opt-out language - compliance violation

Even legitimate campaign messages can get caught if they accidentally match spam patterns.

5. Throughput Mismanagement

Send too many messages too fast, and carriers will block you. Send too slowly, and you'll miss your window.

Each carrier has different rate limits, and those limits change based on:

• Your number's reputation
• Current network load
• Time of day
• Your trust score

Platforms without sophisticated throughput management either trigger blocks (killing delivery) or throttle too conservatively (missing your timing).

Why Most Platforms Can't Promise 98%

Given these challenges, why can't most platforms solve them? The honest answer: it's expensive and hard.

They Use Shared Infrastructure

Most texting platforms are essentially resellers. They don't own the infrastructure—they rent capacity from aggregators who handle the actual carrier connections.

This means:

• No direct carrier relationships - They can't negotiate better treatment
• No visibility into failures - They only see what the aggregator tells them
• No control over routing - Messages take whatever path is cheapest

They Measure the Wrong Things

Many platforms report "sent" rates because it makes their numbers look good. Actually tracking delivery requires:

• Carrier delivery receipts (which cost money to access)
• Sophisticated tracking infrastructure
• Willingness to report honest numbers

It's easier to say "we sent your messages" than to prove they arrived.

They Don't Invest in Number Quality

Maintaining high-quality phone numbers requires:

• Proper 10DLC registration for each campaign
• Number warm-up before high-volume sends
• Constant reputation monitoring
• Retiring and replacing flagged numbers

Most platforms cut corners here because good numbers cost money.

They Can't Handle the Complexity

Achieving 98% delivery requires:

• Real-time adaptation to carrier behavior
• Per-carrier throughput optimization
• Automatic retry logic with smart backoff
• Content scanning before send
• Continuous monitoring and adjustment

Building this infrastructure takes years and significant investment. Most platforms would rather spend on sales and marketing.

What It Takes to Actually Hit 98%

So what does a platform need to consistently deliver 98% of messages? Here's the infrastructure checklist:

Dedicated, Properly Registered Campaigns

Every campaign needs:

• ✅ Full 10DLC registration with complete business verification
• ✅ Campaign-specific use case approval
• ✅ Dedicated phone numbers (not shared pools)
• ✅ Proper number warm-up before scaling

Direct Carrier Relationships

Instead of routing through multiple aggregators:

• ✅ Direct connections to major carriers
• ✅ Negotiated throughput allowances
• ✅ Access to detailed delivery receipts
• ✅ Fast escalation path for issues

Real-Time Delivery Intelligence

You can't fix what you can't see:

• ✅ Per-message delivery tracking
• ✅ Carrier-level performance dashboards
• ✅ Immediate alerting on delivery drops
• ✅ Historical performance analysis

Smart Send Management

Optimizing for each carrier's requirements:

• ✅ Dynamic throughput adjustment
• ✅ Carrier-specific rate limiting
• ✅ Automatic retry with exponential backoff
• ✅ Time-of-day optimization

Content Compliance Layer

Catching problems before they happen:

• ✅ Pre-send content scanning
• ✅ Link validation and expansion
• ✅ Carrier-specific keyword checking
• ✅ Opt-out language verification

Continuous Number Health Management

Keeping your sending reputation clean:

• ✅ Ongoing reputation monitoring
• ✅ Proactive number rotation
• ✅ Warm-up protocols for new numbers
• ✅ Immediate response to carrier flags

How to Verify a Platform's Claims

Every platform claims great deliverability. Here's how to separate marketing from reality:

Ask for Delivery Reports, Not Send Reports

Request sample delivery reports that show:

• Messages sent vs. messages delivered
• Delivery confirmation timestamps
• Failure reasons for undelivered messages

If they can only show "sent" counts, that's a red flag.

Request Carrier-Level Breakdown

A platform with real infrastructure can show you:

• Delivery rates by carrier (Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, etc.)
• Performance trends over time
• Any current carrier issues

If they can't break down by carrier, they don't have visibility.

Check for Contractual Guarantees

Ask directly:

• "Do you guarantee a delivery rate?"
• "What happens if delivery falls below that rate?"
• "How do you measure and report delivery?"

Platforms confident in their infrastructure will put guarantees in writing. Others will hedge.

Look for Real-Time Dashboards

Can you see delivery stats in real-time during your campaign? Or do you have to wait for a report days later?

Real-time visibility indicates real infrastructure. Delayed reporting often means they're reconstructing data from limited sources.

Ask About Their 10DLC Process

A good platform will:

• Walk you through complete campaign registration
• Explain how they verify your business
• Set realistic timelines for registration approval
• Never promise to "skip" registration requirements

If they offer shortcuts on 10DLC, your delivery will suffer.

The Bottom Line

Delivery rate isn't a vanity metric—it's a campaign outcome multiplier.

When you're texting 100,000 voters and the industry average platform is losing 15,000+ of those messages, you're not just leaving deliverability on the table. You're leaving votes, donations, and volunteer signups on the table.

98% delivery requires:

• Dedicated infrastructure (not resold capacity)
• Direct carrier relationships (not aggregator black boxes)
• Real-time monitoring (not after-the-fact reports)
• Continuous optimization (not set-and-forget)

Most platforms can't promise 98% because they haven't built this infrastructure. They're optimized for low cost, not high delivery.

The next time a platform quotes you a delivery number, ask them:

1. Is that "sent" or "delivered"?
2. How do you measure it?
3. Will you guarantee it in writing?
4. Can I see carrier-level breakdowns?

The answers will tell you everything you need to know.

Ready to see what 98% delivery looks like in practice? Check out our pricing or get in touch to see how our infrastructure performs for campaigns like yours.