Data and acquired consent

Perhaps you're not aware of data privacy laws and didn't think you needed to be, and maybe that's okay...until it's not. If you're a brand, a content creator, or just someone on the internet, and you come across someone sharing their email on a platform for the purpose of being contacted for an opportunity, collaboration, maybe you have a question...those are all fine reasons to use someone's email.

What is not fine is taking someone's email and signing them up for your newsletter or your affiliate platform or even an account with your product without their consent.

A brand recently reached out to me about creating a video for YouTube. I declined for a myriad of reasons but mostly just time and energy. It's been a few weeks since that email so imagine my surprise when I receive an email asking me to verify my account on the brand's affiliate platform.

This does not make me want to work with your brand now at any point in the future. I declined to partner, there was no further communication, and suddenly I'm being asked to verify my account on your platform which I did not consent to sign up for.

I might be American and US laws allow you to add people to your mailing list with a clear means of opting out, but I reside in the UK, where data consent laws are much more stringent. Mishandling someone's data and not acquiring consent before signing them up on your platform can lead to fines and possibly even further ramifications with regard to the data your company keeps.

All this to say, even if your country's laws allow you to sign people up for whatever it is you're sending, doing so is spammy and acquiring consent goes a long way in building brand trust.

And despite what some men might think, wanting consent does not make one difficult to work with. It means you’re insisting on mutual respect, the foundation of trust and integrity, which opens the doors to more enjoyable, creative and long-lasting collaborations.