GDPR and its impact on email marketing
Posted: Sat Jan 25, 2025 8:32 am
The changes brought about by the new General Data Protection Regulation
On May 25, 2018, the new General Data Protection Regulation or GDPR came into force. This has a direct impact on email marketing . And all email marketing professionals and all companies that send newsletters have had to adapt to this legal change.
The main objective of the GDPR is to give European citizens greater control over the privacy of their data and how it is used by the companies to which it is provided. Therefore, this new regulation affects both companies located in Europe and those with European clients.
It also seeks to unify existing regulations in the member states of colombia email list the European Union. We must remember that in the case of Spain, the Data Protection Act is still in force.
How can I continue doing email marketing and comply with the GDPR?
The new regulation does not prohibit the carrying out of email marketing campaigns. However, we must take a series of actions to comply with the new European legal framework and thus avoid financial penalties.
The regulation sets out different principles and obligations for companies. But how does this affect the sending of newsletters ? Let's see what new features it introduces below.
Subscription forms
When it comes to attracting new subscribers, it is common to have a subscription form. This must meet two points:
A box that the user must check to indicate that he or she accepts the privacy policy.
It must include a text that provides the user with all the necessary information. It will include who is collecting the data, for what purpose, what tools are being used to collect the data and how they are used.
These two requirements make pop-ups or pop-up windows or placing forms in the middle of a text unsuitable. The best option is at the end of a text or in a side banner on the web page.
It is also advisable to incorporate double opt-in. This means that in addition to sending us the data when you subscribe via the website, you must confirm your subscription to the newsletter by replying to the verification email. In this way, we also comply with another requirement: explicit consent.
Explicit consent
When capturing new contacts and adding them to our database, we must have the express authorization of the user. By means of this consent, the user explicitly agrees to receive our commercial communications via email.
Complying with the new GDPR requires being very transparent with our subscribers, so the texts must be very clear. This means that it must be clearly explained how the data we have collected will be processed and that it will only be used for this purpose.
Likewise, explicit consent must also be collected from subscribers prior to May 25, 2018.
Data retention
The GDPR is not very clear on this point. There are no exact measures on how data should be stored or how consent should be collected. And any data for which we do not have consent must be deleted from the database. In this way, we will comply with another point of this new regulation for data protection.
Although it may seem otherwise at first, the GDPR brings a number of advantages to companies. By complying with it, you will avoid paying high fines, you will be able to get rid of obsolete data, you will begin to truly monetize your data and you will know for sure who your real customers are.
As a result, your newsletter will bear fruit because your users will be truly interested in your communications. In this regard, at BCM Marketing we can help you make them much more effective .
On May 25, 2018, the new General Data Protection Regulation or GDPR came into force. This has a direct impact on email marketing . And all email marketing professionals and all companies that send newsletters have had to adapt to this legal change.
The main objective of the GDPR is to give European citizens greater control over the privacy of their data and how it is used by the companies to which it is provided. Therefore, this new regulation affects both companies located in Europe and those with European clients.
It also seeks to unify existing regulations in the member states of colombia email list the European Union. We must remember that in the case of Spain, the Data Protection Act is still in force.
How can I continue doing email marketing and comply with the GDPR?
The new regulation does not prohibit the carrying out of email marketing campaigns. However, we must take a series of actions to comply with the new European legal framework and thus avoid financial penalties.
The regulation sets out different principles and obligations for companies. But how does this affect the sending of newsletters ? Let's see what new features it introduces below.
Subscription forms
When it comes to attracting new subscribers, it is common to have a subscription form. This must meet two points:
A box that the user must check to indicate that he or she accepts the privacy policy.
It must include a text that provides the user with all the necessary information. It will include who is collecting the data, for what purpose, what tools are being used to collect the data and how they are used.
These two requirements make pop-ups or pop-up windows or placing forms in the middle of a text unsuitable. The best option is at the end of a text or in a side banner on the web page.
It is also advisable to incorporate double opt-in. This means that in addition to sending us the data when you subscribe via the website, you must confirm your subscription to the newsletter by replying to the verification email. In this way, we also comply with another requirement: explicit consent.
Explicit consent
When capturing new contacts and adding them to our database, we must have the express authorization of the user. By means of this consent, the user explicitly agrees to receive our commercial communications via email.
Complying with the new GDPR requires being very transparent with our subscribers, so the texts must be very clear. This means that it must be clearly explained how the data we have collected will be processed and that it will only be used for this purpose.
Likewise, explicit consent must also be collected from subscribers prior to May 25, 2018.
Data retention
The GDPR is not very clear on this point. There are no exact measures on how data should be stored or how consent should be collected. And any data for which we do not have consent must be deleted from the database. In this way, we will comply with another point of this new regulation for data protection.
Although it may seem otherwise at first, the GDPR brings a number of advantages to companies. By complying with it, you will avoid paying high fines, you will be able to get rid of obsolete data, you will begin to truly monetize your data and you will know for sure who your real customers are.
As a result, your newsletter will bear fruit because your users will be truly interested in your communications. In this regard, at BCM Marketing we can help you make them much more effective .