GDPR, Charities & Preference Management - Interesting Times!

It is clear that the new General Data Protection Regulation from the European Parliament will fundamentally change the way that all businesses market to and communicate with consumers and this of course applies to the charity sector.Privacy legislation will change data marketing in the UK forever. And that’s probably not a bad thing! Consumers need to control their data and its usage and the fastMAP research shows that consumers who feel they are given this control will respond well to the charity.The IOF’s Code of Fundraising Practice has already been strengthened to give donors more control and protect vulnerable people, and the forthcoming legislative changes will require ‘unambiguous’ consent to contact supporters.It is our view that charities who are not prepared for the changes will be at a major competitive disadvantage, unable to effectively communicate with their supporters and will see resulting reductions in income.Those charities who plan for the change and adjust their current approach to permissions/preference collection & management will see increased retention, improved giving and LifeTime Value increases. This change needs to be based on moving away from a few standard lines of copy added to every communication. The future winners will be the charities who have the ability to test and roll-out different permission statements to different supporter segments, by channel and by product. Effectively, permissions gathering will become like other aspects of direct marketing – requiring A/B testing, segmentation and analyses to determine the best opt-in rates.The fastMAP research has clearly shown that consumers are willing to opt-in to charitable communications, however the method and the wording has a major impact, as does the demographic profile of the individual. Eg, the research highlights that over 55 year olds need to be comfortable that their data will be safe, not shared and they will not be over-communicated to. In comparison, a younger demographic are more interested in what they get (offers & rewards) and are less concerned about over-communication. So common sense suggests that the wording and approach should differ between these segments.The research also highlights differences between channel (eg email, telephone, mail, inserts, face to face, etc) and product (eg raffle, regular giving, cash gifts, legacies, etc). Charities therefore need infrastructure and processes to manage a multi-dimensional matrix, comprising CHANNEL by PRODUCT by DEMOGRAPHIC. They need to be able to test different messaging and creative approaches and roll out the most effective approach. And all this needs doing outside of the legacy infrastructure – because current systems will not contain the functionality required in the future.Welcome to The Preference Centre! Our solution will integrate with your existing legacy systems to manage conflicting permissions, enable split cell testing, reporting and analysis. The simple interface ensures that your preference collection & management is as effective as possible, whilst fully complying with all legislation and best practice.Contact Us!Contact us on 0330 808 9390 or email james.squires@kudos-data.com for further details on how Kudos can help you improve your bottom line through innovative data-based solutions.