Put a link that starts a chat by request: anyone who opens it asks to talk, you accept the people you want to hear from, and you can pause it when the event is over or you are busy. A bio, a name tag or the last slide of a talk is seen by everyone in the room, and a photo of it outlasts the event, so it needs an address you can switch off. A phone number cannot be switched off.
Where people see your address
- Your bio on a social or professional profile
- A name tag or badge at a conference or a meetup
- The last slide of a talk or a workshop
- A card you hand to people you meet while travelling
The options, compared
| Option | Who can reach you | How to switch it off | What it reveals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phone number | Anyone who sees it | Only by changing the number | Often your name and photo in messaging apps |
| Email address | Anyone who sees it | Only by changing the address | The address itself, which draws spam |
| Messenger ID | Only people on that app | Depends on the app | Your profile on that app |
| FadeTalk personal link | Anyone, as a request you accept | Pause it | Your 5-character ID, which is in the link, and your profile photo if you set one |
What a shared address should do
- Let you switch it off when the event is over, without changing anything else
- Ask nothing of the sender: no install, no sign-up
- Reveal no phone number or email address
How the personal link works
Anyone not connected to you who opens your personal link, or enters your ID, sends a request, and the chat opens when you accept. Guests do this from their browser with a display name. You can decline a request, or decline and block. Pausing the link stops new requests. Resetting your ID retires the ID and its link altogether; a reset also burns every link and removes every connection, and is allowed once every 30 days.
How to set it up
- Open the Links tab. Your personal link is the card at the top.
- Tap Copy link and paste it into your bio.
- Tap the QR button to show its code, and put the code on your name tag or on the last slide of your talk.
- Put a short label beside it, such as "Say hello" or "Questions after the talk".
- Accept or decline requests as they arrive.
- Tap Pause when the event is over or you are busy, and Resume when you are ready again.
What the person reaching out needs is not your number but the confidence that a reply will come. For one person you have just met, a single-use link that expires, or that you burn, fits better. When the whole event needs a group, see how to set up an event group chat without collecting phone numbers.