THE IMPACT OF THE ANTI-SPAM LAW ON YOUR DIGITAL MARKETING (C-28)

On July 1, 2014 Bill C-28, the so-called anti-spam law came into effect in Canada. It protects recipients of spam by ensuring that businesses compete in international markets. The law concerns all electronic means (emails, instant messaging, SMS, social networks) to promote or market an organization, product or service.

There are two types of consent:

- First, express consent, which involves the presence of evidence of acceptance to be retained. This includes verbal acceptance, electronic proof, paper proof and "double opt-in". This consent is the most effective way. It is a link that appears in an e-mail and requires a click to confirm the registration.
- On the other hand, it is possible to demonstrate consent through a business relationship. This is called implied consent. To be valid, the business relationship must be one of the following: 

• Contract (24 months)
• Purchase made (24 months)
• Private relationship (in progress)
• Request for information (6 months)
• Business card 
• A publicly posted email related to your domaine

As you can see, the goal is to move from implied consent to explicit consent.

To begin with, the subject line of the email must explicitly state the content of the message. It is now mandatory to clearly identify oneself within the email. In addition, the newsletter must contain a link allowing recipients to unsubscribe. Once the unsubscribe link is clicked, the company will have ten (10) business days to remove the recipient from its list.

This law went into effect on July 1, 2014. It is now possible to be penalized for its non-compliance. The amount of the penalty can be high. Indeed, it can go up to 10 million dollars per violation. Today, we note that many companies are not aware of this law, or know very little about it. In fact, a study by the AMR (the Relationship Marketing Association) revealed that less than 6% of the companies questioned answered their questionnaire correctly. However, 71% of those questioned said they were familiar with Bill C-28. Find on the Canadian goverment website all the necessary information regarding this law. Read all the news about spam in Canada.

The AMR study also shows that many firms have not changed their practices. Indeed, only 10% of them have adapted their email marketing. The AMR reveals that about 9% of companies have stopped marketing by email for fear of sanctions.

In addition to acting as your web marketing manager, Dubuc Marketing can help and advise you in your email marketing strategy. Do not hesitate to contact us at (450) 638-8989 for all your questions and schedule an appointment.