Should Shopify checkout opt-in boxes for email marketing be pre-checked for GDPR and deliverability?

The question of whether to pre-check email marketing opt-in boxes at Shopify checkouts, considering GDPR, CASL, and deliverability, elicits a largely negative consensus. While Shopify allows pre-selection, experts and marketers overwhelmingly advise against it. The core issue is consent. GDPR, CASL, and other data privacy regulations mandate explicit, active consent. Pre-checked boxes assume consent, which is non-compliant and can lead to legal ramifications. Furthermore, assuming consent can increase spam complaints, lower engagement, and damage sender reputation, negatively impacting deliverability. Though some sources suggest that recent interaction might yield good metrics regardless, the prevailing recommendation is to prioritize legal compliance, ethical data collection, and respecting user choice by implementing unchecked opt-in boxes and clear, unambiguous language.

The question revolves around whether Shopify checkout opt-in boxes for email marketing should be pre-checked, considering GDPR, CASL, and email deliverability implications. The answers present a mixed perspective. Some argue that pre-checked boxes can increase sign-ups, leading to potentially good metrics due to recent customer interaction. However, the consensus leans towards avoiding pre-checked boxes for legal (GDPR, CASL) and deliverability reasons. GDPR and CASL require explicit consent, which pre-checked boxes do not provide. This lack of explicit consent can lead to increased spam complaints, lower engagement rates, and ultimately, damage sender reputation and brand trust. While a Shopify representative suggested that it is ok as long as an easy unsubscribe link is included, the strong majority of marketers disagree.

Experts uniformly advise against pre-checking opt-in boxes for email marketing, particularly in the context of Shopify checkouts, GDPR, and deliverability. A central theme is that pre-checked boxes assume permission, which is not equivalent to obtaining explicit consent. This assumption can lead to legal issues, negative impacts on deliverability (spam complaints, bounces), and damaged brand reputation. The consensus emphasizes the need for active, unambiguous consent from subscribers. The decision to use pre-checked boxes ultimately depends on a company's risk tolerance, but experts advise against it.

The provided documentation from Shopify, GDPR.EU, the ICO, and the Canadian Government uniformly indicates that pre-checked opt-in boxes for email marketing at Shopify checkouts are problematic from a legal compliance standpoint. Shopify allows merchants to set the marketing option as preselected, however, GDPR, ICO and CASL documentation states consent must be freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous, requiring a positive opt-in, and pre-checked boxes are explicitly non-compliant. These regulations require express consent that cannot be assumed.