SMS Marketing and GDPR: Your Ultimate Guide in 2024

Do you know anything about SMS marketing GDPR? If not, you might face trouble.

Read the following article to learn about data protection regulations in the EU. Try to make sure that you’re complying with all the requirements of GDPR before throwing text messages to your customers.

Also, you’d better find a tool like WP SMS that adheres to GDPR regulations and supports user privacy. If you need more info about GDPR in SMS marketing, you can contact our team.

SMS Marketing GDPR Compliance

Let’s first see what exactly GDPR is and how it’s related to SMS marketing.

What Is GDPR?

GDPR, or the General Data Protection Regulation, is a data protection law in the European Union.

It was implemented on 25th May 2018 to regulate the way we can use, process, and store personal data. The focus of this law is on the personal information of all people regarding their control over their personal data.

In fact, GDPR holds companies accountable for how they collect, store, and use their customers’ personal data.

No matter if your company’s headquarters is outside the EU, you have to comply with its regulations if you want to process the personal data of EU citizens.

So if you’re collecting any data from your EU customers, you need to be careful about information like names, phone numbers, email addresses, and any other personal data.

Here are the key requirements of GDPR:

• You should process customers’ data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner.
• You can only collect the necessary data.
• Customers can ask what information your company collects.
• You have to gain explicit consent from your customers.
• Your company should maintain a Personal Data Breach Register.
• You should design mechanisms to protect data.
• Your company should conduct a (DPIA) Data Protection Impact Assessment.
• You have to ensure data protection during data transfers.
• You need to have a Data Protection Officer.
• Your employees should have security and data-handling training.

Why GDPR Is Important in SMS Marketing?

Of course, as an SMS marketing company or a small business, you have to use your customers’ names, phone numbers, and even previous purchases. So you need to comply with GDPR if you’re targeting European citizens.

Remember that non-compliance with SMS marketing GDPR can result in significant fines. In theory, you might face a fine of up to €20 million or 4% of your company’s annual global revenue.

As you see, this is a significant cost so you’d better make sure about sending SMS under GDPR regulations before embarking on the SMS marketing business.

Apart from the fine, non-compliance with personal data protection laws can dent your brand’s reputation.  

Best Practices for Ensuring GDPR Compliance in SMS Marketing

Now that you know the importance of SMS marketing GDPR compliance, let’s review the factors you have to consider for it.

Obtain Explicit Opt-In Consent from Customers

Consent is the most important factor in GDPR. As said earlier, you must get explicit opt-in consent from your audience before sending any SMS marketing messages.

Remember that signing up for a general mailing list or checking a box is not enough for GDPR compliance of your SMS campaign.

You need to make sure that customers understand they’re consenting specifically to receive SMS messages from you.

To be safe, you’d better use a double opt-in process for your SMS marketing subscription list.

In this process, after your customer gives you their phone number, you should send them a confirmation message. In the message, you have to ask them to confirm their subscription by replying “YES” or clicking a link. This way, your customer will be fully aware of the subscription process.

Notify Customers About Why They Are Receiving SMS Messages

You might think that this item is a repetition of the previous one, but it’s not. Under GDPR, getting consent is not enough. Apart from accepting receiving an SMS, customers should know why they’re receiving your messages.

So you need to include a sentence in your consent message to explain the purpose of your communications. Here is an example of a message to let recipients know why you’re sending them text messages:

‘Thank you for subscribing to our service! You’re receiving these messages to stay updated on our latest promotions, exclusive offers, and product updates. We value your privacy and you can unsubscribe at any time by replying STOP.’

In this message, you’re specifically explaining that the purpose of your messages is promotional.

Provide Simple Opt-Out Options

Apart from an opt-in process, you need to provide your audience with an easy unsubscription option. In fact, you need to include a short, understandable, and easy way in each marketing SMS you send.

Typically, companies use phrases like “Reply STOP to opt out” or “opt-out: STOP.” 

According to GDPR, you have to make opting out as easy as opting in. If customers face difficulty in unsubscribing, your business might be at risk of GDPR non-compliance.

Maintain a Transparent and Robust Privacy Policy

Transparency in your data privacy policy is an essential part of GDPR. You need to clarify your privacy policy and outline how you collect, store, and use customers’ data.

Also, you need to get easy access to this policy so that your customers can read it. For example, you can provide a link in your SMS messages to redirect customers to your website’s privacy policy page.

Your privacy policy should include the following details:

• What data you’re collecting (for example, phone numbers, previous purchases, etc.)
• Why you’re collecting this data.
• How you will use the data.
• How long you will store the data.
• How customers can withdraw their consent.

