Need to know about data privacy in B2B segment

by David Jones Digital Marketor

With changing times and technology, the B2B industry has a wide range of changes happening right now and even more so in the near future. Although changes' are accepted by the B2B market, the traditional techniques and methodologies will not change so fast.

However, one of those unchanging concerns in the sector would always be B2B data protection.

The changing dynamics of data in B2B space

Sales in the B2B sector are mainly focused on cold calling and cold email. But EU citizens are protected by GDPR, General Data Protection Regulation of 25 May 2018. Protecting the privacy and personal data of EU citizens.

In the B2B sector, personal data is the key to reaching your target audience and therefore the sales team is strongly influenced by this. In large organizations that use outbound sales to grow, B2B data is used every day. And therefore the large amount of data needs B2B data protection.

Including both cold calling and cold email, restricted privacy and electronic communications regulation do not require direct marketing. Both the regulations must have complied with your B2B sales and marketing. As a result, GDPR can not replace the PECR for EU citizens. However, both GDPR and PECR come under privacy plans.

But if you are dealing with B2B sales and marketing through cold calling and cold emailing in Canada, then you need to be familiar with the CAN-SPAM & CASL.

You can still use the B2B sales and marketing practices of cold calling and cold emails that are GDPR compliant, considering the following points.

Who do you contact?

If you do not contact someone from the EU, you do not have to worry about the GDPR. Just worry about the CAN-SPAM and CASL will suffice.

But when contacting anyone from the EU, you need to take care of GDPR and make sure you are compliant. Note that this applies even if the company is not in the EU. And this is primarily for the purpose of business data protection.

How do you source the B2B data?

Because you can use the data collection in B2B sales, it is important how you source the data. That when collecting data for B2B use, complying with data privacy is of the utmost necessity.

If you collect data for your own purpose, you must ensure that the process used to collect the data is GDPR compliant and that you place the data source with all security measures.

If you receive the data from a third party as an external source, make sure that the B2B data exchange is compliant with GDPR. There are many B2B data services that offer you the required data, but obtaining a data privacy compliance check is your responsibility.

Why Data Privacy is Important in B2B Marketplace

Privacy and data protection are essential in B2B. You are already dealing with a lot of data that is self-generated. And effective data management and data retrieval are the essential things you already have to deal with in B2B.

Therefore, you need to be more careful about customer privacy and security of customer data. All companies that handle B2B marketing data are required to comply with privacy laws and regulations according to the regions in which you operate.

Legitimate interest

Legitimate interest is the term you should be familiar with if you know enough about the GDPR. This term is generally referred to as the consent of someone to process data because it falls within the legitimate interest of the company. Companies can use this as a reason for processing the data in the following conditions:

A clear advantage for their companies is evident by the shared data.

The privacy of the individual is kept to a minimum.

The expectation of the company can be reasonable about sharing the data for this purpose.

It is essential to keep track of someone's data when using legitimate interests to process it. You must also keep their personal information in case you have asked for consent.

8 Golden rules for consent and legal interest These are:

A clear and accessible Privacy Policy must be checked.
If people want to opt-out, then provide clear opportunities for them.
Respect your opt-outs, make sure you remove them from your mailing lists.
The content you submit should be relevant to where people have signed up. And that your content complies with all legal and ethical standards.
Email not too often.
Vulnerable persons should not be targeted.
If you intend to do something new, check once and for all if it fits into any legal and ethical boundaries.
Data retained must be recorded and must be justified if necessary.

There are of course some differences when it comes to business data and personal data when dealing with big data. But it is always considered a best practice to treat all the data you have with the same awareness and care. In case of doubt, you should actively consent to the person before adding them to the mailing list or even before saving data. You may be asked for this information, then be prepared, and you should have a process to clear this data as well if necessary.

It is important that you are careful about the privacy of people and sensitive about the use of their personal data. However, you should also be aware of data privacy policies at all times.

New and future law for data compliance

With the EU setting the GDPR for data compliance, every other country wants to set standards and follow the same.

California

CCPA, the California Consumer Privacy Act, will come into effect in the U.S. state of California, on January 1, 2020. Any non-profit entity doing business in California that meets one of the following conditions must comply with the CCPA satisfy:

Gross revenue greater than $ 25 million

Buy, receive, sell or share personal information from more than 50,000 customers, households, or devices for commercial purposes every year

By selling customers' personal information, they derive 50% or more of their annual revenue.

If other companies are controlled or covered by you

As a common brand is shared, such as name, service brand, as a trademark with intended company.

Similar to GDPR, CCPA requires companies to identify the personal information of their customers, as well as the reason why they purchased the information. They must provide the unsubscribe link for the communications service and also delete the personal data if the customer so requests.

CCPA handles the B2B marketing activity, although until 2021 B2B companies will not have to comply with any part of the act. CCPA imposed the maximum penalty of $ 7,500 per violation if it is found that an international violation has occurred.

Maine and Texas

Since CCPA is applied, other states have been seen to enforce their customer data privacy laws. In Maine, a new law regulates what broadband providers can do with their consumers' data, including browser history.

At the same time, Texas is enacting a law requiring businesses to notify their residents if they have a security breach that could lead to the theft of personal information. GDPR also has a similar provision.

Brazil

LGPD in Brazil was activated in August 2020. The new law applies to the companies that have the data of the citizens of Brazil, whether they have a physical presence in Brazil or not. LGPD governs the same way as GDPR, but the law does not apply to the B2B companies.

It is a good example of how countries across the board are tightening their data privacy policies to maintain data security.