A waiting visitor always knows where they stand. The tracking link, the lobby TV and email are free, included and never need a pack; WhatsApp is an optional prepaid extra on top. Text messages are not open in any country yet.
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Three channels
Every waiting visitor gets, at minimum, their tracking linkThe always-free link a visitor gets when they join. It opens their tracking page. and your lobby TV. If the visitor chose WhatsApp updates, or gave an email address (with their consent), turnda can also send a WhatsApp or email nudge at the key moments.
Each visit has exactly one of those extras. WhatsApp is the visitor's own choice on the tracking page (Get WhatsApp updates, then Send in WhatsApp). Typing a mobile number on the join page does not turn it on by itself. An email address typed in the Email box gets email.
How the extra channel is chosen
| What they gave you | What they get |
|---|---|
| They tapped Get WhatsApp updates and pressed Send in WhatsApp | WhatsApp updates (when they can be sent), plus the tracking link and lobby TV |
| An email address | Email updates, plus the tracking link and lobby TV |
| Neither (a mobile number typed on the join page does not turn WhatsApp on by itself) | Just the tracking link and lobby TV |
The ones that never fail
The tracking link and lobby TV are free and unconditional — they work whatever your message switches say. A visitor is never left guessing just because a message didn't send.
The best-effort extras
| Costs you | A prepaid pack of messages — optional, up to a monthly limit you choose | Nothing extra |
|---|---|---|
| Needs | The visitor to choose WhatsApp updates | Nothing extra — reaches someone who has never messaged you |
| Monthly limit | The monthly limit you choose, counted in packs | A monthly allowance that depends on your package |
| Can it quietly fail | No — if you are out of messages or at your limit it isn’t sent, and nothing is charged (only “almost your turn” has an email backup, if the visitor left an email) | Yes — it can land in spam or bounce |
| Turn off per line | ✓ | ✓ |
Turning a channel off for one line
Visitor updates and email are switched per line, not just per account, in Line settings → Messages & timing. Both are on to begin with.
| In Line settings → Messages & timing | What happens |
|---|---|
| Visitor updates on this line | Off stops this line offering WhatsApp updates (and text updates, once a country is open) — one switch for both, whichever your business uses. For example, a quick counter where people wait two minutes. |
| Use email on this line | Off stops this line asking for an email address and stops every email for this line, including appointment confirmations and reminders. It is the same switch as on the Email page. |
They are per line because one location's lines don't all want the same thing — a walk-in counter that turns tables in four minutes has no use for a message that arrives after the visitor is served, while an appointment line does.
| What the screen says | When |
|---|---|
| Visitor updates and email are both off — visitors only get the free tracking link. | On the settings screen, when you turn both channels off. |
Messages that are no longer true are not sent
Each queued message is checked just before it goes. If the visitor has since been served, left, cancelled or moved, the message “you are nearly up” is not sent. A “you are nearly up”, tracking-link, transfer or next-stop message that is still waiting an hour after it was queued is dropped quietly, and any other message after a day — for example after a long outage. Nothing is charged for a message that is dropped.
Related: The lobby TV