How the Canadian Anti-Spam Laws affect IR communications
How the Canadian Anti-Spam Laws affect IR communications
Introduction
The Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation (or CASL for short) and their specific rules have been talked about a lot over the past few years, and many still have questions. How will CASL affect your public company, as well as your email lists? Are you staying compliant? This week’s blog breaks down the basics. For specific step-by-step directions, get a copy of our free Complete CASL Guide: how to keep compliant and grow your subscriber list.
What are the Canadian Anti-Spam Laws?
CASL is a set of laws that were passed in 2010 and went into effect in July of 2014. These laws are focused around keeping commercial messaging more truthful and less spammy. Three main government agencies are responsible for the enforcement of the laws, including the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), who will fine anyone who violates the new CASL laws. (yikes!)
What is CASL affecting?
CASL is aimed at regulating the way electronic commercial communication happens. That means sending emails, social networking messages, even text messages with a business purpose to clients, customers, or prospectives. We’re going to stick with the email laws, since that has the biggest affect on public companies. In terms of email, CASL dictates:
- The specific elements to include in each email sent for business purposes.
- Who you can and cannot continue to email based on whether or not they have given you express consent.
Get more specifics here: The Complete CASL Guide: keep compliant as you grow your subscriber list.
What are the CASL rules for public companies?
If you’re a public company reading this blog, CASL will affect you! But let’s break it down. The CASL ‘Fast Facts’ site provides an easy three question survey on the matter of compliance. If you answer ‘yes’ to any of these three questions, then yes, CASL applies to you.
- Are you using email, SMS, social media or instant messaging to send commercial or promotional information about your organization to customers, prospects and other important audiences?
- Do you install software programs on people’s computers or mobile devices?
- Do you carry out these activities in or from Canada?
Don’t worry, you have some time!
The regulatory agencies for CASL have set a three year grace period for all businesses to refine their email lists and get their subscribers compliant. So learn the steps and send ‘good with the law’ emails!
Marika Hirsch
As Blender’s Content Manager (aka ‘Resident Wordsmith’) Marika enjoys bringing readers the latest and greatest in both digital trends and IR tips. Follow along on Twitter:
