There are a new set of regulations that just went into effect that could potentially have a big impact on your marketing email list. On May 25, 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) became enforceable, with stiff fines for non-compliance.
The thing about this regulation is that it’s not grandfathered. If you can’t show that you have explicit consent from your existing GDPR-covered subscribers, then you can’t legally email them anymore. For anyone using email marketing lists, this means that you could lose a lot of subscribers.
It’s time to get your list compliant then – it’s not too late! In Episode 126, I talk about my automated system for getting permission from your existing subscribers and new sign-ups:
- An overview of GDPR as it applies to email marketing
- What constitutes “explicit consent” under GDPR?
- How to set up your subscribe forms to be compliant
- How to get your existing list to a level of compliance
- How to minimize the number of subscribers that you lose
- How to use automation to get explicit opt-ins so you can keep single opt-in
- Make it easy for lost subscribers to re-subscribe
Listen to the episode here or in your favorite pod player.
Show Notes
What is GDPR? There has been a lot written about the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), but here are a couple resources that I’ll point you too:
- The official GDPR information portal: https://www.gdpreu.org
- A good overview of the parameters of consent: Top 10 Operational Impacts of the GDPR: Part 3 – Consent
In my automation, here are the groups/tags that I use:
- GDPR – EU Resident (or Unknown) – triggers email sequence
- GDPR – Asked for Permission – confirms that they started sequence
- GDPR – Granted Permission – clicked Email permission box
- GDPR – Did Not Grant Permission – did not open / did not click
If you would like my templates and a more detailed outline of my automated system, contact me directly. If I get enough interest, I can lay this all out in a blog post.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer, and none of this (episode nor show notes) is to be construed as legal advice. My aim is to give you a practical way to be GDPR-compliant but not have to lose all of your subscribers.
Also, I have a lot more on email marketing strategy in my online course called CreateBiz: Content Marketing for Creatives. There are dedicated lessons in Units 3 and 4, and integrated throughout Unit 6.
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I offer a bunch of free help with content marketing in my podcast and blog for small business owners of all types, including writers, musicians, and other creatives. If you are able, fuel my efforts with a cup of coffee!
I also offer inexpensive help in my online course, and private one-on-one training too.
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