WhatsApp opt-in link and QR code

WhatsApp allows Marketing templates only to people who agreed to receive them. The easiest way to collect that agreement is to let customers ask for it: put an opt-in link or QR code on a poster, a receipt, your website or a social post. It opens a WhatsApp chat with your business number and a message already typed, such as SUBSCRIBE SPRING-FAIR. When the customer presses send:

• they are marked Agreed for WhatsApp in Contacts, with the source WhatsApp opt-in link and their message (with the code) as the proof in Consent history (Consent and opt-out);
• they get your confirmation message in the same chat, free of charge (Messaging rules);
• a new customer appears in Contacts and the Inbox like any other chat.

Before you start

• A WhatsApp number connected in Accounts (/app/channels). Without one the page says "Connect a WhatsApp number first: the link opens a chat with it." and Go to Accounts opens Accounts. When your number is connected but disconnected (Meta no longer accepts its access), the page says instead Your WhatsApp number [number] is disconnected. Reconnect it to make a link. and Reconnect on Accounts opens it on Accounts. Only an Owner or Admin can connect or reconnect a number, so only they see Go to Accounts and Reconnect on Accounts. An Editor, Reviewer or Viewer sees the same sentence with Ask an Owner or Admin to connect one. or Ask an Owner or Admin to reconnect it. under it instead of the button.
• Anyone who can open Contacts can make a link (no task needed). It only opens a chat; it changes nothing until a customer sends the message.

Step by step

1. Open Engage → Contacts (/app/contacts) and press More, then Opt-in link & QR, at the top (/app/contacts/opt-in-link).
2. WhatsApp number: pick the number the chat should open with (the first one is chosen for you).
3. Keyword: pick the word the message starts with: SUBSCRIBE, START, YES OFFERS, اشتراك, اشترك, نعم للعروض and the other built-in words, plus the ones you added in Settings → Messaging rules → Opt-in keywords. Choose Arabic for an Arabic audience: the confirmation is sent in the keyword's language.
4. Where it is used (optional): a short code for this poster or page, such as SPRING-FAIR or INSTAGRAM-BIO. English letters, digits, - and _, up to 24; spaces become -. It is added after the keyword and saved in each person's consent history, so you can see later where they came from. A wrong character shows Use English letters, digits, - and _ only (up to 24). in red under the box. Until you fix it, the QR code and link on the right are faded (they are still the previous code's), a note says Fix the code in Where it is used (optional) to update the link. Copy link, Download QR (SVG) and Print come back once it is valid., and those three buttons are grey. While a new link is being made after you change the number, the keyword or the code, the QR code is faded for a moment and the three buttons wait, so you never copy, save or print the previous link.
5. The right-hand side updates as you choose: the QR code, the Pre-filled message and the Link (for example https://wa.me/447400123456?text=SUBSCRIBE%20SPRING-FAIR).
6. Use it:

• Copy link copies the link ("Link copied") for your website, bio or a social post. If your browser blocks copying, the link shown on the page is selected and "Could not copy. The link is selected; press Ctrl+C (Cmd+C on Mac)." appears: press Ctrl+C (Cmd+C on Mac) to copy it.
• Download QR (SVG) saves the QR code as an SVG file, sharp at any size, for your designer or printer.
• Print opens a page with "Scan to get our offers on WhatsApp", the QR code, the message and your number, and your browser's print window.

Good to know

• The customer can edit the message before sending. If they change the keyword, it is an ordinary message and nothing is recorded; if they delete only the code, they are still subscribed (source Replied with a keyword).
• Someone already subscribed who sends it again gets no second confirmation and no new history line.
• STOP always wins: a later STOP or Stop promotions ends marketing to them as usual.
• Test it yourself: scan the QR code with your own phone, send the message, then open your contact in Contacts and look at Consent history.

If something goes wrong

• "hello" is not one of this workspace's opt-in keywords (…) → pick a word from the Keyword list.
• "The code may use English letters, digits, - and _ (up to 24), e.g. SPRING-FAIR." → remove spaces and other characters from the code.
• The customer sent the message but is not subscribed → check that the message was exactly the keyword (with or without the code), that it arrived on the WhatsApp number of this workspace, and that it appears in the Inbox. If the page itself shows We couldn't load this page with the reason and a Try again button, it could not reach the server (the connection or the server failed): press Try again.

Related

• Consent and opt-out
• Messaging rules
• WhatsApp broadcasts