The new AVG (General Data Protection Regulation) legislation has now been in force for almost four months. This has caused a lot of stress and headaches for many entrepreneurs. Many companies and organisations are still running into numerous issues. Even in the field of e-mail marketing and deploying a newsletter, there are question marks for many entrepreneurs about what is and is not allowed .
In this blog, you will read how to deal with newsletter opt-ins for potential customers. What should you pay attention to? What is allowed and what shouldn't you do? Read on quickly to avoid mistakes when collecting personal data.
What is personal data?
According to the General Data Protection Regulation and the personal data authority is personal data Any information about an identified or identifiable person. Thus, information that is directly about someone or can be traced back to a person falls under personal data. According to the AVG, data of deceased persons is not personal data.
Looking at the explanation of the personal data authority, e-mail addresses can also be classified as personal data. However, the e-mail address must belong to a specific person or be under the control of a specific person. Both consumer and business e-mail addresses can therefore be personal data Are.
Collecting e-mail addresses for a newsletter
An important part of email marketing is collecting e-mail addresses. But how do you get email addresses to email people? According to the AVG, you need a basis for that. The legislation has six bases. The main ones for being allowed to mail people are consent, agreement and legitimate interest.
Consent and agreement
You are allowed to keep customer data if they have given their consent. This is of course necessary to communicate with your clients and carry out orders. Make sure the consent you obtain must be free, specific, informed and unambiguous.
Legitimate interest
A legitimate interest could be business interest or marketing interest. So this includes email marketing and opt-ins for newsletters.
Using e-mail addresses for e-mail marketing
Persoonsgegevens mogen alleen ingezet worden voor het doel waarvoor je de gegevens hebt verkregen. Wanneer je nieuwsbriefabonnees verzamelt met de grondslag toestemming, dan moet je voor elk doel toestemming vragen. Ben je van plan om meerdere verschillende nieuwsbrieven te sturen? Dan zal je voor elke nieuwsbrief toestemming moeten krijgen.
Het versturen van e-books is een van de vele effectieve manieren om e-mailadressen te verzamelen en website bezoekers aan te trekken. Heb je een e-mailadres gekregen om een e-book te kunnen sturen? Dan mag je dit mailadres alleen gebruiken om de e-book naar de aanvrager te verzenden. Het is niet toegestaan om zonder expliciete toestemming van de aanvrager ook nieuwsbrieven te versturen. Bovendien moet je transparant zijn over het verzamelen, gebruiken, beveiligen en wissen van persoonsgegevens. Volgens de AVG moet je over meer dan 11 zaken informatie geven. Deze informatie moet je verschaffen nog voor iemand zijn persoonsgegevens aan je geeft. Of anders op hetzelfde moment dat iemand zijn gegevens geeft. Dit kan je doen door het opstellen van een privacyverklaring.
Is a double opt-in mandatory?
With double opt-in, the owner of the personal data gives Double consent to receive newsletters, for example. Under the AVG, double opt-in is not mandatory, but as mentioned earlier, consent must be free, specific, informed and unambiguous.
The risk of a one-off opt-in, is that people could sign up others for a newsletter. The new legislation establishes that consent must be provable. With a single opt-in, you will never be sure who entered the e-mail address. With a double opt-in, you don't have this problem.
A clear Opt-out button
To fully comply with the legislation, it is also super important that you ensure simple opt-out for newsletter subscribers. Opt-out means that you give newsletter subscribers the opportunity to unsubscribe from a newsletter. You should display this option in every newsletter.
Data minimisation
When someone unsubscribes, you no longer need that person's personal data for the purpose for which you obtained the data. The AVG forces organisations to minimise data. This means that you should only keep data that you actually need in the future. It is therefore mandatory under the AVG to delete data when someone unsubscribes as a newsletter subscriber.
Monkey Vision Tip: Think about why you keep certain personal data and record this in a document. This ensures that you can justify the legitimate interest to the personal data authority.
Read more valuable blogs like this one? Or are you looking for inspiration and tips to grow your online channels? Then read the blog 'Successful online - Social Media'.
