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Were you prepared for GDPR?
Learning From GDPR
By the time you read this, GDPR will have launched.
Digital Marketing will have changed forever.
Unless you have been hiding under a rock, you will know what we are talking about.
But, what can a startup learn from the new regulations? Let’s go through some of the key lessons we learned.
We prepared in plenty of time for the GDPR deadline.
Yet, we were about to find out that not all companies took the changes as seriously as we did.
But first, a quick overview of the GDPR itself.
GDPR: A Quick Recap
The General Data Protection Regulations are new laws governing the use and storage of personal data. They came into effect on the 25th May 2018 and govern data usage across all companies dealing with EU data.
The fines for non compliance are huge, totalling €20 million or 4% of a business’ global annual turnover.
There are now six legal bases for processing data:
- Consent
- Performance of a Contract
- Public Duty
- Legal Obligation
- Protection of Vital Interests
- Legitimate Interests
In brief, companies must be much stricter about the way they handle and process data. Each time a company processes personal data, they must justify the data processing under one of the six criteria.
If using consent as the legal basis for data processing, companies will need to obtain double opt-in consent.
This consent must be demonstrable. The company needs to show how they gained the consent, what it is for and when it was obtained.
Individuals now have full control of all their personal data. This includes the option to unsubscribe from all marketing communications at any point.
For more details on GDPR, visit the ICO website.
Preparing Ourselves for GDPR
Before we could help our clients, we had to become experts ourselves. Only after reading countless blog posts, watching webinars and becoming engrossed in the document itself were we completely comfortable.
We wanted to be confident with the information we gave our clients and contacts. Every time people asked for advice, we wanted to be able to point them in the right direction.
Becoming an expert was not important to us.
It was essential.
Making Customers Aware
According to the DMA, 81% of marketers feel ready for GDPR.
Did you feel ready for the introduction GDPR?
This conflicts with our experience as many marketers seemed to be rushing to comply at the very last minute.
We were inundated with calls and information requests in the week before the regulations came into effect. Yet, it wasn’t as if we hadn’t prepared.
We started informing our customers of the changes as soon as we could.
As a marketing agency with a large database of clients and contacts this wasn’t easy. We spoke at several events across the UK to reach as many businesses as possible.
We also held a lot of meetings and phone calls, hosted webinars, created whitepapers and researched blog posts.
Making our customers understand the complexities of the new regulations was tough. We approached each client in turn, explaining how they would be affected by the changes.
We began by sending informational emails, detailing the changes they needed to make. With each GDPR blog post and email send, we wanted to prepare our contacts for every eventuality.
We were completely honest from the outset.
GDPR would have a big impact and companies needed to be well prepared.
From an individual’s perspective it became increasingly clear that people saw GDPR as an opportunity to clean their inboxes.
Clients and contacts worried that they would not be ready in time.
The race was on.
Existing Data: Needing to Change
It wasn’t easy.
The majority of marketers relied heavily on purchased lists. They represent a quick, easy way to find an audience for your marketing message.
Purchased lists can no longer be used after GDPR
But the truth is that they are woefully ineffective most of the time. Worse, they are now outlawed under GDPR.
We champion organic list building. It drives engagement and better results. You know that people want to hear from you and are receptive to your marketing message.
However, we found that people who attended our events and seminars were reluctant to change.
- What about the number of contacts?
- Wouldn’t the change mean lots of lost revenue for businesses?
- Without purchased lists, would email marketing even exist in the future?
We explained that it didn’t matter. It was the quality, not the quantity of the list that counted. That’s what would produce results. Marketers needed to refresh their contact lists and discover new ways of signing people up.
Finding Weak Spots
In preparation for GDPR, we have presented to thousands of businesses helping them with their own processes. It became obvious that other startups were struggling.
Even with the most in depth advice, startups struggled with the scale of the new regulations.
They found a lot of weak spots where they needed help to rewrite their data protection policies.
Many companies that we have encountered brushed the new regulations under the carpet. They ignored them, promising to deal with them at a later date.
Did you ignore GDPR until the last minute?
We knew that wasn’t the right approach.
Prepare. Learn. Adapt. Deliver
Done correctly, GDPR is the perfect opportunity for marketers to improve the way they work. With some adaptations, it is a great chance to refresh marketing strategies and improve results.
Before GDPR, it was common for marketers to cut corners.
Not anymore!
It is no longer possible for marketers to get away with poor data hygiene, purchasing large contact lists and flouting the privacy of their contacts.
Many companies sent last minute GDPR opt in emails.
Recipients took to social media to exclaim about the sheer number of opt-in emails they have received.
Others have taken the opportunity to ignore all of them in an attempt to cleanse their inbox.
It is now too late to start seeking consent from your old contact list. Yet there is nothing stopping you from building your marketing list afresh.
Moving Forward From GDPR
We are ready to take advantage of the opportunity GDPR presents to marketers. We also recognise that being ready for GDPR and remaining compliant are two separate things.
Wired Plus will continue to work hard to stay on top of the regulations. A major part of this will be to continually train our team members in house and improve our training for new team members.
In the last few weeks, we learned how much it pays to be prepared. Rushing around at the last minute doesn’t give you the perspective you need to make the right decisions for your business.
Our contacts are opted in, we have cleansed our lists and refreshed our policies. Above all, we are prepared to help our clients to succeed in the post-GDPR environment.
After reading all about GDPR, why not opt-in to receive our marketing campaigns
The post What our Startup Learned From GDPR appeared first on Wired Plus Marketing Hub.
This post first appeared on Wired Plus Email Marketing Platform, please read the originial post: here
