Consent13% of the exam
Consent checks, communication subscriptions and compliance duties
How Marketing Cloud Next decides who may receive a message: consent checks by channel and message type, the opted-out default, communication subscriptions, compliance setup and preference pages.
Explain consent management concepts and the role of consent in customer engagement and compliance.
~7 min read · 10 practice questions ·
What the exam expects
- Predict whether a send runs a consent check, from its channel and message type.
- Explain what happens to records that have no consent value, and to CRM-held consent.
- Model marketing choices with communication subscriptions and channel types.
- Advise on disabling consent checks, and on who stays responsible afterwards.
- Advise on channel add-ons and whether SMS consent can carry over to RCS.
- Plan the compliance setup and preference pages, including the Custom Preference Pages switch.
Key terms. Consent check: the send-time test that each recipient is opted in to the selected subscription. Communication subscription: the kind of content someone signs up for. Channel type: a marketing channel such as email, SMS or RCS. Contact point: the address or number that holds the consent. Preference page: where subscribers manage their own choices.
Key facts
Promotional email
- Detail
- Consent check runs against a selected subscription
SMS, WhatsApp, RCS
- Detail
- Consent is required for any type of message
Transactional email
- Detail
- Checks are disabled by default; editable in Setup
No consent value
- Detail
- Treated as opted out for all channels and subscriptions
CRM consent
- Detail
- Separate, and not automatically recognized
Included channel
- Detail
- Email; all others are paid add-ons
Disabling checks
- Detail
- Allowed when consent is managed elsewhere; requires affirming responsibility
Create a subscription
- Detail
- Marketing Cloud Manager or Admin; at least one channel
Create or edit a preference page
- Detail
- Marketing Cloud Manager and any CMS workspace contributor role
Set a default page
- Detail
- Marketing Cloud Admin permission set
Custom Preference Pages
- Detail
- Orgs enabled before April 2026 turn it on; the change can't be undone
Sources for this section (6)
- Consent conceptshelp.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Consent considerationshelp.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Consent settingshelp.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Create a subscriptionhelp.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Manage Preference Pageshelp.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Custom Preference Pageshelp.salesforce.com (opens in a new tab)
- Why would an edit to a live preference page not reach subscribers yet?
- When does an org need no Custom Preference Pages switch at all?
- What must a subscription with an RCS channel select before saving?
- Where can a page be edited once custom preference pages are on?
- Why is the Subscription List block still on every page you customize?
The questions are free to read. Answers with their sources and self-grading are included with the pack.
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