GDPR: HOW IT IS GOING TO AFFECT THE MOTORSPORT INDUSTRY?
GDPR: HOW IT IS GOING TO AFFECT THE MOTORSPORT INDUSTRY?
We didn’t know or we forgot it was going to happen. Now it’s here: as from the 25th of May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation, GDPR, comes into force, complementing the existing Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations, PECR, which directly affects marketing.
If you are still woefully unprepared for the implementation of GDPR, this is certainly time to act fast.
IMPLICATIONS FOR MOTORSPORT BUSINESS AND MARKETING
First of all, are you targeting individual users or corporate users?
• If your marketing is directed towards individual users (that’s the fans and supporters, the motorsport public, the consumer), PECR says that your email, text and phone activities must comply with two lawful bases, either Consent or Legitimate Interests – as defined by GDPR.Legitimate Interest applies when there is a clear supplier/client relationship and the processing of personal data is “necessary” for the pursuit of your commercial or business objectives. So, your marketing is OK if your clients get what they can plausibly expect or you are contractually engaged to supply.Otherwise, if you want to reach your old and new public, what matters for marketing purposes is Consent.
• If you are B2B, the rules on Consent may not apply if you email or text generic corporate addresses a limited company, a limited liability partnership (LLP) or a government body; but Consent will still apply to B2B marketing:
– if you are dealing with traders and non-LLP partnerships, as they are considered individual users; and
– if you have the name and number of a business contact on file, or their email address identifies them personally by name.
Last year, Honda Motors was fined £13,000 because in breach of PECR. From 25 May, organisations that market without proper consent face a fine of up to €20 million or four per cent of their annual global turnover – whichever is higher.
• Use your legitimate interest and consenting clients, supporters and fans to bring in new consenting individual users. Analyse their data to identify trends, behaviours and interests. Consider quizzes, merchandise, tickets.
• Use social media to segment the trends and interests and reach more potential users and followers – and make sure your website is ready to sign them in and get their consent.
• Is your web content old and stale? Time to be thoughtful and creative and publish fresh, relevant and compelling content: you will engage the visitors and nudge them to sign in for your newsletter. And remember: better content is better ranking too.
• Speed up your web pages: motor racing images and videos are a must, but sloppy design can slow down your pages to a crawl – and visitors to hang around.
• Had you forgotten the print media? Time to look at your budget and see what you can do with paper.
• Be very, very wary of list sellers who say that everybody has consented. If anything goes wrong, you are the one in the firing line.
Whether you have a team and you want to reach out to supporters and sponsors, or you sell online, or you organise motorsport events, you are racing not only to comply with GDPR and PECR, but also to get closer, personal (with consent) and more effective with your market.
Reference
GUIDE TO THE GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATION (GDPR) | ICO
DIRECT MARKETING GUIDANCE – ICO