Are you ready for the new Danish Marketing Practices Act?
On 1 January 2022, the new Danish Marketing Practices Act came into force, introducing a new fine model for violations of the spam rules. It can quickly become expensive if you do not have proper control of how permissions are collected and managed. The fine for sending 100 emails without consent increases from DKK 10,000 to DKK 50,000. In addition, each further email costs DKK 200. So if you send 1,000 emails without valid consent, the fine will be DKK 230,000.
GDPR has now been in force for three years, but there is still a great deal of work to be done in many companies. Fluid published a blog post in 2020. At that time, only around 20% of companies in the EU, UK, and US were fully GDPR compliant. In other words, there is still plenty of room for improvement.
Technical barriers are often the biggest challenge
Companies are still challenged by technical barriers because customer data is stored across several different systems – data silos – that are not sufficiently integrated. In addition, very few sales and marketing systems are built to handle the collection and management of consent efficiently across business systems, platforms, and touchpoints. Nevertheless, consent is often managed in email platforms, CRM systems, and/or marketing automation systems.
Lead generation: New cookie legislation has increased the focus on first-party data
Another, more recent challenge is the increased focus on owning customer data from end to end, not least in connection with lead generation driven by new cookie legislation. Communication is digital, immediate, and takes place across both new and traditional channels in an omnichannel setup. This means that companies need to be able to collect, match, validate, and categorize leads and consents in real time across systems and touchpoints. This is a prerequisite for creating a fast, relevant, and personalized first contact with the customer.
Data Governance: The cause of many GDPR fines
There has also been a great deal of focus on data governance. When it comes to consent, this is largely about having a complete overview and ensuring proper documentation. Which specific consent wording was used? In which channel? At what time was the consent given? Has the customer subsequently withdrawn the consent fully or partially? Is the consent still valid? Is the wording too broad?
Another key area is data retention and deletion deadlines. When customer data is spread across different business systems, this can be difficult to manage effectively. Processes are often manual and dependent on individual employees rather than automated on the basis of defined policies and business rules. This increases the risk of mistakes and omissions.
The Danish Data Protection Agency – more inspections ahead?
In the summer of 2021, the Danish Data Protection Agency updated its guidance on consent and also launched a GDPR self-assessment with 57 questions and accompanying guidance. This followed criticism from the Danish National Audit Office in 2020, which pointed to delayed guidance and too few inspections. With the new Danish Marketing Practices Act taking effect on 1 January 2022, companies should therefore prepare for more inspections and potentially higher fines.
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We specialize in consulting and solutions for consent and preference management. We help businesses, membership organizations, and public institutions build a connected foundation for more relevant communication and stronger customer and member relationships.
Whether you want to improve customer experiences, increase conversion rates, or strengthen control over consents and profiles, we can help identify the right priorities.
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