> ## 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 to ensure deliverability.

Unfortunately, due to increasing numbers of spam each year, carriers have become more aggressive in blocking messages, which has made it more difficult for legitimate individuals and businesses to send messages.
To maximize the chances of your message delivering, we recommend the following some basic guidelines:

### Learn about prohibited content over SMS/MMS

<CardGroup>
  <Card href="/kb/compliance/text/prohibited#prohibited-topics" title="Prohibited Topics" icon="ban" />

  <Card href="/kb/compliance/text/prohibited#prohibited-keywords" title="Prohibited Keywords" icon="ban" />
</CardGroup>

### Links

<CardGroup>
  <Card title="Don't send shortened links" icon="link-simple-slash">
    Fraudsters use shortened links (bit.ly, tinyurl, etc.) to hide a link's true destination. Most carriers won't deliver messages that contain shortened links.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Ensure your domain reputation is high" icon="thumbs-up">
    If a provider classifies your domain as malicious or spammy, some carriers won't deliver messages that contain links to it.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Ensure your domain uses HTTPS" icon="lock-keyhole" />

  <Card title="Avoid excessive redirects" icon="arrows-turn-to-dots" />
</CardGroup>

Ideally, you should send links after a user has interacted with you (replied).
Messages that contain links are more likely to be flagged as spam, which can ruin your domain's reputation with carriers -- especially if the message is reported as spam, the user replies "STOP," or you don't get a reply at all.

***

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