How to stay compliant with anti-spam legislation
As privacy and data conversations are top-of-mind for all companies (not just tech), anti-spam legislation has become a trying topic of discussion as businesses race to catch-up with tightening regulations in this touchy tech-enabled topic. Companies who neglect the importance of anti-spam in their early stages are finding themselves fumbling over compliance nightmares. Email marketing is a goldmine of business but can have detrimental outcomes and consequences if done incorrectly. From the initial moment your business begins collecting emails, whether for customer profiles, email subscriptions, or stakeholder engagement, you should have a tight grip on your regional legislations and compliance for email communications.
As the world continues to rapidly digitize, it’s important to prioritize anti-spam knowledge as communicators. Especially in Canada, tightening regulations are making email marketers and business owners pay attention. When it comes to the Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation, otherwise known as CASL, individuals and businesses are required to obtain consent from their customers before sending them commercial electronic messages, such as emails or texts. As a business (sender), you need to have proof of this consent.
CASL provides a roadmap for businesses to follow to stay compliant, including rules and regulations about how to receive consent and maintain compliance throughout your sender relationship.
Consent is necessary to send emails and can be addressed in two different ways. CASL divides consent into either express consent or implied consent. Expressed consent is when the recipient verbally or in writing agrees to receive a commercial electronic message from you, and there is no time limit unless the recipient withdraws their consent. Implied consent is when the sender has an existing business relationship with the recipient within the last two years.
Consent can be received in a few different ways, if you (as the sender) are able to track or retain their expressed consent for proof when needed. Some suggestions for obtaining consent are a subscriber form on your website, an opt-in checkbox on a form that includes an email address (cannot be checked by default), etc.
The consequences of not being anti-spam compliant can and will disrupt your business, and potentially shut you down entirely. Email marketing platforms have the right to suspend accounts and investigate activity at any point in time, typically enacted when email campaigns have a high percentage of spam complaints, bounces, unsubscribes, or small open rates. Accounts can be permanently terminated if found to be out of compliance, ridding the account owner or company of their hard-earned communications channel and database.
There are certain practices in the industry that will set you up for compliance success. If you prioritize CASL compliance with each step of your communications, you will mitigate your chances of running into trouble. Here are some of the best practices for maintaining the highest standard of anti-spam communications:
Make sure that there is an unsubscribe link in every email you send.
Add opt-in checkboxes everywhere you ask for emails i.e. webinar sign-ups, profile creation, incentives, etc.
Create a double opt-in system for email addresses who are manually subscribing. This eliminates potential scam emails, which will increase your engagement rates since you are maintaining an active (and real) customer base in your subscription list.
Read and understand applicable anti-spam requirements for each email marketing platform you use (including your website host if you are collecting emails through multiple channels).
Double check your work – make sure that you are following the guidelines of your own region.
If your business is outside of Canada, we advise that you consult your regional legislation for the countries that you operate in. Canada’s legislation is well developed and can likely provide a healthy roadmap for what to expect but knowing your compliance expectations well (and checking up on them often as they change) will keep you out of trouble. Should you have any question on email campaigns, email us at happyinvestors@irlabs.ca.
