Methods to respect customer privacy

During the run up to Christmas, retail businesses want to market their products to reach as many potential buyers as possible. After all, by maximising sales throughout the months to come, Christmas is often a lifeline for business to help them trade through the quieter months of January and February which follow.

Whilst it is vital that companies should connect with consumers as much as possible, it is also important that they respect customer privacy and don’t fall short to careless ways, which could be detrimental to their business.

Respect customer privacy best practice

To achieve best practice, retail businesses can respect customer privacy by carrying out the following:

1. Access reputable customer databases – Only use customer databases whereby the customer has consented for their details to be accessed. Contacting customers without their permission can be seen as violating GDPR privacy.
2. Provide an unsubscribe on all email marketing – Unsubscribe is a legal requirement and should be added as a hyperlink at the footer of all email marketing. This means that at any chosen time, the customer can unsubscribe if they wish to longer receive information from the respective company.
3. Only store relevant information – Keep required customer data information to a minimum. Remember that the more information you collect, then the more you will have to protect – this can put a strain on networks and IT systems.
4. Regularly clean customer data – Businesses should not have to hold onto customer data for any longer than required. If customers have unsubscribed or ask to be deleted, then it is important that companies meet their obligations. Regularly check in with customers to ensure that their information is up to date and that they accept the data collection strategy proposed to them.
5. Provide a privacy policy – As a legal requirement, all UK businesses should clearly display a Privacy Policy which outlines how they intend to capture and use customer information across all platforms.

Here at WeAnswer, we take the responsibility of looking after customer data on behalf of our clients, extremely seriously. To find out more about recruiting a reputable contact centre business to take care of your customers and manage enquiries, please contact our customer services team.

Find out more:

• 5 Tips For How To Handle Consumer Privacy Concerns (forbes.com)