Estimated reading time: 10 minutes

SMS marketing has quickly gained popularity among businesses, thanks to its speed and precision. In fact, 53% of marketing professionals have adopted SMS to communicate with their audience. However, keeping a contact list up to date can be difficult. That is where HLR, or phone number verification, comes into play.

Outdated data and unused numbers in your database can lead to failed SMS deliveries and cost you money repeatedly, with no results. In this article, we help you understand how HLR Lookup can solve these problems and help you grow your business.

What is HLR Lookup?

HLR stands for Home Location Register (subscriber location database). It is a central database containing all subscribers of a mobile network operator.

An HLR lookup queries the mobile network operator's database or HLR to obtain the most up-to-date data regarding a specific phone number .

Using HLR lookup saves you the time and money you would have spent sending promotional messages to unused numbers. This can be a crucial advantage, especially if you work in a competitive industry.

The HLR lookup sends a signal to a mobile network database to verify a phone number and determine if the number is in use. If so, it also identifies the mobile network operator.

Companies that provide phone number verification services will share the data found in the HLR for a small fee.

Businesses can then send the SMS messages they want to their subscribers, wherever they may be.

How do you verify a phone number with HLR Lookup?

To verify a phone number, you must review the HLR database to find the most recent status of a specific phone number. From its location to its current usage, the search will tell you everything you need to know.

Furthermore, the search results will indicate whether your customer's phone is turned on or not. When used correctly, HLR lookup can become your most powerful weapon for promoting your business.

Is HLR Phone Number Verification Free?

HLR services are not free. In reality, any reliable HLR lookup service comes at a price, however small. In the long run, this cost will be significantly lower than what you would have spent without an HLR service.

We advise you not to trust companies that offer to verify phone numbers for free. Since HLR lookup involves handling sensitive data, such as phone numbers and your customers' identities, it is best not to take any risks.

Octopush offers an HLR Lookup service that requires no prior download. You can start by integrating it into your software or applications using the Octopush API.

The 8 Benefits of HLR Lookup You Need to Know

HLR lookup does more than just clean up your database. It helps you optimize your SMS marketing budget, and facilitates communication with your customers.

Here are several ways that verifying a phone number via HLR makes your life easier as an SMS marketing professional.

1. It Helps You Track Numbers

If your database contains many duplicates, your SMS service may send identical messages to the same numbers. Furthermore, the number of obsolete and inactive numbers in your contact list can increase over time.

To avoid this problem, the HLR lookup scans all numbers and gets rid of duplicates as well as unused numbers.

2. It Allows You to Update in Real Time

HLR lookup verifies which phone numbers in your database are active in real time. Sending promotional messages to inactive numbers will not bring you new customers, but it will certainly cost you money.

By ensuring your messages are sent to active numbers, you can save money, which you can then reinvest in other areas of your business.

You can also increase your conversion rate by targeting the most active potential customers who are most likely to engage with you.

3. It Allows You to Send Messages Worldwide

With a mobile network lookup service, you can easily contact anyone around the world, provided the individual has opted in to receive your SMS.

As a startup or a company looking to grow, your marketing communication needs to reach as many people as possible. However, this is not feasible for many companies that rely on traditional marketing channels, mainly due to insufficient budget or public relations.

This is where verifying phone numbers becomes usefulFor a relatively low price, you can send promotional messages to any recipient, regardless of the network they use.

Additionally, the service will alert you if one of your customers is using a roaming network.

4. It Is Easy to Set Up

Verifying a phone number is very easy to implement. In reality, all you have to do is create an account with an HLR company and provide them with a list of the numbers you wish to verify.

Once the file is received, the software will scan it to examine the numbers. The time taken to complete this process depends on the size of your contact list.

If you use our service from your platform, searching 2,000 contacts will take about 30 minutes. However, since the API is capped at 500 contacts, it may take a little longer. To inspect your entire database, you can create loops of 500 contacts using our API.

Once you have provided the necessary documents, you just have to wait for the results.

Octopush offers easy-to-read documentation to simplify the API integration process for you. It will help you set up your Home Location Register in no time.

