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Set up RCS

Public

RCS (Rich Communication Services) delivers rich, branded messages directly in the Android Messages app — carousels, buttons, images, and verified sender identity. Active Reach supports three paths: managed registration, migration from another provider, or BYOM.

RCS is a workspace-scoped channel — the RBM agent and Google brand verification are bound to one brand. On the managed path, MSG91 hosts the agent and Active Reach binds your workspace to a project_id; on BYOM, you bring your own verified agent.

Before you start

You’ll need:

  • Admin access to your Active Reach workspace
  • A business website that’s at least 3 months old (Google requirement for verification)
  • A public brand logo URL (minimum 1024×1024px, PNG or JPG)
  • PAN Card or GST Number (mandatory for Google India verification)
  • For BYOM: an existing verified RBM agent and BSP credentials

Choose your path

PathTimelineBest for
Managed (New Agent)10-14 business daysTeams starting fresh — no Google developer console access needed
Migration5-7 business daysTeams moving from Gupshup, Sinch, or Infobip — keep your trust score
BYOMImmediate (if verified)Teams with an existing verified RBM agent

Managed setup

Choose “Active Reach Managed (New Agent)”

Go to Settings → Channels → RCS → Setup under your workspace (/dashboard/{workspaceSlug}/settings/channels). Select the managed option. Active Reach handles brand verification, agent approval, and SMS fallback configuration.

Fill in your brand profile

This information goes directly to Google for business verification:

  • Business name, description (max 100 characters), and website
  • Business type (Retail, E-commerce, Healthcare, Finance, Education, F&B, Travel, Real Estate, Other)
  • Country and PAN/GST number — mandatory for Google India verification
  • Brand logo URL (publicly accessible, min 1024×1024px)
  • Brand color (hex, e.g., #E63329)
  • Contact details — name, email, phone, department

Have these ready before starting: business website (min 3 months old — newer domains are auto-rejected by Google), public logo URL, and PAN/GST number.

Configure your agent

  • Agent name — what customers see as the sender (max 40 characters, e.g., “Acme Support”)
  • Welcome message — the first message new recipients see (min 10 characters)
  • Use case — transactional, marketing, or both
  • Expected volume — monthly message estimate
  • SMS fallback — toggle on if you want messages to fall back to SMS when RCS isn’t available (requires SMS channel to be active)

Set up billing

Choose between pooled and dedicated billing modes, set initial credits (min 500), and optionally enable auto-top-up. Acknowledge the opt-in compliance requirement to submit.

Wait for verification

After submission, Google verifies your business and approves the agent. This takes 10-14 business days. Active Reach manages the entire process — you’ll see status updates on the pending page.

Migration setup

Choose “Migrate Existing RBM Agent”

Select migration if you already have a verified RCS agent on another provider and want to move it to Active Reach. Key benefit: no new Google verification needed, and you keep your existing trust score.

Fill in your brand profile

Same as managed — Google needs the information on file.

Provide migration details

  • Current vendor — Gupshup, Sinch, Infobip, or Other
  • Current RBM Agent ID — format: brands/brand-XXX/agents/your-agent
  • Confirm agent is verified — migration only works for verified agents
  • Migration reason — pricing, analytics, automation, unified platform, or other
  • Notes (optional) — any context for the migration team

Set up billing and wait

Same billing step as managed. Migration takes 5-7 business days.

BYOM setup

Choose “Bring Your Own BSP (BYOM)”

Select BYOM if you have a verified agent and want to use your existing BSP credentials. You go live immediately.

Select your provider

ProviderStrengthsCredential fields
GupshupPopular in India, direct carrier partnershipsAPI key + app name
InfobipEnterprise-grade, detailed analyticsAPI key + base URL
SinchGlobal carrier, strong infrastructureService plan ID + API token
MSG91India-focused, if you already have an accountAuth key

Enter credentials and verify webhook

Credentials are validated live. After validation, you’ll see a webhook URL and client token — configure these in your BSP’s console. Click Verify to confirm the webhook is working.

Enter your RBM Agent ID

  • Agent ID — format: brands/brand-XXXX/agents/your-agent-name (find in Google Business Communications console or your BSP’s agent management)
  • Verification status — verified or test-only
  • Warmup phase — Phase 1 (initial, ~100 msgs/day), Phase 2 (active, ~10K msgs/day), or Phase 3 (complete, standard limits)
  • Expected daily volume
  • Compliance acknowledgement — required to proceed

You’re done

Summary shows your provider and RBM Agent ID. Head to campaigns to send your first RCS message.

How RCS template sends are shaped

Active Reach submits approved RCS templates via MSG91’s bulk template endpoint:

POST control.msg91.com/api/v5/rcs/send-rcs-message/bulk/
{
  "project_id": "<your bound MSG91 RCS project>",
  "function_name": "template",
  "name": "<template name>",
  "namespace": "<template namespace>",
  "customer_number_variables": [
    { "customer_number": [<phone>], "variables": [<positional variables>] }
  ]
}

When a template includes a media_url placeholder, the URL you pass must serve a real image/* Content-Type response — Google RBM fetches the URL server-side and rejects anything that isn’t a binary image. Route customer-facing media through media.active-reach.ai (use canonical_invoice_url / canonical_receipt_url helpers for receipts) so the right Content-Type and caching apply. There is no pull DLR endpoint for RCS — delivery receipts arrive via webhook only.

What’s next

Push notificationsIn-app messaging