Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) will soon be upon us. As of July 1, any commercial electronic messages (CEMs) sent to a recipient over a Canadian-based network will be subject to strict guidelines. And if those guidelines, namely the categories of express or implied consent are not met, the Canada Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) will be able to fine individuals up to $1 million (businesses up to $10 million) for non-compliance.
For auto dealers, whose businesses rely to a great extent on communicating with their customers via CRM systems, this presents a great deal of concern. Yet it’s not all bad news. Vendors in the automotive retail space have been hard at work developing processes and tools that will not only help dealers transition into the new CASL environment, but also help ensure they continue to build and retain their database of customers once the legislation is in full force.
Waterloo, Ont-based ONE-EIGHTY Corporation has been at the forefront of developing new solutions designed to work with CASL and also providing information and training sessions to help dealers understand it. As we edge ever closer to the July 1 deadline, Canadian auto dealer interviewed Kerry Mueller, Senior Director, Operations and asked her what some of those solutions are and how dealers are able to use them in order to continue running and growing their businesses in a post-CASL world.
Kerry Mueller, Senior Director, Operations, ONE-EIGHTY CORP.
HE: When did you first become aware that CASL was going to become a reality?
KM: We first started hearing about it in 2011. At that time we began delving into CASL in earnest and keeping tabs on the legislation, in order to ensure we could be best prepared for it when it came into force.
HE: ONE-EIGHTY is recognized as being an innovator in the CRM space. When you first heard about the legislation, what was your initial response in terms of looking at concepts and solutions to help your dealer customers operate within the new rules?
KM: Our first response was to become informed ourselves. The thing with CASL is that it is very different to what has come before and the fines are big — some of the biggest ever seen — so potentially, we knew it was going to have a significant impact on the industry. We started by reading material on the Government of Canada website (which proved a good resource) alongside other material on the subject. We also sought legal counsel and discussed the legislation with our OEM partners — because everybody is really in this together. The legislation was being revised, so there was also an opportunity for businesses to provide input to the government. We wanted to make sure we were keeping abreast of these amendments and understood the final recommendations before we started making many programming changes.
HE: As we move ever closer to July 1, can you tell us about some of the changes you have made in regards to CASL?
KM: ONE-EIGHTY, like most CRMs, was originally built using the approach of a consumer opting out from receiving any electronic communication. By contrast, CASL requires the consumer to opt in, so it was important that we address that anywhere customer privacy information would be gathered or used. By February 2013, we had changed ONE-EIGHTY so the consumer would be presented with the ability to express their consent when it came to being contacted or could unsubscribe on any campaign email that was coming out of ONE-EIGHTY. This applied to all platforms, whether it was the classic site, or the My Business anywhere mobile platform. With that change, the Magnet obeys those consumer permissions, whether they are either logged by the dealership (depending on the store’s strategy) or the consumer themselves (via the ONE-EIGHTY privacy survey, a little electronic form at the bottom of their email message).
Additionally, we changed language in the Magnet so it would use the CASL “express consent” language as well as changing symbols within the ONE-EIGHTY site to make it easier for the user to see, at a glance, what the privacy preferences are for their customer. By doing so, we are trying to provide the user easy access to customer privacy information whenever they begin to contact the customer.
Additionally, at ONE-EIGHTY, we have always logged who changed the privacy preferences within the CRM whether it’s the user or the consumer via their own privacy survey. Another feature we’ve added is a time stamp so the dealer can now have the accountability of who changed what privacy settings, for which consumer and exactly when, as opposed to just having a day stamp. We’ve also made changes to the information we allow dealers to export, so if they want to export customer lists with privacy preferences and then give it to another provider to run some sort of campaign they can do that.
HE: From your own perspective, what are some of the important considerations for dealers in working with ONE-EIGHTY under CASL?
KM: Because the fines can potentially be very costly, dealers need to think about best practices and make sure they are trying to contact their customers in ways that are CASL compliant while not abusing the customer’s trust in giving their express consent to being contacted. One way to do this is to send targeted, relevant messages only to people who have given express consent, whether they are customers or prospects.
As consumers, none of us want to be bombarded by unsolicited emails and that’s really the point of CASL — to try and stop that kind of spamming. Therefore, if when sending an electronic campaign, dealers are looking to segment their database and mine it for the people who would want specific information and for whom they have consent, then in our opinion, they will do fine under CASL. It is important to stress however that this should not be seen as legal advice. We have always strongly urged dealers to get their own legal counsel regarding their own CASL compliant strategy.
HE: You’ve long been a big advocate of introducing transparency and structure to the sales process. Do you think CASL can be seen as a further contributor to this process?
KM: I think CASL was designed with good intentions. It was conceived to try and give consumers control over how much information they receive and from whom, so if we look at it from that perspective, I’d likely say yes, CASL is a catalyst to dealers developing stronger, more structured processes.
HE: As has often been the case with many other pieces of legislation, education, understanding and training are often seen as key elements to successful adoption and practices when it comes to operating within the rules. Can you tell us a little about some of the initiatives ONE-EIGHTY has put forward in that regard?
KM: On February 14, 2013 we hosted a Knowledge Hub Live event where we invited Shaun Brown, from nNovation LLP in Ottawa, to speak on the legal implications surrounding CASL. We thought it was going to be really important for everybody to be informed regarding compliance and get legal counsel. Shaun had helped consult the government on CASL and the dealers who attended really seemed to appreciate that. We are still encouraging dealers to be informed.
It is especially important since everybody is going to have their own particular strategy when it comes to being compliant with CASL. We’ve also been posting FAQs on our site with links to good information — particularly from the government. Another update on CASL was just released to our dealers on June 5. We’ve been getting more and more questions from dealers in the run up to July 1.
HE: Has the integration with ADP had an impact regarding ONE-EIGHTY’S approach to CASL?
KM: We have worked very well collaboratively with ADP on messaging material with regards to CASL and getting the word out there. ADP has been an excellent resource for advice on messaging. ONE-EIGHTY was already well down the development path when it came to incorporating changes into the system, so the integration hasn’t really impacted our strategy from that perspective.
HE: It’s often said that any potential “black cloud” often has a silver lining. What do you think is important for dealers to perhaps understand regarding CASL?
KM: I think the small, targeted campaigns that dealers should be able to do with their CRM — providing relevant information to people who want it — is going to be very much appreciated. The dealers who’ve been doing that and continue to take that approach will be the ones who will build customer loyalty and not burn any bridges. In our view that has essentially always been the objective of a good CRM, so we’re hoping that CASL will help strengthen those good practices.
For more information on ONE-EIGHTY, visit: oneeightycorp.com
