My only concern with this is that you may still fall foul of the regulations
that prohibit your sending to "an individual subscriber" an invitation by
email to subscribe to an email service.
We can argue legality until we are blue in the face regarding corporate vs
individual subscribers, and the legal pedants will win the legalistic
argument. But the business will lose on the "Duck Test", and the PR damage
is incalculable. Just ask The Training Guild in Southampton!
Hence we advise during all our education classes and consultancy projects
that email is used with great care. For example I have a newsletter on my
website. I may not use an email to this list to invite joiners.
Tim Trent - Consultant
Direct: +44(0)1344 392644 Mobile:+44(0)7710 126618
email: [log in to unmask]
Marketing Improvement Limited, Abbey House, Grenville Place, Bracknell,
United Kingdom, RG12 1BP
http://www.marketingimprovement.com
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-----Original Message-----
From: Clementine Amawo [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Thursday, November 04, 2004 9:58 AM
To: [log in to unmask]; [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [data-protection] PR & Electronic (via email) Newsletters
Compared to the rest of you, I'm still a spring chicken in the field.
This is my answer to PR.
(Please note: Contributions and comments are and were gratefully accepted
and
acknowledged)
The Email Marketing Regs that came in Nov 2003 state quite clearly that you
cannot add someone's name to an e-mail marketing list, which includes
e-newsletters, without their prior opt-in.
The usual approach would be to email your contacts to invite them to join
the e-newsletter service. But you cannot say "you're on the list unless you
tell us you don't want to be" (ie.opt-out).
The key to the success of e-newsletters is not to impose inclusion, but to
convince people to voluntarily sign up by telling them:
how useful they'll find it,
how often they'll receive them,
and that they can opt-out at any time,
and that we have a privacy policy
etc
Another good tactic is to attach a dummy version of the newsletter to the
introductory email, so they can see what they would be signing up to,
without (strictly speaking) having sent them "unsolicited marketing". I
think it's generally considered acceptable to send the invitation to join
and one follow-up reminder. After that, you'd be on very shaky territory.
You should also bear in mind that our ISP probably has strict anti-spam
rules.
If someone receives an e-newsletter from you that they never signed up to,
they could well report it to our ISP, and you could find our Internet
service suspended.
Also, the statement -
'If you know someone who would like to receive the bulletin, or would like
your name removed from our database, please reply to this email'.
This is definitely a "Commercial Electronic Communication" as defined in
2002/58/EC, and is unsolicited.
There is no robust opt in/out statement you can use in these circumstances.
You have to use traditional methods of garnering permission but, if you do
decide to take the risk of emailing people asking if they wish to receive
this newsletter, you require a positive opt-in. I.E they must reply saying
yes.
Actually I am not sure that you have the right to contact anyone unless you
collected their details in a context whereby they knew that you would be
using this data for Marketing.
This is not mainly Data Protection, this is The Electronic Marketing
Regulations. I'm sure that you would wish to comply with the Advertising
Standards Authority's Code of Conduct.
_______________________________
Clementine Amawo
Information Management Officer (IT)
Circle 33 Housing Group
1 - 7 Corsica Street
London, N5 1JG
DL: 020 7288 4131
Email: [log in to unmask]
Web: www.circle33.org
>>> Tim Trent <[log in to unmask]> 04/11/2004 09:48:53
>>> >>>
We'd love to hear what you said to them. It would be valuable to less
experienced members of this list. And to us so called experts, too ;)
-----Original Message-----
From: This list is for those interested in Data Protection issues
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Clementine Amawo
Sent: Thursday, November 04, 2004 9:41 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [data-protection] PR & Electronic (via email) Newsletters
Thank you to all those that responded. Great advice. From the emails
received I have formulated an answer and sent to PR yesterday. Have heard
nothing from them; yet!!
Thanks again
_______________________________
Clementine Amawo
Information Management Officer (IT)
Circle 33 Housing Group
1 - 7 Corsica Street
London, N5 1JG
DL: 020 7288 4131
Email: [log in to unmask]
Web: www.circle33.org
>>> Jim Whitaker <[log in to unmask]> 02/11/2004 17:26:00 >>>
This has little legal effect in the UK but was given effect in The
Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 - Statutory Instrument
2002 No. 2013. (At
http://www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2002/20022013.htm)
Regards
Jim
----------------------------------------------
>>This is definitely a "Commercial Electronic Communication" as defined
>>in
2002/58/EC, and is unsolicited.
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