• by Ross Fadner , October 14, 2003

In what is perhaps the strongest push yet to establish industry standards for e-mail marketing practices, the American Association of Advertising Agencies (AAAA), the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) and the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) jointly released a set of nine guidelines on Tuesday in an effort to enhance and defend the legitimacy of e-mail as a mass marketing tool.

The joint effort underscores a determined industry commitment to distinguish and exterminate spam from the growing commercial e-marketplace. Members of the alliance said they are hopeful a firm, centralized approach led by the ad industry will achieve the desired result and perhaps even pave the way for legislation.

"There is a consensus in our industry that spam needs to be eradicated not just to protect consumers, but brands and businesses as well," said Robert H. Wientzen, president and CEO of The DMA, asserting that spam is one of the most significant threats to the future development of the Internet.

"Today's landmark announcement reflects our shared belief that stamping out spam requires a multi-pronged approach," added O. Burtch Drake, president and CEO of the AAAA. "In addition to technological innovations and much-needed federal legislation, we are asking advertising agencies to abide by a stringent set of self-regulatory practices for legitimate, responsible, and consumer-friendly businesses."

Bob Liodice, president and CEO of the ANA, noted that the proliferation of spam and reckless commercial e-mail marketing have blurred the lines of legitimacy in consumer's eyes, hurting the potential of a lucrative market.

"We are asking corporate marketers to abide by tough marketing guidelines so that consumers can easily differentiate between legitimate e-mail marketing messages and spam," he added.

The importance of federal legislation was emphasized by each organization as essential to the fight against spam. Together they are beseeching Congress to enact a single national law that clearly distinguishes legitimate e-mail marketing from spam.

"Though these are important steps, as an industry we need to go the extra mile," said Michael Mayor, CEO of NetCreations, noting that Madison Avenue's self-regulatory initiative will be followed later this week by a similar plan from the Interactive Advertising Bureau. That effort, he said, will more firmly define such terms as "unsolicited e-mail" and an "acceptable permission process."

The AAAA/ANA/DMA guidelines for e-mail marketers are as follows:

1. The subject line of an e-mail must be honest and not misleading or deceptive.

2. A valid return e-mail address and the physical address of the sender should be clearly identified. Marketers are encouraged to use their company or brand names in their domain address and prominently throughout the message.

3. An e-mail should clearly identify the sender and the subject matter at the beginning of the e-mail.

4. All commercial e-mail (except for billing purposes) must provide consumers with a clear and conspicuous electronic option to be removed from lists for future e-mail messages from the sender. The removal process must be easy to find and easy to use.

5. If a company sending commercial e-mail has multiple distinct brands or affiliates, notice and opt-out should be provided based on the likely perspective of the average consumer. Each separate brand or affiliate, as the consumer is likely to perceive it, must offer notice and a process for removal from marketing lists in all commercial e-mails (except for billing purposes).

6. Marketers should not acquire e-mail addresses surreptitiously through automated mechanisms (such as robots or spiders) without the consumer/customer's informed consent. This includes a prohibition on dictionary attacks or other mechanisms for fabricating e-mail addresses without providing notice and choice to the consumer.

7. "Remove" means "Remove." The electronic remove feature must be reliable, functional, and prompt.

8. E-mail lists must not be sold or provided to unrelated third parties unless the owner of the list has provided notice and the ability to be removed from such transfer to each e-mail address on the list. Related third parties include other brands/subsidiaries within the same parent company as well as outside affinity partners as a reasonable consumer is likely to perceive them.

9. A commercial e-mail should contain the sender's privacy policy, either within the body of the e-mail or via a link.