Consent & Opt-In: The Rules, and Ready-to-Use Language

Consent problems cause more campaign rejections, filtering, and audits than everything else combined. The rules below apply to every channel — 10DLC, toll-free, and short code.

The rules

• Consent must exist before the first message, obtained through a declared method. Purchased, rented, or scraped lists are never compliant — no channel, no exceptions.
• Marketing requires express written consent — a signature or an affirmative electronic act (an unchecked box the person checks). Verbal consent can cover informational messages, but never marketing.
• Consent is use-case-specific. Agreeing to order updates is not agreeing to promotions: transactional and marketing require separate consents.
• Consent must be standalone and voluntary — a dedicated disclosure, unchecked by default, never a condition of purchase or of submitting a form, and not buried in Terms of Service.
• Consent can be revoked by any reasonable means — STOP is the standard keyword, but under FCC rules revocation in any reasonable manner must be honored promptly, and opt-outs may not be charged for or argued with.
• Consent may not be shared or sold. Your privacy policy must state that text messaging opt-in data and consent will not be shared with any third parties.
• Keep records: who consented, when (timestamp), where (URL/form/keyword), and what disclosure they saw. Carriers and auditors ask for exactly this.
• Non-English forms: the disclosure must be complete in the language of the form; STOP and HELP remain literal English keywords.

Ready-to-use checkbox language

Transactional / account messages:

☐ I agree to receive text messages from [BRAND] related to my orders and account — including order confirmations, delivery notifications, and customer service messages — at the phone number provided. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. See our Privacy Policy [link] and SMS Terms [link].

Marketing messages (separate, optional):

☐ (Optional) I agree to receive marketing and promotional text messages from [BRAND] — including offers and coupons — at the phone number provided. Consent is not a condition of purchase. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. See our Privacy Policy [link] and SMS Terms [link].

Both unchecked by default; the form must submit without the marketing box checked. Translations for non-English sites are available from TSG on request.

Standard message-flow language

Opt-in confirmation: [BRAND]: You are now opted in to receive [message types]. Message frequency varies. Msg&data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help, STOP to opt out.
Opt-out confirmation: [BRAND]: You have been unsubscribed and will receive no further messages. Reply START to resubscribe.
HELP reply: [BRAND]: For help, contact [support email or phone]. Reply STOP to opt out.

Last updated July 2026. Questions: TSG Global support.