Permission Marketing

Permission Marketing describes a marketing approach in which advertising messages are only sent to recipients who have actively consented to being contacted. The term was coined in 1999 by Seth Godin and stands in contrast to classic interruption marketing, which demands attention without being asked. In the German legal framework, permission marketing is mandatory for almost all electronic advertising channels.

Legal framework

In Germany, the law against unfair competition and the GDPR require active consent before any advertising by email, SMS or automated call. In practice this runs through subscription forms in which the recipient explicitly consents to being contacted, in most cases combined with a double opt in to confirm the email address. Pre ticked boxes are not allowed.

Pros and cons

Permission marketing delivers noticeably higher list quality than purchased or scraped addresses, since recipients have signalled interest. Open and click rates are higher, complaint and unsubscribe rates lower. The downside is the longer build up, since every contact has to be earned. Investment in lead magnets, landing pages and lead generation campaigns is required.

Relevance to JD Mail and JD Leads

JD Mail only allows sending to recipients with proven consent, the opt in record sits with every address inside the platform and is reliable in case of dispute. JD Leads creates these consents through co sponsoring mechanics in which sweepstake participants grant advertising permission for selected providers. Both platforms are consistently designed around permission marketing.