Have you updated your email list? If not, you may have inadvertently annoyed some of your clients by not fulfilling your obligation to meet the new anti-spam laws, and contributed to what is a growing list of complaints.
According to Manon Bombardier, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (CRTC) chief compliance and enforcement officer, more than 12,000 complaints have been filed since the new law took effect July 1.
“We have received a number of complaints, and the numbers will keep going up for sure,” says Bombardier, “but really for us the positive message is Canadians are seeing the importance of the legislation and they are reporting (spam) to the CRTC as the mechanism allows them to do.”
In Ontario, the Insurance Brokers Association held an anti-spam workshop for its brokers in the spring, and launched a tool called ‘Connect’ that included an email marketing component.
“This tool offers all of the elements needed to effectively communicate with your clients via email while following all of new laws,” Brett Boadway, director of broker relations and communications with the
IBAO told Insurance Business. “This is standard to the email marketing software, and would protect brokers.”
Hundreds of reports continue to be submitted daily at http://fightspam.gc.ca, and Bombardier says investigators are now looking into whether companies have violated the law.
However, she does predicate that by saying from has been observed in social media, “the reaction seems to be quite positive.”
The new law requires that businesses get written or oral consent before they send emails or other digital messages to consumers. Companies must also clearly identify themselves in each message and allow consumers to unsubscribe from digital mailings.
Those companies violating the law could face financial penalties of up to $10-million per violation, while individuals could be fined up to $1-million per infraction.
