GDPR reality check: How does my business compare to others?

When the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) arrived in May this year, it signalled a new era of data privacy. Nearly four months on, how are businesses dealing with the new privacy regulation?

We looked into the challenges that businesses have faced since GDPR implementation, and have shared some of the key questions they’ve asked us below. Are they similar to those your business is experiencing?

How do I rebuild my customer and prospect data?

Nearly all businesses saw their customer databases shrink due to GDPR re-permissioning campaigns and need to rebuild them. In some cases, databases shrank by more than 80 per cent, significantly affecting marketing strategy, planning and activity.

Following a targeted data capture strategy can guarantee high-quality customer data for your business. Doing this well will remove a significant bugbear: nearly one in five marketers identify poor-quality customer data as their biggest challenge. See How to build up your customer database after GDPR for more insights on this.

How can I leverage face-to-face data capture?

In-person data collection is integral to a post-GDPR data capture strategy. Most companies we’ve spoken to are beginning to recognise the need for this sort of interpersonal data capture. Increasingly, they consider mobile data capture (speaking to customers face to face) to be as important as a web-based strategy.

The tools you use to collect information from customers make all the difference to the success of this strategy. A data capture app leverages the availability and portability of smartphones and other devices for ease of use. For more on this, see why a data collection app helps you engage with customers.

Can I trust data from a barcode scanner?

Businesses have come to us to find out how to comply with the GDPR when collecting data. In traditional environments (such as events, exhibitions and trade shows), it appears that exhibitors do not have full confidence that inherited permissions from badge scanners are sufficiently GDPR compliant.

I’d like to set the record straight – for Gather, at least. Our data capture app has integrated GDPR-compliant permission statements to help you collect, protect and guarantee customer data is safe to use for your business. Its barcode scanner feature is simple and compliant, allowing you to capture data with confidence.

How can I improve data quality?

We are seeing a shift among businesses towards data quality, rather than quantity. Particularly in the United States, the old requirements of volume are diminishing in favour of accurate, qualified and detailed information. Maintaining data consistency can be challenging, though, especially if multiple employees are adding information to a database from various locations. Recording simple details – such as a customer’s name, address and job title – in the same way is key to ensuring data integrity. A unified approach to data capture is therefore crucial.

To achieve this, ask yourself why you’re capturing data. What do you need it for? You’ll also want to consider:

• The types of data you want to capture
• The language you are collecting it in
• Where you capture it
• Whether the data collected is sufficient for its purpose
• Why a customer would give you their data

How does ePrivacy affect the GDPR?

Recently, you may have seen references to the ePrivacy Regulation. Eventually, this will replace the current ePrivacy Directive, which was implemented in the UK through the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR).

The GDPR didn’t supersede the PECR, but it did make the underlying definition of consent more stringent. ePrivacy relies solely on consent to contact potential customers. So, until the new ePrivacy Regulation is implemented, existing PECR rules continue to apply, but using the new GDPR standard of consent. See the ePrivacy Directive: What does it mean for your business? for more on this.

Why is the GDPR important?

Despite the challenges the GDPR presents, the worlds of business and politics are taking notice of its benefits. From our observations, many global businesses are adopting the GDPR as the global standard on customer data collection and permissions. Some of our clients started work last year to be ready ahead of the GDPR, and now accept it as best practice.

What’s more, other countries – and US states – plan to follow the EU’s example. Canada, for example, is looking to to align its data protection legislations with the GDPR. In June, California passed the Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 – or bill AB-375 – which will come into effect in 2020. As with the GDPR, it will require companies to disclose personal information if a consumer requests it.

This reflects a broader trend. US companies are increasingly interested in how European companies are responding to the new data protection act. Why? Because customers are international travellers. Teams working globally want to be confident that data captured in the field has the right permissions at head office. More recently, Democratic senator Mark Warner has outlined ways of improving data regulation in the US. He has suggested creating laws similar to the GDPR and even suggested parts of it be copied into US law.

A study from Swiftpage revealed that 32 per cent of UK SMEs do not anticipate being GDPR compliant by the end of 2018. If they’re not careful, the rest of the world may overtake them.

Data protection: Beyond the GDPR

If you are interested in leading the way, join Gather at Data Protection 2018: Beyond the GDPR. I will be there on the day, feel free to connect with me or visit our Gather Experts in the partners area to test our software.