For those of you who know me you’ve gotten the message that I am passionate about customer privacy. What kind of an Email Marketer would I be if I wasn’t?

First off, if you don't have a privacy policy on your website stop reading this Email Marketing article and get one. I mean it, it is important.

If you do have a privacy policy, here are some things you will want to make sure your privacy policy covers or includes:

-How you treat Email addresses that are entrusted to you (when someone subscribes to your Email newsletter list or sends you an Email message).

-How people can take back their Email addresses and get off your list (un-subscribing).

-Your mailing address and contact Email address.

Why the mailing address and contact Email address?

It is not a law or anything but it just makes sense. Your willingness to share your postal address and some way for website and email visitors to contact you says a lot about your company. It also falls in line with the Can-Spam act (US Legislation) regarding what has to be included in Email marketing messages.

Lots of companies don't think privacy policies are important. They should. In some countries posting a privacy policy that is accessible to the public is either considered good business practice or law. Canada, for example, has specific privacy legislation. Certain types of businesses have to post privacy policies that the public can access (the best place for this is a website/Blog).

And if your home country doesn't have any privacy legislation posting a privacy

*You care about customer privacy issues (which is a hot topic in the media and in conversations about business ethics).

*You are willing to go beyond the minimum requirements of your geographic location.

*It equips your website/blog for world-wide distribution, regardless of where someone is who is partaking of your website/blog/email marketing campaigns.

If you are still reading this article and you did not heed my earlier advice to get a privacy policy, go get one now!

If you need some help, check out some privacy policies on your favorite websites. Most privacy policies are not the kind of thing you read on a Sunday afternoon while you are lounging about in your pajamas, but reading a variety of privacy policies will give you an idea of what they are all about.

About The Author

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Earn good karma, forward this article to everyone you know who has an email address.

Copyright Joan Pasay - 2005