Email Marketing

Legal issues

Email marketing is governed by law on data protection, privacy and e-commerce, but this shouldn't cause you any problems if you plan your campaign carefully. For more information on data protection laws visit the Information Commissioner's website where they have further information on privacy laws or you can go to the DTI website to read more about e-commerce laws (PDF).

• The Data Protection Act regulates how you build and manage your customer database. You need to make sure you're also complying with the law when sending emails to people who aren't already customers.
• Don't reveal recipients' details on any emails - this is a breach of data-protection law. Use your email software to create a mailing group that sends a blind carbon copy (bcc) to each recipient.
• Under privacy regulations, senders of email marketing messages must not conceal their identity.
• Under e-commerce regulations, marketing emails must include certain information about your business, including its full name, contact details and a clear indication of prices if you refer to them.
• There must also be a valid address for people to opt out of receiving emails from you.
• Make sure emails sent without the recipient's permission can be clearly identified as an unsolicited commercial email before opening.
• You cannot send unsolicited marketing messages by email to individual subscribers unless you have the recipient's prior consent. There are exemptions if the email address was collected in the course or a sale or sale negotiation or if the recipient has already expressed an interest in "similar" items and also chose not to opt out when the address was originally collected. "Individual subscribers" include residential subscribers, sole traders and unincorporated partnerships in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but not companies or individuals within companies.
• E-commerce regulations require you to make all commercial email clearly identifiable as such, either in the header or within the text of the email.

Respect people's preferences

Some people choose not to receive sales or marketing by email and have registered with the Direct Marketing Association's email preference service. Check you don't send marketing email to anyone who has registered. It isn't a legal requirement, but it's strongly recommended.

Online selling rules

When sending sales messages by email, the rules covering distance selling and online trading will also apply. For more information, see the Business Link guide to distance selling and online trading.