Ensure Data Security

GDPR asks companies to take the necessary measures to protect customers’ data. For example, when you’re running an SMS marketing campaign, you have to make sure that the systems you use to store and manage customer phone numbers are secure and GDPR-compliant. WP SMS is one of the best SMS marketing platforms in this regard. It’s a WordPress plugin that ensures your customers’ data including phone numbers are safe.

Apart from using a safe platform, you have to regularly review your data security measures to make sure they meet current standards.

Minimize Data Storage

GDPR insists on the principle of “data minimization,” which means you should only collect and store the data you absolutely need.

For example, in an SMS marketing campaign, you just need the phone number, the customer’s consent status, or their previous online purchases.

You should not store any other data that is not directly related to SMS marketing campaigns.

Common GDPR Challenges in SMS Marketing

Here are some of the GDPR challenges you need to consider when running an SMS marketing campaign.

Keeping Up with Evolving GDPR Regulations

Privacy regulations are changing regularly. So it’s essential to regularly review and update your compliance measures. This way, you’ll ensure you’re always in line with the current regulations.

Here are some examples of changes that affect GDPR in recent years:

• AI-based big data tools are a threat.
• Changes to cookie banners.
• Cross-border laws.
• Transferring data from the USA to the EU.

International Data Transfers and GDPR Compliance

As mentioned earlier, even if you’re based outside the EU but have customers in the EU, you still need to comply with GDPR.

So you have to consider complying with both regulations in your own country and the EU. Try to think of standard contractual clauses (SCCs) or work with a Data Protection Officer (DPO) to ensure compliance for international data transfers.

The Rise of Privacy-Focused Technologies and Their Impact on Marketing

People are becoming more concerned about privacy and are trying to use tools that protect their privacy.

For example, technologies like virtual phone numbers, encrypted messaging, and anonymous sign-ups can make your data collection difficult.

If you want to continue collecting data, you have to gain the trust of your customers. Of course, it takes time and effort to be able to improve your online reputation.

Tools to Manage GDPR Compliance in SMS Marketing

At the first look, GDPR compliance in SMS marketing might seem difficult. Fortunately, there are tools that help you manage your customer data and make sure about compliance.

Data Mapping and Management Tools

Tools like OneTrust or TrustArc help you operationalize data privacy and they’re designed to answer needs about privacy regulations. These tools help you keep track of customer consent and ensure that all the collected data is stored securely.

Consent Management Solutions

Consent management platforms (CMPs) help you handle customer opt-ins. You can easily manage preferences across multiple channels.

Platforms like Piwik PRO or Cookiebot help you make sure your opt-in processes are fully GDPR-compliant.

Training Resources for GDPR Awareness

Fortunately, there are good platforms and sources to ensure your entire team is aware of GDPR requirements. For example, GDPR.eu or IAPP (International Association of Privacy Professionals) offer courses to help your team stay compliant while handling customer SMS data.

Best SMS Marketing Platforms with GDPR Compliance

Last but not least, let’s see what SMS marketing tools are best in terms of GDPR compliance.

Choosing the right SMS marketing platform that prioritizes GDPR compliance is essential for safeguarding customer data while running effective campaigns.

Here are some of the best options available, including WP SMS and its top competitors:

1. WP SMS

WP SMS is a powerful and GDPR-compliant SMS marketing platform. It’s specifically designed for WordPress websites and will easily be integrated with your site as a plugin.

It’s a safe SMS plugin that will use your website’s data and subscription list to send bulk text messages.

It supports more than 300 SMS gateways and you can be sure about data security when working with WP SMS.

2. SimpleTexting

It’s a strong competitor to WP SMS. SimpleTexting is a user-friendly SMS marketing platform that provides your business with the tools to manage contact lists, send bulk SMS, and track campaign performance.

SimpleTexting can easily handle opt-in and opt-out processes and ensures compliance with privacy regulations.

3. ClickSend

ClickSend is also a famous SMS marketing platform that ensures GDPR compliance. It has an emphasis on data security and provides tools to manage opt-ins, store data securely, and handle customer information. Using this platform, you can perform marketing on other channels like email and voice, making it a good choice for larger businesses.

Final Thoughts

SMS marketing is a great method to reach out to potential customers and keep them updated about your business. However, it has some challenges like GDPR compliance that you need to take into account. 

Before starting your SMS marketing campaign, make sure that you’re complying with all GDPR requirements. 

You have to use SMS platforms that are GDPR-compliant. WP SMS provides you with an easy-to-use WordPress plugin and ensures GDPR compliance while offering lots of features. If you want more info on GDPR in SMS marketing, you can contact us right now.

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