Blog

In the world of email marketing and email marketers, SPAM is definitely a four letter word. It’s one that is bandied about freely by the web community and even used with some degree of tongue in cheek by those familiar with web parlance. I’ve often accused my close friends of spamming me with unsolicited email in the past.

But, from a legal standpoint, what exactly is classed as spam? Thankfully, the anti-spam laws in Australia are quite strict and marketers must adhere to the conditions provided in the 2003 Spam Act when sending digital marketing material. The act covers more than just email (MMS, SMS and IM are also included) but since we love email at Outsourced EDM, you can just assume we’re discussing that medium.

An email message is said to be spam if it doesn’t meet any of the following three conditions:

• It was sent with your consent
• It contains accurate information about the person or organisation that authorised the sending of the message
• It contains an unsubscribe option.

The notion of consent becomes an interesting discussion point for marketers, as there are two types of consent – express and inferred consent. That word, ‘inferred’ consent is usually enough to make any marketer giddy with excitement and begin dreaming up any number of ways to get an inferred consent argument up. However, despite the somewhat vague sounding name, inferred consent is clearly defined in the industry guidelines. Read more about understanding consent here.

The regulator, ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority), has shown it’s willingness to act in this space as well. Check out some of the year’s media releases to see that they are active across all digital communication mediums.

That’s where Outsourced EDM can help, all of our email templates are written with the understanding of these guidelines and principles.  For example, did you know that simply adding a reminder to the users in your email footer about where they subscribed to the mailing list, can cut the number of complaints raised against your campaign? It’s creative tips like these that allow Outsourced EDM to ensure your business in can get your message to the customer with the minimal amount of complaints.