Do I need to change anything in my SMS marketing under GDPR?

Not if you've been following SMS marketing best practices :)

The General Data Protection Regulation doesn't say much - if at all - about SMS messaging. This means you just need to ensure that:

  • all contacts gave you their prior express consent to receive your texts (ideally using a double opt-in form)
  • your contacts were clearly told prior to subscription what and how often you'd text them
  • your SMS messages display your business as the sender and allow any contact to easily opt out
  • your internal data handling complies with GDPR (if you keep all your contacts in E-goi, compliance is a given!)


 

I haven't got specific permission from my customers to send them SMS (my consent is for emails only). Can I text them still?

Sure! If your contacts consented to receive messages from you by providing their email address and mobile number, you can message them using whatever channel you fancy. Nothing in GDPR states otherwise.


 

How can I allow my contacts to easily unsubscribe from my texts?

Easy-peasy! You can:

- Use our Smart SMS messages (they cost the same as a standard SMS) and enter "!remove" (no quotes) as the landing page link. Be sure to add something like this at the end of your text: "To STOP, go to:". Your Smart SMS will then append a shortlink right after your STOP text - people need only to tap the link to unsubscribe instantly.

- If your Smart SMS already has its own landing page, add an unsubscribe link inside that page. Just enter "!remove" (no quotes) as the link URL and label it something like "Unsubscribe" or "Stop receiving these messages".

- If you'd rather go for a good ol' SMS, you can end your message text with "To STOP go to: !remove". E-goi will turn the "!remove" code into a short 1-click opt-out link.


 

My SMS contacts are single opt-in, which means I may not have full, express permission to text them. What should I do?

Don't worry! If they've been on-board with you for so long (eg. they're your customers), that's good enough. It's always nice to use a double opt-in form so you get express permission from new customers, but you don't need to ask old contacts to re-confirm their subscription!

Instead you can simply send a reassuring Smart SMS to your contacts stating you abide by GDPR fully. We've got a handy template to sort you out! Just create a Smart SMS off E-goi's templates and choose the one named "GDPR".