Like many people, odds are you probably set a New Year’s resolution at the turn of 2018. But have you kept up with it? If not, then don’t feel bad: only two-thirds of people maintain their New Year’s resolutions after two weeks.
If you’re in that one-third of people who have decided there are better ways to spend your time than sweating at the gym, consider revising your resolution to something a little more fun than eating healthy: email compliance!
We know it can be easy to overlook email compliance, especially when there are so many other aspects of your email program that demand constant attention. But while you’re working to bring your email program into 2018, why not work on bringing your email compliance up to speed too? After all, it is the law.
Here are a few compliance resolutions we promise are much easier to keep than the fitness resolutions you’ve already abandoned.
Stay on top of your email list scrubbing.
If your resolution to stay organized is already crumbling under the weight of your clutter, try cleaning up in your email program instead!
List scrubbing can improve your deliverability by ensuring bounces and unengaged subscribers don’t affect your inbox placement. It’s also important for marketers with affiliate email programs, who must take extra precautions to make sure they’re not emailing users who have previously opted out of their communication.
A renewed commitment to email list hygiene can do wonders for the health of your email marketing program. At least that’s one thing that will be healthier!
Make better use of your suppression lists.
As any email marketer knows, suppression lists prevent you from emailing your opt-outs by keeping a record of your unsubscribes. This keeps your email program CAN-SPAM compliant, but if you’re only using suppression files to house your unsubscribes, you’re not using them to their fullest potential.
When email marketers team up with other brands for email campaigns, suppression files can empower marketers to send smarter email campaigns. For instance, using suppression lists to exclude current customers protects the brands involved by ensuring those customers don’t see certain discounts. Just make sure you share suppression data securely!
Be a better affiliate email partner.
Did you resolve to be a better friend this year? It’s a common New Year’s resolution. While you’re working on your real-life partnerships, why not try bolstering your email marketing partnerships? For those who do affiliate email marketing or regularly execute email co-marketing campaigns, it helps if everyone looks out for each other.
How can you improve your email partnerships? For one, make sure your suppression list management solution has a way for you to monitor your email partners. By monitoring unsubscribes and keeping track of how often email partners download suppression files, you can prevent poor partner behavior from hurting your email program. And if you’re not using global suppression list management, doing so can make email compliance easier for both you and your partners. It’s what a good friend would do.
Prepare your email program for GDPR.
It’s here: 2018 is the year the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) goes into effect. Come May 25, any email marketer who sends so much as a single message to anyone in the European Union will need to comply with GDPR. In particular, that means you can’t send email to anyone who hasn’t provided “informed and unambiguous consent” through a “clear, affirmative act.”
Email marketers can prepare for GDPR by making sure their email capture forms are GDPR-compliant (no pre-checked boxes!). When you’ve got your capture widgets in check, next work on implementing a preference center to give subscribers control of the communication they receive. These aren’t the only things you have to do to comply with GDPR, but it’s a start. After all, if you have users in the EU, this is one resolution you can’t afford not to keep.
Seriously, those fines are no joke.
Make 2018 the year of email compliance.
Committing to email compliance might not be the most popular New Year’s resolution, but hey, at least you don’t have to get to a crowded gym to work on it. Good luck and happy 2018!
