Q: New iphone 5c and iMessage notifications

Hello TigerDunes,

Congratulations on your new iPhone 5c!  I have a few suggestions for the issue you are experiencing with message alerts on your iPhone.

First, I recommend checking what you have set for Text Tone in Settings > Sounds and verifying it is not set to "none." 

Also check the silent switch on the left side of your iPhone (if you see orange, it is set to silent):

iPhone: Toggle the Ring/Silent switch on the side of the device.

Lastly, be sure to check that Do Not Disturb is turned off in Settings > Do Not Disturb.

iOS: Understanding sounds, ringtones, and alerts

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5800

iOS: Using Do Not Disturb

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5463

Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.

Best,

Sheila M.