SMS Messaging is a powerful way to send information directly to your guests, bypassing email. Our SMS feature also works with templates and triggers so that you can send automated personalized messages at scheduled times.
If you haven't read our SMS Messaging Overview support article yet, go back and do that first, paying close attention to the SMS Brand Requirements and SMS Regulations sections! For other questions, check out our SMS Common Issues & Questions support article.
- SMS Brand Applications are only available for businesses located in the United States or Canada at this time.
- As of December 2023, SMS Brand Applications may take approximately 2-3 weeks to process. Users will receive a separate email once a determination has been made by the vetting partners.
- No part of the OwnerRez SMS Brand form can be left blank. All fields must be filled in.
- A live website is a requirement for SMS branding. If the website you submit is not live, your brand will be rejected.
Please ensure that you follow the instructions provided below. Any deviation from these instructions may result in rejection. While we cannot guarantee approval, if you do receive a rejection, please contact our Helpdesk. Our SMS specialists will be happy to assist you with the resubmission process.
- SMS Configuration
- SMS Brand Approval
- Create an SMS Number
- Forward Incoming Voice Calls
- Change or Delete SMS Number
- Turn SMS Messaging Off
SMS Configuration
To create your business SMS Brand, go to Settings > Messaging > SMS Numbers.
In order to allow OwnerRez to send and receive messages directly to and from your guests' mobile phones, users have to Turn on SMS Messaging.
Confirm that you are turning on the SMS Messaging premium feature in OwnerRez by clicking on Yes, Turn On.
On the Create your SMS Brand page, users will enter information about your vacation rental business.
All fields are required to be completed and it is imperative that your Business name, personal name, business address, and Tax Registration Type and number exactly match your IRS information!
Employee Identification Number (EIN)
If you haven't completed the SMS Configuration section, go back and start there.
All information to enter into the OwnerRez SMS Brand application is pulled from your CP-575 (form SS-4) form from the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and must match your SMS Brand application information.
- Address must match exactly. No extra periods, Lane v Ln, etc.
- Primary Contact Name must match
- EIN must be 30 days or older after issuance
- Business website URLs must be live.
- Test website URLs are not sufficient.
- Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com, etc. URLs are not sufficient.
Review your information closely before you click on Save and Submit.
Sole Proprietorships
If you haven't completed the SMS Configuration section, go back and start there.
If you do NOT have a registered Tax ID number or an EIN, and submit your taxes to the IRS using your Social Security Number (SSN), you can complete your OwnerRez SMS Brand application without submitting your SSN.
- Primary contact name is also your business name. Do not enter a DBA (doing business as).
- Position must be Other
- Title must be Owner
- Business website must be live.
- Test website URLs are not sufficient.
- Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com, etc. URLs are not sufficient.
- Can use personal address (as long as this address is not in use for any other registered business that is not your STR business) or STR address.
- Business phone number must be from a "real" carrier that can receive text messages. OwnerRez's SMS partner will send you a verification text upon submission that you'll need to respond to. Note that, at present, this must be a valid North American or Canadian phone number.
- No VOIP numbers, such as Google Voice or Bandwidth.com
- Guests will never see this phone number
Review your information closely before you click on Save and Submit.
Canadian Business Number (CBN)
If you haven't completed the SMS Configuration section, go back and start there.
- Business website must be live.
- Test website URLs are not sufficient.
- Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com, etc. URLs are not sufficient.
- If you have a Canadian Business Number (CBN) but also operate as a Sole Proprietorship, see instructions for Sole Proprietorship.
- If you have a registered Canadian Business Number (CBN) but DO NOT operate as a Sole Proprietor, follow the EIN instructions and submit your Tax Registration CBN number with the first nine digits only in the following format: XXXXX XXXX (e.g.,12345 6789).
SMS Brand Approval
After filling it out, the form will disappear with a message telling you that your SMS Brand is pending review. You will not yet be able to Reserve an SMS Number until your SMS Brand is approved, but you can review your SMS Brand application by clicking on the right SMS Brand button.
OwnerRez will notify you if your SMS Brand is approved or rejected. The SMS Brand button disappears once your brand is approved. If your SMS Brand is rejected, contact the OwnerRez Helpdesk.
Create an SMS Number
After your SMS Brand is approved, you'll want to Reserve an SMS Number by navigating to Settings > Messaging > SMS Numbers > + Reserve SMS Number.
You will NOT be messaging from your personal phone number but can search and select a new number from our database of available numbers.
Before you begin searching phone numbers, be aware that the area code directs calls to a broad region while the prefix is a smaller area within that region, like a city. With that in mind, enter the 3-digit area code and 3-digit prefix you’d like your messages to come from and “Search”. If we do not have any numbers assigned to that area code, please choose another area code. (Our telephony operator has millions of available numbers, but not all area codes are covered.)
Choose a phone number you like and select the “Claim” button beside that number. (When you click “Claim” the messaging service will be enabled and that number will be added to your account. You will be charged as shown above.) Please Note: numbers displayed are those available at that moment. There is a possibility someone else may select that same number and complete their set-up before you, which will result in an error message at the end of the Create Phone page. You’ll need to go back to the page where you input the area code and select a different number.
On the “Create Phone” page enter a name for the number – a business name or a personal one.
Forward Incoming Voice Calls
On the same page as creating your SMS number, select how you’d like to handle incoming voicemail messages: You may use a pre-recorded message (one that you’ve provided) or you may select “text-to-speech”. If “text-to-speech” is chosen, you will type the message you want a caller to hear, and an electronically generated voice will “read” the message.
When call forwarding is enabled, the voicemail settings (Voicemail > Use a prerecorded file/Use text-to-speech or Voicemail Message Text) no longer apply. Voicemail messages are sent to the forwarding number's custom voicemail box. Any voicemail pre-recorded files or text-to-speech settings configured in OwnerRez are not what the guest will hear when call forwarding is enabled.
If you want voicemail messages to always be forwarded to another number, enter that number in “Forwarding Phone Number.” The message will still be available within your OR account, also. If you decide to forward to another phone, be sure to select what incoming number you would like to see displayed on that phone:
- the actual number that sent the original message (e.g. your guest’s number)
- your own OwnerRez SMS Message number, so you know it's an OwnerRez message
Change or Delete SMS Number
When users wish to change their SMS number, it is recommended to reserve a new SMS number before deleting the old number.
Be sure to update any account themes and message templates with your new SMS number.
Users can delete an SMS number by navigating to Settings > Messaging > SMS Numbers, selecting the checkbox next to the SMS Number they wish to delete, and clicking on the Delete button.
To avoid future SMS fees, users can follow the instructions to turn their SMS Messaging off.
Sole Proprietors cannot have more than one SMS phone number at one time.
Turn SMS Messaging Off
Decided that the OwnerRez SMS Messaging premium feature isn't for you? Sold your vacation rental property? Yes, you can turn off your OwnerRez SMS Messaging by navigating to your account drop-down menu in the upper right corner of the OR app and selecting Billing.
More detailed instructions are located in the Cost & Fees support article, Turn Off Premium Features section.
After an OwnerRez user turns their SMS Messaging premium feature off, their assigned SMS phone number will be released, and available to others, after 30 days.