Spam. We all hate it: those e-mails offering ‘authentic’ designer watches or the best prices for pharmaceuticals. There should be a law about that! Well, there isn’t – in Canada, anyways. Some people may be surprised to learn that Canada has no anti-spam legislation. Yet. Last year we had an article about anti-spam legislation. So what happened? Unfortunately it died when Parliament was prorogued.

Enter Bill C-28 the Fighting Internet and Wireless Spam Act. (Pretty snappy title, eh?) If passed, this legislation would finally provide anti-spam legislation to bring us up to speed with other industrialized nations which have had it for years.

When we talk of spam, we think about pharmaceuticals, sex sites and cheap knockoffs. But spam is ANY message sent without prior explicit permission from the recipient. Even if you assume they would like to receive it. Did you buy a list? Doesn’t matter. If you didn’t get each recipient’s permission, it’s still spam.

What does Bill C-28 mean for your business or nonprofit?

There are two major components required for law-abiding e-mail marketing (and it also makes good marketing sense, too)

1. The message itself must:
   • identify the sender
     
   • include contact information for the sender
     
   • have an easy unsubscribe or opt-out option
     
2. The recipient must have consented to receiving your messages or you must have an existing business relationship with the recipient.
   

So, what does ‘an existing business relationship’ mean?

For businesses: You have conducted business within the past two years or they have been in touch with you (e.g. made an inquiry) in the past 6 months.

For nonprofits and charities: You have up to two years after: the last donation, the last time they volunteered or the date of their their membership expiry.

Bottom line: you can no longer send someone a promotional e-mail just because you have their e-mail address. That means no more sending out to the lists you bought, no more broadcast messages to fellow members of your chamber of commerce (unless you consent to receive them when you join) or scooping email addresses from a directory or prospect’s web site.

Be a responsible marketer. If you aren’t already complying with the proposed legislation, start now.

In the future, we'll tak about how you can build your list without resorting to spam tactics.

Pending legislation will align Canada's anti-spam laws with the rest of the developed world. you need to be aware of it.

Perhaps it is because of the current economic climate, but I have noticed a significant increase in unsolicited e-mail newsletters in my in box lately. These are e-newsletters from what I would have considered to be reputable businesses. In some cases I know the sender. Yet despite the source or intent, all of these messages are spam, just like those offers of a diploma, 'quality' watch or a better sex life.

A client, Micah House, a nonprofit agency serving refugees, has been struggling with ways to effectively communicate information to its volunteers and supporters about information that can change daily. Volunteers who cook and serve meals to guests needed to know how many guests to cook for. Also, there is a need to send out requests for material needs. For example, guests often need furniture or help with moving when they get their own apartment. Sending out daily e-mails was not the answer. Not only was it burdensome to the staff, but many volunteers did not check their e-mail frequently enough.

Then, one day not long ago, I was sitting in on a presentation about social media at the Association of Fundraising Professionals' one-day conference, Fundraising Day, in  Toronto. There was the solution! Twitter! The micro-blogging service just might do the trick. If you know Facebook, then think of Twitter as having just the status, or 'What's on your mind', field on a Facebook page.  It's easy to use, works on multiple platforms (web, RSS feeds, or on your cell phone) and can keep people informed quickly. Not only that, but it has the potential to communicate in new ways to the agency's existing audience and communicate to a new audience as well.