Assumptions
It should never be used to market products to them
without their permission. This is similar to saying to shoppers in a
traditional store that they are free to browse without fear of being
bombarded with direct mail as a result.
If you assume a customer's personal data has value to
the customer, then in order to obtain their detailed personal
information, they should be presented with a value exchange
proposition.
Shoppers are most concerned about their information
being passed to third parties who will then use the information to
bombard them with offers they don't want.
Even if a customer has agreed to share their personal
information, they still want to know how it will be used and who will
be using it.
Eventually some customer profiles will be inaccurate
representations of the customer's shopping habits and preferences.
A customer that has opted into a list may later decide
they no longer want to be on the list.
Elements of a privacy policy:
Tell customers how carefully their information is
protected. Let them know what information is being collected about
them.
Demonstrate to customers their personal information is
of value. e.g. Offering frequent shopper points which accumulate and
allow the customer to buy merchandise at a discount, or offering free
shipping to registered customers.
Define what type of third parties will have access to
personal information. Restrict how marketing partners use customer
information to send promotions.
One way to achieve this is make partner offers available
to your customers without sharing their personal data by sending the
offers to them directly. eRetailers protect customer's privacy while
allowing them to select appropriate offers. The process will regulate
itself because retailers do not want to bombard customers with offers
from other companies.
Say how the data is put to use and how it will help
provide a better service.
Allow customers the ability to view the information
gathered on them through an online representation of the data. Provide
some mechanism for customers to correct perceived inaccuracies.
Allow customers to delete personally identifiable
information from their record and replace it with a code which
identifies them as a shopper but which in no other way identifies them
as an individual.
Privacy do's and don'ts
Feedback!
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If you have someone in your organization responsible
for privacy, please ask them to review these guidelines and send in their
suggestions.
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