Question

How can I setup CNAM for my line number? Can my United States Voice number display a business name instead of a phone number on outbound calls?

Answer

You can display your business name instead of your Voice phone number on outbound calls. The name must have a maximum of 15 characters. This count includes spaces. Do not use special characters. This functionality is available only for United States phone numbers with a +1 country code. Some carriers in Canada may support this feature, but they don't guarantee it.

The caller name (CNAM) is a feature from the public telephone network in the United States that identifies an inbound caller by a business name connected to the phone number.

Note: There are CNAM services for non-US numbers, such as Hiya. Zendesk doesn't control these services. CNAM is available for Zendesk Voice numbers. It isn't available for Sell Voice or SMS numbers.

Zendesk Voice numbers support CNAM for outbound calls. To activate this feature, Contact Zendesk Customer Support for further help and provide the information below. Provide this information to avoid delays.

Details to provide with your query

  • The phone numbers to activate for CNAM and STIR/SHAKEN
  • The legal business name associated with your Employer Identification Number (EIN)
  • The CNAM to display for the number
  • The physical address associated with your EIN
  • The business type, such as a corporation, partnership, sole proprietor, non-profit, co-operative, or limited liability company
  • Your EIN
  • Your business industry, for example, technology or retail
  • The regions where your business operates, such as EMEA, LATAM, AMER, or APAC
  • Your company website (URL)
  • Two authorized representatives. They must be a director, VP, corporate counsel, GM, CFO, or CEO. Provide this information for each contact:
    • First and last name
    • Email address
    • Contact phone number
    • Business title and job position

The implementation of CNAM takes one to two weeks for new registrations. After registration, an additional one to two weeks may be necessary to populate other carrier databases. When you update existing CNAM, it takes two to four weeks, or longer.

United States carriers require the subscriber to opt in for mobile devices. If the recipient doesn't have the CNAM feature or app activated on their phone, no CNAM displays even if you set a CNAM for the number. For more information, see Brand Your Calls Using CNAM in public beta.

If you want to register for both CNAM and STIR/SHAKEN, provide the same details listed above. For more information, see How do I prevent calls to my end users from displaying as spam?

Disclaimer: CNAM registration is a best-effort scenario. Zendesk can't guarantee that your business name displays on all calls. Unlike CallerID, the callee's external carrier looks up CNAM from a database.
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