> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.contiguity.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Best Practices

> Contiguity's recommended best practices for keeping your iMessage number healthy and deliverable.

iMessage isn't filtered by carriers the way SMS/MMS is. There's no keyword filtering, content scanning, or per-segment fees to worry about.
Instead, Apple protects the network by watching for sending patterns that look automated or spammy, and can flag or restrict a number that trips those signals.
There's no carrier in the middle to appeal to, so staying in good standing with Apple's detection systems matters even more than it does for SMS.
To keep your messages landing as blue bubbles, and your number in good health, follow these guidelines.

<Info>
  Rate limits, link preview quirks, and a full list of what can get a number flagged live on the separate [Caveats & Limits](/kb/compliance/imessage/caveats-limits) page.
</Info>

### Pick a sending strategy first

Whether you or the customer sends the first message in a conversation is the single biggest factor in how risky your sending looks to Apple. Most products use both approaches for different situations:

<CardGroup>
  <Card title="Inbound-first" icon="inbox" href="/kb/compliance/imessage/strategies/inbound-first">
    The customer messages you first.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Outbound-first" icon="paper-plane" href="/kb/compliance/imessage/strategies/outbound-first">
    You message someone first.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

### Personalize every message

<CardGroup>
  <Card title="Never send identical content" icon="copy">
    Sending the exact same text to many recipients is one of the clearest spam signals there is. Vary greetings, names, and context per recipient rather than reusing one template verbatim.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Reference something specific" icon="user">
    Mention the recipient's name, order, appointment, or last interaction. Generic blasts undercut the personal feel that makes iMessage effective in the first place.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

### Send like a human, not a script

<CardGroup>
  <Card title="Avoid fixed intervals" icon="clock">
    A message sent every exact 10 seconds is an obvious automation fingerprint. Add randomized delays between sends instead of a fixed cadence.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Cluster and pause" icon="hourglass-half">
    Humans send a few messages, pause, then come back later. Avoid blasting an entire list in one continuous run. Break volume into smaller bursts with gaps in between.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Respect the clock" icon="moon">
    Send during normal daytime hours in the recipient's timezone. iMessage notifications are immediate and prominent, so late-night messages are more likely to be flagged or reported.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Vary your daily volume" icon="chart-line">
    Sending exactly the same number of messages every single day is another pattern detection systems look for. Natural variation looks more human than a constant, mechanical rate.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

### Ramp up gradually

New or newly-leased numbers should ramp volume up gradually rather than sending at full throughput on day one. A sudden spike in sending from a number with little prior activity is a strong risk signal to Apple.
If you're expecting to send meaningfully higher volume, reach out on [Discord](https://discord.gg/Z9K5XAsS7H) or email [help@contiguity.support](mailto:help@contiguity.support) so we can help you scale safely. Also consider [leasing multiple numbers](/products/leases) to distribute volume rather than pushing it all through one line.

### Get consent, and honor opt-outs anyway

iMessage is exempt from A2P 10DLC, carrier vetting, and mandatory opt-out language. See our [compliance overview](/kb/compliance/overview). That doesn't mean consent stops mattering: you're still responsible for complying with applicable laws in your jurisdiction (e.g. TCPA, GDPR, CASL). If a recipient asks to stop, stop.

### Use rich features, not just plain text

Part of what makes iMessage worth using over SMS is the feature set. Leaning on it makes your messages feel like they're coming from an attentive person, not a script.

<CardGroup>
  <Card title="Use reactions" icon="heart">
    A tapback on the customer's message acknowledges it instantly, and looks infinitely more human. <br /><br /> [See docs >](/api-reference/product/imessage/reactions)
  </Card>

  <Card title="Mark messages as read" icon="check-double">
    Marking a conversation as read as soon as you've seen it (or your system has processed it) matches how a real person uses iMessage.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Show typing indicators" icon="ellipsis">
    Start a typing indicator before your reply lands, especially if there's any processing delay (an AI agent thinking, a lookup running). <br /><br /> [See docs >](/api-reference/product/imessage/typing)
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

***

Still have questions? Join our [Discord community](https://discord.gg/Z9K5XAsS7H) or email us at [help@contiguity.support](mailto:help@contiguity.support).

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