SMS notifications and opt-in

StormFunnel is a service operated by exegov LLC. It watches National Weather Service alerts for United States home-services contractors and builds Google Ads campaigns in the contractor’s own Google Ads account, or in one we open and run for them. This page describes the text messages that service sends, and the exact point at which someone agrees to receive them.

Who receives text messages

Two kinds of recipient, and only these two. First, the owner of a StormFunnel account, on a mobile number that owner entered themselves. Second — only where a business has switched the missed-call rescue feature on — a person who has just called that business’s dedicated tracked phone line and was not answered, on the number they called from; that case is described in its own section below. We do not text numbers obtained from any other source, and we do not buy, rent, or upload lists. The company phone number in a customer’s business profile is never used as a text destination — it is a number for homeowners to call, not one anybody consented to receive texts on.

What we send

• A notification that a storm matched the account’s service area and an advertising campaign is waiting for the owner’s approval.
• One reminder if that campaign is still waiting for approval before it expires.
• For customers whose advertising we run from a prepaid balance: a notice that a storm was skipped because the balance is empty, and a notice that we stopped their ads after a refund or reversal emptied it. Account notices about the customer’s own money — never sent unless the number asked for them.

No marketing, no promotions, no third-party content. Examples of the exact messages:

• StormFunnel: hail near Kane, IL. A campaign is ready for your approval. Nothing spends until you approve. app.stormfunnel.com Reply STOP to end.
• StormFunnel: your Kane, IL campaign is still waiting. It expires in 20 hours and nothing has been spent. app.stormfunnel.com Reply STOP to end.
• StormFunnel: a hail storm near Kane, IL was skipped - your ad balance is empty, so no campaign launched. Add funds at app.stormfunnel.com Reply STOP to end.
• StormFunnel: we stopped your ads - your ad balance was refunded or reversed while campaigns were running. Add funds at app.stormfunnel.com Reply STOP to end.
• StormFunnel: 384119 is your code to turn on storm texts. Msg&data rates may apply, frequency varies with the weather. Reply HELP for help, STOP to end.

The last is the first message a number ever receives: the confirmation code sent when someone switches texts on. The place name and the countdown in the first two vary with the storm; the balance notices go only to customers on a prepaid ad balance.

Where consent is given

Inside the account, at Settings → Notifications. The screen is behind a login because it is part of the customer’s own account settings. The opt-in works like this:

1. The account owner signs in at app.stormfunnel.com.
2. They open Settings → Notifications.
3. They turn the SMS channel on. It is off by default — nothing is pre-selected.
4. They type their own mobile number into the phone field.
5. They save. The agreement they give is the sentence quoted below, recorded with its version and the date.
6. We text a six-digit code to that number and they type it back into Settings. Nothing else is ever sent to a number until that code is confirmed— a typed number is not a proven one, and the consent record is written only once the code returns.

Texts to a business’s missed callers

Businesses using StormFunnel can lease a dedicated tracked phone number that forwards straight to their own phone. If that business turns on the missed-call rescue feature and a call to that number goes unanswered, the caller receives one text message from the number they just dialed, telling them their call was missed and asking how to reach them. For example:

• Oak Roofing: we saw the hail too - sorry we missed your call, crews are out on roofs now. Reply with your address and we'll call you back. Reply STOP to opt out

The rules for these messages, all enforced by the system rather than by policy alone:

• They go only to a person who has just called that business’s number — a returned call, in text form. Never to a list, never to a number from any other source.
• One text per missed call, and never more than one text-back to the same caller within 24 hours. The business does not start new conversations by text — if the caller replies, the reply is passed to the business so a person can call them back.
• The message is a service reply, never marketing: the template a business can write is checked automatically and cannot contain links, prices, or promotions.
• Reply STOP to any of these messages to opt out instantly — that number will never text you again. Every message ends with that instruction. Message and data rates may apply.
• Texts are sent only during daytime hours in the caller’s local time; a call missed late at night is answered by text the next morning.

Frequency, cost, and stopping

• Message frequency varies with the weather — some weeks none, a stormy week several.
• Message and data rates may apply.
• Reply STOP to any message to opt out, or HELP for help. SMS can also be switched off in Settings → Notifications. Opting out of texts does not affect the account or its email notifications.
• Consent is not a condition of purchase, and no part of the product requires SMS to be on.

What happens to the number

Mobile numbers collected for text notifications, and the consent recorded with them, are never sold, rented, or shared with third parties for marketing. They are used to deliver the notifications described above and nothing else. Full detail in the Privacy Policy.

Current status

Text notifications are live. Every number is confirmed by a code before it receives anything else, and the system refuses to send to a number that has not been verified. Email carries every notification as well, so turning texts off never costs an alert.

Terms of Service · Privacy Policy