Scott,

Unlike the Direct Marketing Association (which condones unsolicited non fraudulent Can Spam compliant email, or spam), the Canadian Marketing Association takes a different approach.

The most recent version of the CMA's email marketing guidelines read as follows:

"E4.1.2 e-Mail Purpose: Organizations must identify the purpose for which an individual's e-mail address is being requested prior to or at the time the e-mail address is collected.

The e-mail address that has been collected can be used only for those purposes identified.

E4.1.3 e-Mail Consent: Marketers shall not send e-mail marketing communications without the express consent of the recipient, except where there is an existing business relationship.

Existing Business Relationship
In cases where a consumer has provided his or her e-mail address to an organization, the organization has implied consent to e-mail the consumer. Notwithstanding this requirement, marketers shall not send e-mail to consumers who have indicated they do not wish to receive further e-mail marketing communications from that marketer.

Disclosing e-Mail Addresses to a Third Party
An organization shall not disclose a consumer's e-mail address to a third party without the express consent of the consumer."

For details on these new guidelines, use this.

Please note these guidelines do not have force of law.

However, the guidelines do represent a standard for best practices.

(These specific guidelines go into force on April 1, 2004.)

In essence, under these guidelines, if you want to send email to previous customers, at the time of collecting the customer's email address, you will want to have indicated you are collecting the person's email address for the purpose of [insert here the specific purpose].

I appreciate it is unlikely you had any notice on your site at the time you collected your customer's email address.

To minimize the issues, you will want to send out a verification notice to your customers first, asking each customer to confirm his or her willingness to receive further commercial messages from you.

Something like:

Subject line: A new service from [insert web site name]

Dear [insert name]

I trust this note finds you well and in good health.

Sometime ago, you purchased [insert nature of purchase] from our store at [insert website address].

We have put together a special service for the benefit of customers.

[insert benefits]

To receive access to this service, simply use the following:

[insert link to verify willingness to receive email]

Looking forward to being of continued service.

Kind regards,

[insert name]

[insert sig file]

------------------------

If you do not wish to receive further notices about the availability of this special service in the future, please use the following:

[opt-out link]

------------------------

(I add, readers will want to tailor the verification notice to their own specific requirements and may want to review the notice with a knowledgeable advisor.)

For those who reside in the United States, or do mailings either from, or into the US, you may find the following articles of benefit:

The Federal Regulators Are Coming To Town

- and -

The Guys And Gals In Blue Have Arrived

Trusting these comments are of assistance.

Kind regards,

John Glube
Toronto, Canada

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