5. It Helps You Clean Your Data

In this case, the data is your database of phone numbers. By verifying phone numbers with HLR software, you will know which ones to delete.

In addition to making your list much more organized, this will also reduce your chances of losing money or leaking your customers' data.

Octopush implements all technical and organizational measures to ensure the security and confidentiality of the personal data of its users and their recipients, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). You can rest assured that your customers' data is in good hands.

6. It Guarantees Accuracy

Reliable phone number verification services will always give you the most accurate results. With the list the machine provides, you can be sure that the money spent is worth it.

All phone numbers in the results list will be active, and will ensure you get higher-quality, spam-free leads.

7. It’s Fast

Yes, you read that right. Regardless of the size of the list you provide, you can expect results within a day at most. Typically, this service operates via email, but that is not always the case.

As a general rule, the more numbers in your list, the longer the software will take to respond. Most of the time, each number takes about one to two minutes.

8. Not Limited to Businesses

HLR services are also beneficial for schools and mobile developers.

Academic Institutions

For academic institutions, the lookup can notify you when certain numbers on your list are deactivated, activated, or become invalid. This allows you to stay up to date with your students even when they are not nearby.

You can also notify them about upcoming classes and exams, and keep them informed on education-related matters. With HLR service by your side, you will no longer worry about undelivered text messages.

Developers

Mobile developers can verify which network users are on by using HLR lookup. This can be particularly effective if calling is a feature of the application.

By programming an HLR service into your application, you can inform customers of the cost of their call in advance, ensuring a better user experience since they can accurately estimate their expenses.

Insurance companies and travel agencies

Finally, HLR services can be used by insurance companies and travel agencies. You can use the data provided by these services to find potential clients in your sector.

Insurance companies can also contact their clients at any time if they know their location.

Tips for Verifying a Phone Number

Verifying a phone number is crucial for a business to function. Not only is your essential data at risk if you interact with an unprotected number, but invalid numbers can also cause you to spend more money than necessary.

There are many tools on the internet that validate phone numbers for you. Most of them require a strict format.

The first thing you should do when adding a number is enter the correct country code. Without this, the system may consider the number invalid, thus costing you a potential client.

How Octopush’s HLR Lookup Service Can Help You Optimize Your Marketing Efforts

Octopush also offers an HLR service to our clients. Here is a list of things we can do for you:

1. We Keep You Up to Date

Staying up to date is crucial for you, especially if you are a growing business. And we know it. To help you, the HLR service helps you stay in constant contact with your contact list.

As soon as you ask us, we thoroughly scan the contact list you provide to verify the phone numbers, ensuring they only contain numbers that are still in use. Our service is very affordable, even if its price is not fixed.

Our HLR service will tell you how many numbers are unused, before indicating the amount you will have to pay to remove those numbers.

2. We Make Your Work Easier

Our HLR lookup software is programmed to make the phone number verification process easier for you. It immediately discards any phone number that will not be useful to you, and will only give you active and accurate numbers.

3. We Are Always Ready to Help

If you have any problems, you can always contact us. Within five minutes, our experts will get in touch with you and resolve your issue.

If needed, you can even request a phone call with someone from our team, during which we will be happy to guide you through our phone number verification process for your database.

4. We Can Validate Your Phone Numbers

Our software is constantly updated and improved to provide you with the best results. Your money and data are safe with us.

You can verify phone numbers in full within a maximum of one day using easy-to-use tools. If you encounter any issues, you can always contact us via message or phone.

Final Thoughts

HLR lookup is a blessing for businesses that use SMS marketing. It prevents your personal information from being shared with questionable contacts, and the search results are always accurate.

This service is not only highly efficient, but it also allows you to reach the entire world from your office. Fantastic, right?

Clean up your contact list with our low-cost HLR Lookup service, whether you are a business, a school, or a mobile developer.

Keep in mind that you should only share your data with HLR lookup companies that are General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) certified, to ensure your user data remains secure.

So, what are you waiting for? Harness the power of HLR by verifying your phone numbers and optimize your SMS marketing with Octopush.

Create an Octopush account for free

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