Customising your SMS brand prefix

Every SMS you send through Instant starts with a brand prefix so that recipients can immediately recognise who the message is from. Setting your prefix is a one-time configuration that applies to every SMS you send through campaigns and flows.

This article covers where to find your prefix settings, the difference between the two prefix options, and how to choose between them.

Before you start

You'll need SMS configured on your account to access prefix settings. If you haven't done that yet, see Enabling Instant AI SMS in Australia.

Where to find prefix settings

Your prefix is configured in SMS Settings, accessed from your SMS configuration page in the dashboard. It's set once and applies globally to every SMS you send, both in campaigns and in flows.

Short prefix (up to 4 characters)

A short, abbreviated version of your brand name. The short prefix has one extra benefit: it also lets you customise the prefix used in your shortened links, so your brand appears at both the start of the message and inside the link itself.

For example, if your brand prefix is EM'S and your link prefix is also EM'S, your SMS might look like:

EM'S: New arrivals just dropped. First look here: https://em's.insst.io/tYynpd Reply STOP to unsubscribe

Long prefix (up to 10 characters)

A longer version of your brand name (or your full name, if it's short enough). The long prefix gives you stronger brand recognition at the start of every SMS, but the link prefix uses the Instant default and isn't customisable.

For example, with the long prefix AFTERSHOCK:

AFTERSHOCK: Hi Gemma, we saw you checking out our new product. Here's 25% off: https://insst.io/KXLWES Reply STOP to unsubscribe

Which option should I pick?

The right choice depends on your brand name and what you want to optimise for.

Pick short prefix if:

Your brand name fits comfortably in 4 characters, or has a recognisable abbreviation.
You want your shortened links to also carry your brand.
You want to leave more characters available for your message body.

Pick long prefix if:

Your brand name needs more than 4 characters to be recognisable.
You'd rather shoppers see your full brand at the start of every SMS than at the link level.

Both options satisfy the legal requirement to identify your business in every commercial SMS, so either is compliant.

Changing your prefix later

You can update your prefix at any time from SMS Settings. Changes apply to all future SMS sends across campaigns and flows.

Already-sent messages aren't affected. If you have a campaign scheduled but not yet sent, the new prefix will apply when the campaign sends.

Removing the prefix on a specific campaign

You can delete the prefix from an individual SMS campaign during drafting. If you do this, you must include your business name somewhere else in the message body. Australian law requires every commercial SMS to clearly identify the business sending it. Keeping the prefix is the easiest way to make sure every message is compliant by default.