The LGPD (General Law of Data Protection), sanctioned on August 14, 2018, came into force on September 18, 2020 and will have an impact on companies in different sectors, including marketing, which uses data as the main source of analysis to understand the effectiveness of strategies traced.
For the law to come into effect, it was necessary for the Federal Government to create a regulatory body – the ANPD (National Data Protection Agency) –, which took place on August 27, 2020, when the Senate approved the Provisional Measure that dealt with the creation of the ANPD and transformed it into Conversion Bill 34/2020, sanctioned on September 17, 2020 by the President of the Republic.
But before we talk about how the LGPD will change the work of marketing professionals and how you can organize your processes in digital actions, it is important to know what the LGPD is and what changes it brings. In a simple and summarized way, the General Data Protection Law establishes rules for collecting, storing, processing and sharing data.
From now on, companies are required to request prior authorization to use the data to be provided. In other words, it gives people greater control over the use of their data and punishment for companies that fail to comply with the law.
However, there is still time to comply with the sanctions provided for by law, which range from a warning to the imposition of a fine of up to R$50 million or 2% of your annual revenue. The law will come into effect on August 1st of next year. Therefore, keep an eye out and comply with the LGPD to avoid being warned or fined.
Why will the LGPD change the way digital marketing is done?
The LGPD provides for ten legal hypotheses for the use and processing of data. Among them, we highlight two that will be important for marketing: providing consent and legitimate interest – we will explain each of them in another article.
Furthermore, the law also addresses 10 principles that must be followed by companies in relation to data processing and that can impact marketing actions. Are they:
- Adequacy;
- Need;
- Transparency;
- Free access;
- Data quality;
- Safety;
- Prevention;
- Responsibility and accountability;
- Non-discrimination;
- Goal.
The digital marketer needs to be very clear that, when capturing a lead, placing it on a segmentation list and nurturing it with content, for example, he is dealing directly with third-party data and the way in which this data will be treated will will undergo changes.
This does not mean that you or your company will no longer be able to contact your potential customers – on the contrary, you will just have to follow new rules for acquiring and processing the data provided.
Therefore, landing pages and forms for obtaining consent, email marketing, sponsored ads for generating leads, as well as other digital marketing actions and strategies need to be adapted to the LGPD.
Some tips for adapting marketing to the LGPD:
The first of these is that your lead base needs to have a legal basis. In other words, you need to be authorized to process the personal data of the leads you have in your database, whether by consent or legitimate interest. Processing means: collection, access, use and storage, among other operations carried out with data. And how do you know which legal basis to use in marketing actions?
There is no right answer. This will depend on your scenario, as each company has a different reality and needs – and understanding this is essential to comply with the law. However, it is important to understand what legal bases exist, the differences between them and in which cases it is possible to use them.
Let's see, when a person enters their data and, in the form, also agrees to receive promotional information from a certain company, for example. Not only has she clearly and unequivocally consented to her data being used, but she also agrees to be notified about company promotions.
Another important tip is regarding the use of outbound marketing to prospect customers. While the inbound marketing requires creating mechanisms and strategies to attract potential customers, in outbound the customer profile is identified and then a more generalized approach begins. And why rethink the use of outbound?
Well, a common practice used by some companies is the purchase of contact lists, which are composed of raw data and derived data. Such practice is incompatible with the LGPD, not complying with the principle of purpose, which requires the processing of data to be specified, nor the need for consent, which must be informed and specified by the data subject.
However, you do not need to stop using the outbound, but it is important to do more detailed research about the companies that sell these lists. This is a way to legally ensure that the list contains contacts who have opted in to receive communications that are of interest to them.
It seems simple, but it requires care, because with the LGPD if you buy a list without permission or the permission is not suitable for your company, not only will your supplier have problems, but you will also be held responsible.
And how to start?
As previously stated, the General Data Protection Law is already in force and companies have a relatively short period of time – almost 1 year – to adapt to the new rules and adapt their marketing processes to the law.
To begin with, the ideal is to create an action plan that meets the minimum requirements for compliance with the LGPD, and this goes beyond an email saying that the privacy policy has been updated. It is important that when informing its base about these changes, the company deals with data protection terms and privacy terms with transparency, in addition to making it clear that its leads have the right to withdraw their consent at any time and how to do so that.
With the LGPD, not wanting to receive certain communication/content from your company or leaving your contact base should be as easy as it was to provide consent to be part of it.
Finally, get rid of the thought that legislation is negative for your business. On the contrary, the LGPD can be very positive, as it will require a change in thinking on how to collect, process, store and use this data and makes it possible to design more efficient and personalized strategies for your company.
References
- General Law of Data Protection
- Digital Results
- Counsel
The purpose of this article is merely informative. We do not provide legal advice and are not responsible for actions that may be taken in relation to the LGPD.
