By now, the case is clear. Soft opt-in could transform fundraising — more reach, more momentum, more income. But it won’t happen by accident.

The law is changing, yes. But unless your systems, people and processes are ready, you’ll miss the opportunity and risk compliance mistakes along the way.

Here’s a practical checklist to get your charity prepared.

1. Nail the Legal Foundations

This is where it starts. If your governance is shaky, everything else falls over.

• Update your privacy notices: make clear that you’ll use soft opt-in and explain how supporters can opt out.
• Write your Legitimate Interest Assessments (LIAs): document your reasoning and keep them on file. They’re your evidence if challenged.
• Refresh your policies: make sure consent, opt-out and suppression are aligned across teams and platforms.

2. Fix Data Capture at the Source

Soft opt-in only works if you collect and handle data properly.

• Review every form — donation pages, event sign-ups, downloads. Each must include a clear opt-out option.
• Test the flow — does a supporter’s opt-out actually travel into your CRM and suppress them from comms? Don’t assume. Prove it.
• Flag the route in — know whether each record came in via explicit consent or soft opt-in. You’ll need that clarity later for segmentation.

3. Get Your Systems Ready

If your tech can’t support this, your compliance and supporter journeys both suffer.

• CRM readiness: can you flag soft opt-in supporters separately from consented ones?
• Suppression lists: check your opt-outs are watertight across every channel — no one should get contacted once they’ve said no.
• Integration: connect registration forms, fundraising pages and comms tools in real time. Manual uploads won’t cut it.

4. Build Journeys That Respect Momentum

This is where soft opt-in moves from box-ticking to fundraising opportunity.

• Immediate welcome: send thanks and next steps the moment someone registers or donates.
• Multi-channel flows: use email, SMS, WhatsApp or Messenger to meet people where they are.
• Segmentation: a donor, a challenge participant and a newsletter reader need different follow-ups. Treat them accordingly.

5. Train Your Teams

Everyone needs to understand what soft opt-in means in practice.

• Fundraising and comms teams: explain the rules clearly, so no one misuses the data.
• Data teams: make sure they know how to tag, track and report on soft opt-in supporters.
• Governance: agree who owns what. Avoid grey areas where things slip through the cracks.

6. Test, Learn and Adapt

No one gets it perfect first time. Build learning into your rollout.

• Pilot campaigns: start small, test messaging and timing before scaling.
• Split tests: compare explicit consent vs. soft opt-in journeys, or try different first-touch messages.
• Measure outcomes: income, activation rates, retention, and supporter satisfaction — not just open rates.

7. Keep Supporters Front and Centre

The golden rule: just because the law says you can contact someone doesn’t mean you should.

• Focus on relevance, respect and value in every message.
• Make opting out easy — and treat that choice with integrity.
• Remember: trust is harder to rebuild than income.

The Bottom Line

Soft opt-in is a chance to rebuild momentum with supporters. But it’s also a test of whether we can use new freedoms responsibly.

The charities that succeed won’t be the ones that shout loudest. They’ll be the ones that prepare well, join up their systems, and design journeys that feel timely, relevant and human.

This checklist is your starting point. In the next blog, we’ll cover the how — the ways Social Sync can help you not just comply, but turn soft opt-in into lasting growth.

Click here to read all Social Sync blog posts.

By David Boorman, Head of Growth @ Social Sync

Check out the Social Sync RIA Member profile here  .