B2B Business Data and the Value it Gives Companies

B2B Business Data and the Value it Gives Companies

Business data is valuable in more ways than one. In the realm of B2C, the understanding of data protection and GDPR is improving but these laws also apply to B2B data too. As a company, you need to be aware of these challenges; especially if you are purchasing business data to market your company. How do you obtain and use this valuable information for marketing, but stay on the right side of the many laws and regulations governing it?

Buying B2B business data for any purpose could potentially land you in a heap of trouble that could cost you thousands in fines and loss of reputation. Working with a marketing company that specialises in acquiring and using B2B data is, therefore, a far better path to take.

Appreciating the complex natures of laws and regulations relating to acquiring, using, storing and archiving business and customer data, a specialist company can safely navigate these for you.

Any organisation that processes and holds such data must be registered with the Information Commissioners Office.

What are the rules for direct B2B business data marketing?

Direct email marketing needs to meet a set of stringent rules. But what are they?

• You can email employees of corporate bodies (limited companies, public limited companies, government departments and limited liability partnerships) without prior consent
• Employees of corporate bodies and businesses must be given the option to opt out or unsubscribe from mailing lists
• Partnership and sole traders will need to opt in as they are consumers. But unsolicited direct marketing emails are allowed if when the company collecting their address informed them it would be used in this way. There also needs to be an opt out/unsubscribe option clearly visible.

But like all marketing efforts, business mailing lists are only useful if the B2B email list is ‘zoned’. In other words, the email being sent to contacts contains information and offers that is useful and of interest to them.

Are data protection rules holding back your marketing campaigns?

A scattered approach to business email marketing will not yield the results that you want but this isn’t the main concern for many businesses: it is the rules of GDPR and data protection rules that leave them concerned as to whether they are breaking the law or not.

Business data is commercially sensitive information, as too is the growing pool of information you’ll hold on a company such as employee names and email addresses, roles and responsibilities and so on.

Navigating these rules and regulations with a specialist company with in-depth knowledge of how to manage and correctly use business and marketing data is key to success.