And how does it affect my marketing activities?
Opt-out mechanisms for consumers
For companies engaged in direct marketing activities, the opt-out mechanism is a known and growing complicating element. The Attorney General’s decision in the Sephora Case has resulted in the Global Privacy Control increasingly becoming a mechanism that businesses must respect on their websites. The National Do Not Call Registry is a mechanism for consumers to opt out of unsolicited telephone marketing calls against which telephone marketing lists must be verified.
The National Do Not Mail List allows consumers to opt out of direct mail marketing, but it does not have the same reach as the previous two mechanisms that are mandated by laws and regulatory authorities.
Regulation
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) makes abiding by the Global Privacy Control (GPC) required by business operating in California that meet qualifying criteria. Consumers can choose to add the GPC into their browser and opt out of all sharing or selling of their personal information in one click. In the August Sephora case, the Attorney General ruled that Sephora needed to process opt-out requests received from the Global Privacy Control.
The National Do Not Call Registry is maintained by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the United States’ main consumer protection agency. Consumers can choose to opt out of unsolicited calls excluding charity or political solicitations. According to the associated Telemarketing Sales Rule’s definition, telemarketers must remove from their lists for unsolicited telemarketing calls any phone numbers listed in the Registry.
Private organizations
For direct mail marketing, there is no US state or federal law requiring an opt-out mechanism, and neither is there a law or government body that creates or operates a Do Not Mail List. In this case, the list is managed by the Data & Marketing Association.
The Data & Marketing Association, or DMA, previously the Direct Marketing Association, is part of the Association of National Advertisers (ANA). Since this change was made to the organization in 2019, the members of the DMA have become members of the ANA. As part of the ANA, companies can purchase an optional service called DMAChoice, which requires them to comply with the National Do Not Mail List. These companies sign up for DMAChoice to increase customer trust and spread marketing insight while limiting the overuse of personal information.
Compliance
Compliance with the Do Not Mail List would be similar to the Do Not Call Registry, although the list of organizations who must comply will be much smaller.
With the Do Not Call Registry, telemarketers must synchronize their calling lists with the most updated version of the registry at least every 31 days. Companies who pay a fee and provide identification information are permitted to check just a few entries at a time; all others will need to review the entire database.
To respect consumers who have registered to opt out and avoid inadvertent mailings to them, ANA members who purchase DMAChoice must regularly verify their mailing lists against the Do Not Mail List. Updating every 31 days is not required by law, but continued membership may be on the line for members of this service who do not follow the list.
If you have other questions about the use of personal information for direct marketing or need help setting your cookies and tracking technologies to comply with the Global Privacy Control, our privacy experts would be happy to help. Call us at 888-470-1528 or email info@privacyref.com