SalesThumb builds the main texting rules into the product, so your shop stays on the right side of carrier and consumer rules without extra work. This article covers how consent is collected, what happens when a customer replies STOP, when marketing texts can go out, and how automated AI texts are labeled.
Consent on your booking page
On your online booking page, the Review & confirm step shows two optional boxes. Both start unchecked, and customers can book without ticking either one.
- Appointment texts: "Text me about this appointment (confirmation, reminders and updates)…" If they don't tick it, the booking is email-only. They then need to enter an email so you can send their confirmation.
- Marketing texts: a separate box for offers and reminders about finishing a booking. It's never required to book. Leaving it unticked doesn't remove consent they gave earlier.
A SMS Terms & Privacy link sits right under the boxes.
Consent your team records
When a customer agrees in person or over the phone, staff can record it:
- the SMS consent checkbox on the New customer form
- the SMS consent switch when editing a customer
- the confirmation in the text composer when you text someone who hasn't texted your shop before ("This customer asked us to text them.")
Only tick these once the customer has actually agreed. SalesThumb notes it on their record.
A phone number shared in your website chat is not consent to text.
Your public SMS terms page
Every shop has a public SMS terms and privacy page at salesthumb.com/sms/(your booking link name)/terms. The same text appears from the SMS Terms & Privacy link on your booking page. It explains:
- what you text about
- that message frequency varies and message and data rates may apply
- how to reply STOP and HELP (with your shop phone and email)
- that agreeing isn't a condition of any purchase
- how consent is collected and how the number is used
Carriers review this page when you register your own texting number.
When a customer replies STOP
A reply that starts with STOP, STOPALL, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END, QUIT or REVOKE, or that just says OPT OUT, opts the customer out. Case and punctuation don't matter. They get one message confirming they've been unsubscribed.
- They get no more texts from your shop, appointment texts included, until they reply START or UNSTOP.
- Their customer profile shows an SMS opted out badge.
A plain-language request like "please stop texting me" is handled more carefully. Marketing texts to that customer pause, the reply tells them to text STOP to end all texts, and your team is asked to confirm.
For HQ campaigns, a STOP at any shop in your group blocks HQ campaign texts to that number.
Quiet hours: 8am–8pm for marketing texts
Marketing texts only go out between 8am and 8pm in the customer's local time. This covers:
- blasts, campaigns, HQ campaigns and win-back texts
- marketing plays in the sales playbook and marketing automation steps
- service reminder, maintenance and warranty-expired texts
The customer's local time comes from their address and their phone's area code. If they could be in more than one time zone, every one of those zones has to be inside the window. Sends stop a few minutes before 8pm so a text never lands after 8. These hours are the same for every shop and can't be changed.
Appointment reminders, receipts, review requests, one-to-one messages from your team, and all email aren't held.
What happens to a held text
- On the Campaigns page, you see before sending how many customers are outside 8am–8pm right now. Those texts go out when it's 8am for them.
- After a send, the result shows how many were held for quiet hours.
- A Held for quiet hours card on the Campaigns and Blasts pages shows what's waiting and when the next one goes out. Cancel held texts cancels waiting blast, campaign and win-back texts. Automatic reminders are turned off in Settings instead.
- Right before a held text goes out, SalesThumb checks again that the customer hasn't replied STOP and is still opted in to marketing.
- A text still waiting 48 hours after it was queued is dropped rather than sent late.
No more than 3 marketing texts a day
Each customer gets at most 3 marketing texts from your shop in any 24 hours. Anyone over that limit is skipped, and the send result tells you how many.
Automated AI texts say they're automated
When the AI texts a customer without anyone on your team reviewing it, such as an after-hours auto-reply or a playbook nudge, the first one includes "Automated reply from (your shop name)." or "Automated message from (your shop name)." The label repeats if the AI texts that customer again more than 24 hours later. Messages your team reviews or sends never carry it.
On your website chat, AI replies are labeled "AI". On the phone, the AI receptionist says it's the shop's virtual assistant.
Related
Frequently asked questions
Q: Do customers have to agree to texts to book online?
A: No. Both texting boxes on the booking page are optional and start unchecked. Without the appointment-texts box the booking is email-only.
Q: Can I change the 8am–8pm quiet hours?
A: No. The window is the same for every shop and can't be widened. Marketing texts outside it wait and go out when the customer's window opens.
Q: Do quiet hours apply to appointment reminders?
A: No. Appointment reminders, receipts, review requests, one-to-one messages and email aren't held. Quiet hours are for marketing texts.
Q: How does a customer start getting texts again after STOP?
A: They reply START or UNSTOP. Until then they get no texts from your shop.
Q: Where can customers read my texting terms?
A: On your public SMS terms page, linked as SMS Terms & Privacy on your booking page.