SMS template
Message text approved in advance for destinations that regulate content as well as the sender, including the variable rules and the re-approval step.
Definitions only — a term explained here is not a service we sell.
An SMS template is message content approved in advance, not a sender record. Some destinations, notably China, require the wording and its variable slots to be reviewed before traffic flows.
Templates change through re-approval, never by editing live traffic. The application fills the variable slots per message.
Approval and change control
The brand or provider submits the text, the variables, the sender and a sample. The reviewer checks the category, language, length and signature, then approves or rejects with a reason. Allowed characters, maximum length, a fallback for empty values and whether a variable can change the meaning belong in the application rules.
Any material change goes back through review. Editing a live template in place breaks the link to its approval. Test the final encoded length: text that fits in GSM-7 can switch to UCS-2 when a variable carries an accent or an emoji. The China SMS template checker checks the signature and length for China-bound traffic.