Email Marketing - Spam Compliance

What is CAN-SPAM?

In this chapter, we will give you the history of what CAN-SPAM is and tell you what you need to do in order to achieve CAN-SPAM compliance.

In 2003, as inboxes were being flooded with unwanted email spam, the United States federal government took action with the passing of the CAN-SPAM law. CAN-SPAM stands for Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003. Essentially, the law set forth a number of requirements that need to be met in order to send commercial email to customers.

Is Your Email Spam Compliance

Once you get past all the government language, CAN-SPAM Compliance isn't that complicated. If you just follow 7 simple steps, you'll be completely safe.

Be Who You Say You Are!

You can't profess to be another site or organization just to get a client to open an email (or to dodge messages going to spam). This is a famous trap which offshore spammers use to overcome spam channels and yes it is illegal.

Don't Lie in the Subject Line

This one is easy. If your email subject line says that opening the email will give the user a daily quote of the day, then that's what needs to be in the email. Tell them that your email is an advertisement. You can do this in numerous ways, including mentioning in a little print at the base of the email. Notwithstanding, some place in your email, you have to make it clear that the email is an advertisement.

Tell recipients where you’re Located

This one is also simple. Somewhere in your email you must provide a physical postal address (street or postal box), where you can receive communications via mail.

You Have to Let People Know How to Opt-Out

You cannot (and should not) send a marketing email without letting the users know how to stop you from sending future emails to them. This is called allowing email Opt−Out off your email list. This is typically done at the bottom of the email. The only actual CAN−SPAM Compliance requirement is that it be easy for any ordinary person to recognize and read this information. Also important is the "universal unsubscribe rule".

Honor Opt-Out Requests Promptly.

When somebody requests an opt-out or unsubscribe from your email list or lists, you have up to 10 business days to remove them. When you send an email, the information or link to unsubscribe from that email must be valid for 30 days.

Monitor what others are doing on your behalf

Also make sure that you know what your affiliates are doing! Make sure that you know what anybody who sends an email on your behalf is doing! You are legally responsible for the actions of anybody you hire or authorize to send a marketing email on your behalf.

There you go... Take after these straightforward seven stages, and you will be CAN-SPAM compliant. Most outsider email stage suppliers will really ensure that any of these criteria that can be robotized, (for example, physical location, unsubscribe interfaces and uprooting unsubscribed individuals) are computerized. Then again, it's in your best interest to always review your marketing emails before they go out to make sure that they meet every criterion on the checklist!