The “4C’s” Behind Diamond-Level Digital and Mobile Marketing

Color, Cut, Clarity and Carat are the four “C’s” of diamond buying. Choice, Clarity, Control and Confidence are the four C’s of digital and mobile marketing.

No, not “confidence” as in “self-assurance” – “confidence” as in security. In this article from Entrepreneur.com,“How Not to Get Sued When You Start Mobile Marketing”, researcher Michael Becker lays out what marketers should consider when it comes to information security and customer confidence. Becker’s four major points:

1. Choice: How are you giving consumers the choice to opt-in or opt-out?
2. Transparency [Clarity]: How will you use the data collected from consumers? Have you informed them what information is gathered and how it will be used?
3. Control: Can consumers control the communications they receive? Can they opt-out when they want to? (For example, Stop notices for text messages or easy unsubscribe methods.)
4. Security [Confidence]: Have you taken the appropriate steps to secure the data collected?

We’ve been dealing with this for a while as we’ve worked within the confines of the CAN-SPAM act. We include unsubscribe links or “subscription management” forms with each email sent, as well as a way to unsubscribe by paper mail. Seems like overkill, right? Wrong. It’s a compliance issue and we (and, by extension, our clients) have to take it seriously.

Here are some ways to hit all four of those C’s in one shot:

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