Marketing Messages: Ask before you send!

If you haven't been hiding inside a cave for the last half a year, you probably know what's going on. The big, scary GDPR.

We have already given this new legislation enough attention on our blog. Check our article about the inevitable changes, our GDPR vocabulary, or the one about the latest version of eWay-CRM, which is fully GDPR compliant.

Let's talk about something practical for businesses today. Sending marketing messages.

You need consent

What you need to do is message all your clients and ask for their consent. Without that, you shouldn't be sending them any marketing messages.

If you haven't read our article on how to take care of contacts and get consents, check it out right in this article.

Marketing messages sent without consent

However, there are situations in which you do not need consent. The conditions are the following:

• You will use electronic contacts of your customers, related to the sale of your product or service, the data has been gained within the performance of the contract or order. There has to be an easy option for the customer to opt- out.
• Sending business messages without consent has to be linked directly to the service or product offered within the performance of the contract. So, in case you have sold a car, you cannot offer IT services.
• Another case is sending marketing messages within business relations. For sending business messages to business companies via email or telephone, consent is not required, it is appropriate to offer the possibility to unsubscribe.
• If the form of the email is firstname.lastname@, or lastname@, then the message should always offer the possibility to unsubscribe.

All the things mentioned are really easy to accomplish with eWay-CRM 5.2.

All you need to do is Apply General Data Protection Rules (GDPR). Not sure how to? Check this article.

How do I make my marketing campaign stand out?

According to a survey done before GDPR kicked in, up to 60 % of recipients said they were planning to opt out or ask the companies for details about their data.
Pretty depressing, if you are a marketer.

So, how can we make marketing messages more interesting so that people do not opt out?

The problem with marketing messages is the same as with any kind of advertisement - there are simply too many.

One of the most common mistakes is a missing call-to-action. People sometimes find the right language to communicate with their audience, they have something exciting to tell, but they forget to mention what they actually want their customers to do. Make sure you add, for instance, a link where your product can be bought!

Also, make sure you are sending your campaign at the right time! Make a calendar and plan your marketing activities ahead to make sure they are spread among the whole year. Make sure you respect the time zone of your clients. As for the contents, it can be useful to link your messages to some of the following: discounts, a new service, an event, or for example some hints and tips!

To sum it up, if you run a business and you want to keep sending marketing messages, but still comply with GDPR, you need consent in most cases.

Do you want to know more? Read our articles or check the videos!

How to get client's consent is covered in our Academy article. If you want to know more about the GDPR topic, read an interview with our CTO Roman Stefko about the impacts of GDPR regulation on eWay-CRM development.

You can find even more details concerning GDPR in our GDPR eWay-Book. Or check our GDPR Webinar about how to keep calm and be GDPR compliant. With eWay-CRM!

Still not using eWay-CRM? Download our free trial version!