diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 37bf4d3..f9e32c5 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ RUN apk add --no-cache  \
 
 COPY . /opt/mautrix-twilio
 WORKDIR /opt/mautrix-twilio
-RUN pip3 install .
+RUN pip3 install .[phonenumbers]
 
 VOLUME /data
 
diff --git a/example-config.yaml b/example-config.yaml
index c15fa99..76e36dc 100644
--- a/example-config.yaml
+++ b/example-config.yaml
@@ -50,11 +50,11 @@ appservice:
 # Bridge config
 bridge:
     # Localpart template of MXIDs for remote users.
-    # {userid} is replaced with the phone number of the user (international format without +).
+    # {userid} is replaced with the phone number of the user (plain/E.164 international format).
     username_template: "twilio_whatsapp_{userid}"
     # Displayname template for remote users.
-    # {displayname} is replaced with the phone number of the user (international format without +).
-    displayname_template: "+{displayname} (WhatsApp)"
+    # {displayname} is replaced with the phone number of the user (human-readable international format).
+    displayname_template: "{displayname} (WhatsApp)"
 
     # The prefix for commands. Only required in non-management rooms.
     command_prefix: "!tw"
diff --git a/mautrix_twilio/portal.py b/mautrix_twilio/portal.py
index faffa44..370c899 100644
--- a/mautrix_twilio/portal.py
+++ b/mautrix_twilio/portal.py
@@ -130,7 +130,8 @@ async def _create_matrix_room(self) -> RoomID:
         return self.mxid
 
     async def handle_twilio_message(self, message: TwilioMessageEvent) -> None:
-        await self.create_matrix_room()
+        if not await self.create_matrix_room():
+            return
         mxid = None
 
         if message.media:
diff --git a/mautrix_twilio/puppet.py b/mautrix_twilio/puppet.py
index f4ecf2f..57f90fb 100644
--- a/mautrix_twilio/puppet.py
+++ b/mautrix_twilio/puppet.py
@@ -26,6 +26,11 @@
 if TYPE_CHECKING:
     from .context import Context
 
+try:
+    import phonenumbers
+except ImportError:
+    phonenumbers = None
+
 config: Config
 
 
@@ -38,6 +43,7 @@ class Puppet(BasePuppet):
     by_twid: Dict[TwilioUserID, 'Puppet'] = {}
 
     twid: TwilioUserID
+    _formatted_number: Optional[str]
 
     _db_instance: Optional[DBPuppet]
 
@@ -46,6 +52,7 @@ def __init__(self, twid: TwilioUserID, is_registered: bool = False,
         super().__init__()
         self.twid = twid
         self.is_registered = is_registered
+        self._formatted_number = None
         self._db_instance = db_instance
         self.intent = self.az.intent.user(self.mxid)
         self.log = self.log.getChild(self.twid)
@@ -55,13 +62,21 @@ def __init__(self, twid: TwilioUserID, is_registered: bool = False,
     def phone_number(self) -> int:
         return self.twid_template.parse(self.twid)
 
+    @property
+    def formatted_phone_number(self) -> str:
+        if not self._formatted_number:
+            parsed = phonenumbers.parse(f"+{self.phone_number}")
+            fmt = phonenumbers.PhoneNumberFormat.INTERNATIONAL
+            self._formatted_number = phonenumbers.format_number(parsed, fmt)
+        return self._formatted_number
+
     @property
     def mxid(self) -> UserID:
         return UserID(self.mxid_template.format_full(str(self.phone_number)))
 
     @property
     def displayname(self) -> str:
-        return self.displayname_template.format_full(str(self.phone_number))
+        return self.displayname_template.format_full(self.formatted_phone_number)
 
     @property
     def db_instance(self) -> DBPuppet:
diff --git a/optional-requirements.txt b/optional-requirements.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7813b15
--- /dev/null
+++ b/optional-requirements.txt
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+phonenumbers
diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index a8832f8..ebc3720 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -30,6 +30,9 @@
         "SQLAlchemy>=1.2,<2",
         "alembic>=1,<2",
     ],
+    extras_require={
+        "phonenumbers": ["phonenumbers>=8,<9"],
+    },
 
     classifiers=[
         "Development Status :: 2 - Pre-Alpha",