WhatsApp and artificial intelligence
WhatsApp opt-in
Opt-in is the permission a person gives a business to write to them on WhatsApp. Meta requires it before sending them templates: the business's name must be clear, as must the fact that the person agrees to receive its messages. It can be collected by SMS, on a website, by phone, in person or on paper.
Also known asconsent to receive messages · contact permission · opt in
What Meta asks for
Since the November 2024 update to its policy, Meta asks for two things before a business writes to someone on WhatsApp: that the person has given their number, and that they have confirmed they want to receive messages or calls from that particular business. The permission can be general rather than specific to WhatsApp, as long as the applicable law is complied with. When asking for it, the business must state clearly that the person is signing up to receive communications and from which business. The method is the business's choice; Meta gives as examples an SMS, a website, a call with a voice menu, or a signature in person or on paper.
In a residence it fits arrival day or the admission form: a tick box saying who the notices will come from and what kind they will be (faults, parcels, announcements). Meta recommends asking for it by category and explaining how to unsubscribe from each one, because people who receive what they did not expect block the sender, and that lowers the quality rating. Without opt-in, not even the first message template should go out.
Worth knowing
What people take for granted: that Meta's opt-in is GDPR consent. It is not: Meta defers to the applicable law, and in Spain processing a resident's number and messages needs its own lawful basis under the GDPR, which is not always consent. They are two separate permissions: one is required by the platform, the other by the law.
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Related terms
- 24-hour windowThe 24-hour window, or customer service window, is the period that opens every time someone messages a WhatsApp Business Platform number: for 24 hours from their last message you can reply freely; once it closes, you can only write to them with an approved template.
- Message templateA WhatsApp message template is a message with a fixed format and variable placeholders (a name, a time) that is registered and reviewed by Meta before use. It is the only thing that can be sent outside the 24-hour window, and each one belongs to a category: utility, marketing or authentication.