What is the North American Numbering Plan?
The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is a phone numbering system used in regions and countries across North America, the Caribbean, and some Pacific territories. It simplifies communication by standardising phone numbers into a 10-digit format, eliminating confusion caused by different regional formats.
The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) assigns phone numbers a country code (for example, 1 in the US). The remaining 10 digits all have a specific meaning:
- Numbering plan area (NPA): Also known as the area code, the NPA consists of 3 digits and stands for a region within a country.
- Central office code: These are the next 3 digits that indicate a smaller area within a region.
- Subscriber number: The final 4 digits of that represent the unique code for a specific phone line or device.
Using NANP phone numbers in your SMS marketing efforts
There are 3 benefits to using NANP phone numbers for marketing:
- Trustworthiness: Phone numbers with a relevant area code feel more trustworthy and foster familiarity with subscribers.
- Higher open rates: Because local numbers seem more trustworthy, people tend to be more interested in engaging with text messages from local numbers than generic toll-free numbers .
- Two-way communication: Subscribers are more likely to reply to a local number with inquiries or requests. This promotes further interaction, such as order tracking, confirmations, or support, leading to better customer experience.
Use a marketing automation platform like Klaviyo to reach out to NANP numbers via SMS . Sign up today to easily create an SMS list , segment it according to user behaviour or demographics , and write and send messages in only a few clicks.