Can an employee stop messages but still take the survey?

Yes. An employee can stop messages from Retain and still take the survey.

If an employee doesn't want to be contacted, they can opt out by replying STOP to a text or unsubscribing from an email. This stops Retain's invites and reminders, but it doesn't remove their access. They can still open any active survey from their profile at any time, using their profile access card or link. So an employee can turn off the messages and still take part, for example when a manager lets them know a survey is open.

If they want messages from Retain again later, they can opt back in.

How it works in detail

• Opting out doesn't remove verification. A contact method that's already verified stays verified. Opting out only stops Retain from sending to it. If the employee opts back in, the opt-back-in link both re-subscribes them and re-verifies their contact info.
• Taking a survey doesn't require verification. Anyone with a valid survey link can open it and respond.
• Invitations use the employer's contact info. Retain sends invitations to the work email or phone from the employee's record, even before it's verified, as long as it hasn't been opted out. Contact info an employee adds themselves only receives messages after they verify it.
• Verified but opted out gets nothing. Every message checks opt-out status, so a verified contact method that has opted out won't receive invitations or reminders.
• The "resend my survey link" button on the employee's profile only works for a contact method that's both verified and opted in.