Every day, you get bombarded with emails. Your inbox fills up and before you can sort through the last ten or so, another ten appear. What’s worse is when you receive emails that you didn’t opt in to receive. Some call these emails spam. Why? Because the business owners that sent those emails took it upon themselves to add you to their email list, without your permission. Often times, you may find no unsubscribe button at the bottom of the email.
As business owners, you need to be mindful of situations like the one above. Not only is receiving such promotional emails irritating, but sending them is also illegal. According to the Federal Trade Commission, businesses must abide by the rules of the CAN-SPAM Act, which establishes guidelines for all email being sent for commercial advertising or promotion. Below are several of the criteria the Federal Trade Commission highlights:
- Don’t use false or misleading header information.
- Don’t use deceptive subject lines.
- Identify the message as an ad.
- Tell recipients where you’re located.
- Tell recipients how to opt out of receiving future email from you.
- Honor opt-out requests promptly.
Business owners should take care to learn these guidelines. If they don’t, they can be subject to penalties of up to or over $40,000 per email.
How do you avoid falling into the trap of sending illegal emails? The best practice is to use an email marketing program like Constant Contact or Mailchimp. The emails you send through these programs automatically come with an unsubscribe feature. Such programs, therefore, make it easy to stay in compliance. Dot Marketing also offers email marketing services if you don’t want to manage emails on your own.
If you would like more information about the CAN-SPAM Act, follow the link below. Contact Dot Marketing if you are interested in learning more about our email marketing services.
With over 20 years experience in different roles in marketing and advertising he has worked with customers in almost every industry to help them generate exposure and convert that into quality leads to grow their business. His goals range from supporting the success of small businesses through creativity, and effective marketing, and to continue to enjoy life and push the boundaries of what the mind and body are capable of.