The Importance of Opting Out

Have you ever been added to a companies mailing list and wondered "how on earth did I get here? Maybe you purchased once or did a free trial, now the promotional emails won't stop. Excessive emailing or contacting of any kind is called spam, and in a lot of countries around the world, it is illegal for companies to spam clients, purchase contacts and continue to market to them when you have opted out.

In Australia, we have the Spam Act 2003 to protect consumers and hold businesses to account when it comes to marketing. Businesses found in breach of the Spam Act 2003 can be issued warnings, fines and even go to court to unveil their punishment for not complying with the countries spam laws.

Often, small businesses with no training in the space are unaware of the rules surrounding the Spam Act 2003 and how they could effectively be in breach. Having an understanding of what is allowed and what breaches the act could be the difference between your business remaining reputable and trusted or having disgruntled clients and paying hefty fines.

In this blog, we are going to unpack the repercussions that can impact businesses who don't adhere to the Spam Act, especially here in Australia. As well as provide you with some helpful tips and tricks to ensure you aren't being a pesky sales person who potential clients don't want to deal with!

Why was the spam act created?

As mentioned above, the Spam Act 2003 was created to protect consumers and hold businesses accountable for their marketing behaviour. Back in the early 2000's, unsolicied commercial emails were growing at an alarming rate worldwide. Australian's were opening their inbox and more than half of the contents was spam! This was a real issue for Aussie consumers and something our Government needed to take control of. And that's exactly what they did with the implementation of the Spam Act 2003, governed by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

The Government wanted to instill the trust back into consumers that the communication they received from businesses was legitimate, honest and accurate so they could effectively sell their products or services without the communication channels being tarnished by spam. Australia was an early adopter of Spam laws for business, recognising the National issue and wanting to take action.

You can read the Spam Act 2003 legislation here.

What are the consequences of not following the act?

There are many consequences of not adhereing to the Spam Act. Outside of fines or legal proceedings, the most damaging is your brands reputation. Being known as the company who makes it hard to unsubscribe, constantly contacts you when you have asked to be taken off mailing lists, a random business who's somehow obtained your details is actually damaging your reputation. For small businesses, this can be your make or break. Big corporations are known for pushing the boundaries, however that doesn't make them exempt from following the legislation.

Let's look at some real-life examples:
Commonwealth Bank of Australia was fined $3.55million due to sending over 170 million messages to customers with no way to unsubscribe.

TabCorp Holdings Limited was fined $4million for sending more than 5,700 SMS messages with no way to unsubscribe.

You can learn more about these stories direct from AMCA here:

Commonwealth Bank Story

TabCorp Story

These large organisations were able to absorb these fines but if these scenarios were to be applied to a small business, it would crush them. That is why it's so important to ensure your business is following the rules.

Fun Fact - Using a Third Party or Agency for your marketing does NOT remove the legal responsibility of the business. It is still the client's responsibility to ensure the information is accurate, the data base is maintained and only customers who meet the parameters are marketed to. Ultimately, it is your responsibility to manage whoever works on behalf of your brand.

How you can protect your business

There are many different things you can do to ensure your business is protected and following the Spam Act. Some simple ways to do this include:

Providing clear messaging about how you store and use people's data when they interact with you
Have your privacy policy easily accessible on your website and on forms
Keep records of people consenting to your T&C's
Process unsubscribes immediately. Ideally set up an automation where people are opted out in your system and removed from marketing lists
Use reputable emailing platforms that work with your database
Include clear and easy to use unsubscribe buttons in every outbound form of communication
Don't purchase email lists for direct marketing

The Bottom Line

An unsubscribe link isn't an invitation to leave but a sign that your business respects their choices and communication preferences. The people remained subscribed to your communications are people who genuinely want to hear from you, making your campaigns more valuable, targeted and likely to convert.

Whether you build marketing on trust rather than interruption, compliance becomes more than a legal requirement but a competitive advantage. Those businesses who respect their audience build long-term loyalty.

If you are concerned your communication might need some support, JST Marketing can assist. Complete our form and one of our team members will be in contact to book a session.

The Importance of opting out

if you don't provide a way out, you are harming your business

Why was the spam act created?

What are the consequences of not following the act?

How you can protect your business

The Bottom Line

Services

CONTACT US

The Importance of opting out

if you don't provide a way out, you are harming your business

Why was the spam act created?

What are the consequences of not following the act?

How you can protect your business

The Bottom Line

Services

CONTACT US

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