Learn how SMS age gating helps alcohol businesses verify subscriber eligibility, support compliance, and responsibly connect with customers through text.
A customer visits an online liquor store and sees an offer to get 15% off by signing up for texts. They enter their phone number, but before they can opt in, they’re asked for their birth date. If they’ve reached the legal age to purchase alcohol, they can continue. If they haven’t, they’re prevented from subscribing.
That extra step is age gating. In this article, we’ll explore how age verification works, why that matters for businesses that sell alcohol, and how to incorporate age gating into a responsible SMS marketing program.
What is SMS age gating?
Age gating is a digital barrier that limits certain content to users who meet a minimum age requirement. For businesses marketing regulated products such as alcohol, it can be incorporated into an SMS signup to determine whether a customer has reached the legal age required to receive promotional messages.
Although closely related, age gating and age verification aren’t interchangeable. Age gating controls access, whereas age verification confirms whether someone meets eligibility requirements.
How age gating works
Age gating adds an age confirmation step to the SMS marketing signup process. While the exact approach varies across online platforms and verification methods, it generally follows 3 steps:
Customers enter the SMS opt-in process
First, a customer attempts to join an SMS list for an age-restricted product. In addition to providing a phone number and opting in to SMS marketing, the customer provides their date of birth.
Age verification confirms eligibility
Next, the age verification process uses the customer’s birth date to determine whether they meet applicable age restrictions.
Eligible customers join the SMS list
Customers who meet the legal age requirement can complete the signup and receive SMS messages, while ineligible individuals are prevented from becoming subscribers.
Why age gating matters for SMS marketing
Compared with most other marketing channels, SMS marketing for alcohol comes with additional restrictions. Age gating provides a safeguard that helps businesses control access to promotional content and manage compliance risks.
Reaches the right audience
Age verification helps businesses direct promotional messages to customers who are legally eligible to purchase their products, creating a more relevant audience for future SMS marketing campaigns.
Reduces compliance risks
Alcohol is included in SHAFT, which stands for sex, hate, alcohol, firearms, and tobacco—content categories prohibited or restricted by mobile carriers. Proper age gating procedures can help businesses meet applicable age restrictions and SMS requirements, supporting legal compliance and reducing the risks associated with non-compliance.
Builds customer trust
Age gating demonstrates a commitment to responsible marketing. Combined with clear consent practices and other safeguards, it shows that a business takes its responsibilities to customers seriously, helping build trust over time.
How to implement age gating for SMS marketing
Effective age gating starts with understanding the rules that apply to your business and audience. In the United States, the legal drinking age is 21, though other SMS and marketing requirements may vary by jurisdiction. Make sure your approach reflects applicable age restrictions and other rules that can impact compliance.
From there, decide how you’ll confirm eligibility. Platforms with built-in age-gating capabilities can simplify this process by automating age verification. Keep in mind that verifying someone’s age doesn’t replace SMS consent. Customers still need to opt in to receive marketing texts.
Lastly, test each signup path prior to launching. This will enable you to catch missing verification steps or other issues that could block eligible customers or allow underage individuals to subscribe.
Best practices for age gating
The best practices below make age verification straightforward for customers while helping your business stay on top of legal requirements.
Keep verification simple
Don’t add more steps or collect unnecessary data. A streamlined approach makes it easy for eligible customers to complete your SMS signup while still controlling access to restricted content.
Apply age gating consistently
Apply the same age restrictions across every path customers can take to join your SMS program. Consistency helps prevent underage users from accessing age-gated content through signup forms that don’t apply the same safeguards.
Stay on top of compliance requirements
Age verification doesn’t replace other SMS marketing requirements. Businesses must still meet applicable consent requirements before sending promotional texts and provide recipients with a way to opt out. In the US, this includes requirements under laws such as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, along with relevant industry guidance from organizations such as CTIA (originally known as the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association).
Additionally, age-restriction laws and SMS requirements can evolve, so periodically review the rules that apply to your business to help maintain compliance and avoid penalties.
Using Mailchimp for age gating
Mailchimp’s automated age gating takes the manual work out of confirming subscriber eligibility. For businesses that market alcohol, it helps apply age restrictions consistently as your audience grows.
Set up age gating for your SMS program
Select age gating when registering a new Mailchimp SMS marketing program. Mailchimp uses a contact’s date of birth and country to determine eligibility. Once that’s established, Mailchimp stores the contact’s eligibility status rather than their birth date or specific age, limiting the collection of personal information.
Confirm eligibility across signup methods
Once enabled, Mailchimp applies age gating across supported signup methods. Contacts who don’t meet applicable requirements, don’t provide the information needed to confirm eligibility, or otherwise can’t be verified aren’t subscribed to SMS marketing. This helps businesses apply the same protections across multiple customer entry points.
Build a responsible SMS marketing program
Age gating helps ensure your SMS marketing reaches the intended audience. With the right safeguards in place, your business can connect with eligible customers, support compliance, and build trust—all while keeping underage audiences protected.