What’s more, research shows that reviews can directly influence a shopper’s decision to purchase when displayed alongside product information — but, it’s not enough to simply have a lot of reviews. Consumers (and Google’s local SEO algorithm) look for specific elements within a review to aid them in their assessment of a local business. 

The Average Star Rating 

It should come as no surprise that a high star rating is one of the top three most important review factors for local consumers. 

The average star rating a local business has on a review platform is an important metric, as it speaks to the quality of the product or service being offered. 

Average ratings tend to appear very prominently at the top of a business profile, meaning it could be all too easy for a consumer to make a snap judgement about the quality of your local business if you have a low average rating. As review averages are based on a crowdsourced metric, a low average rating can paint a very bad picture of your business. 

A higher average rating immediately suggests that the consumer won’t be disappointed in their choice. It suggests that the business offers a great customer experience and high-quality products or services. 

Correspondingly, too many negative experiences result in a low average star rating, which indicates that the business perhaps doesn’t prioritize customer care or delivering value. Naturally, if you have a much lower star rating than a rival, a local consumer will question whether they should use your business and risk a bad experience or opt for the higher-rated alternative. Our research confirms this, with just 3% of consumers saying they would consider using a business that has a two-star or lower average review rating. 

Overall Review Sentiment: Positive or Negative

Much like the average star rating, the overall sentiment of a review (whether positive or negative) is an important factor that speaks to the quality of the consumer experience. 

Many review platforms provide a snippet of text from the review alongside the star rating, so having a positive overall sentiment can reinforce the impact of the star rating. 75% of consumers say a positive overall sentiment matters to them when reading a review, so this is an important factor to keep in mind.

Authenticity 

As consumers have grown more accustomed to factoring reviews into their research and decision-making processes, so too has their awareness of fake reviews. Many consumers are now confident in their ability to sniff out illegitimate or inauthentic reviews; so much so that 62% of consumers now believe they’ve seen a fake review within the last 12 months on platforms such as Facebook, Amazon, and Google. 

In 2020, 79% of local consumers said they trusted online reviews as much as personal recommendations, but this figure has since dropped to 48%. Factors such as a review being too gushing in its praise for a local business, too many anonymous reviewers, lacking text to back up star ratings, and overly negative comments all erode consumer trust. 

Authenticity matters — not just for consumers to build those vital levels of trust, but to review platforms and search engines, too. While review site guidelines vary from site to site, they all regulate against fake reviews and most have policies in place to report fake reviews, including Google. 

Review Recency Matters, Too 

Given the proliferation of reviews, older reviews can easily be judged to be less relevant to local consumers, as they don’t speak to current local consumer experiences. 49% of local consumers say that a review left within the last month would help them to feel positive about a local business — and just 7% say that the recency of a review is irrelevant to how they feel about a local business.

Many platforms also allow users to filter reviews to show the newest first, meaning it’s important to have a steady stream of new reviews being published for your business. 

Business Response to Reviews

Responding to reviews matters to consumers and Google alike, so this is a core component of building a strong review profile. 55% of consumers say that a business responding to reviews matters to them and seeing a response is likely to leave them feeling good about that business. 

Google too makes it clear that responses are a core component of local business reviews, saying that responses from a business can help to build consumer trust. Review responses additionally form part of local search ranking signals and can impact search visibility. 

From a business perspective, responding to the review can allow you to give additional context to the comments, such as in the example below, and showcase your appreciation for your reviewer’s time and feedback. 

Reviews with Photos 

User-generated content such as imagery is proven to be an important aid for shoppers when deciding whether to go ahead with a purchase. As a multi-media format, it adds rich detail to text-based information and can help consumers visualize the experience they’re likely to receive. 

For local businesses with brick-and-mortar locations open to customers, such as bars and restaurants, images within reviews can be especially useful. 

This is underlined by data confirming that 40% of local consumers consider images to be an important part of a review. 

Quantity of Reviews 

If you think of reviews as a form of crowdsourced recommendations, it’s easy to see why the number of reviews you have matters. Having just one or two reviews may not give a local consumer the level of confidence they need to choose your business, as it could be that there simply isn’t enough opinion there to base a decision on. 

By contrast, a large number of reviews demonstrates a broader depth of sentiment. This means that a strong average star rating from a large number of reviews can be taken as a measure that many people find your offering to be of good quality, thereby increasing trust. 

Visibility Across a Number of Review Sites 

Having a good level of diversity in your review profile, with reviews across a number of different review sites, also matters. With 78% of consumers going online to research local business information at least once per week, the more points of reference you can offer to those consumers, the better. 

Not all consumers will feel comfortable with every site, so having a good spread of reviews across a number of different platforms means that consumers aren’t missing out on reviews of your business. If, for example, a consumer doesn’t have a Facebook account and wouldn’t use the social network for research, but may well go to Google, Yelp or Tripadvisor, you’ll want to have reviews in those places in order to be visible to that consumer. Focusing purely on Facebook would mean that you miss out on traffic across those other platforms. 

Online reviews are critical to this decision process and are frequently referenced by consumers throughout this journey. Research shows that more consumers than ever before are reading reviews, with 77% saying that they always or often seek out business reviews when researching a product or service.  

The vital role reviews play in the purchase process means that all local businesses can benefit from knowing how to get more customer reviews. The good news is that most consumers are open to leaving a review when asked — so building a strong review profile is entirely possible once you know how to ask for reviews in a way that connects with today’s consumers.

How do you ask for a five-star rating? 

Many platforms have specific guidelines setting out what you can and can’t do when asking for reviews (with some completely against soliciting reviews from customers). What’s common for all review requests is that you shouldn’t specifically ask for a five-star rating (or another specific rating). Instead, you should politely request that the customer shares their honest feedback detailing their experience with your business. You can do this in a number of ways, such as via email, SMS, or at the point of sale. 

How do you politely ask for a review? 

No matter the format you choose to communicate with your customers, you should begin by thanking the person for choosing your business. Keep your request short and succinct and provide a link to your chosen review platform for convenience. Add that their feedback is valued, helps you to improve your services, and ends by thanking the individual for their time. 

How to Get More Customer Reviews 

There are a few vital elements that go into getting more customer reviews, including knowing how to approach your customers to ask for their feedback.

One of the most important aspects actually begins before you ask for a review, and this is the act of delivering an excellent customer experience. Focusing on this is the best way to create a positive impression, which can then be translated into a great online review. 

Don’t Be Afraid to Ask! 

Our research indicates that 12% of consumers will always leave a review when asked to do so by a business, with 35% saying they’ll leave a review at least half the time if asked. While some customers will take it upon themselves to leave a review for your business without being prompted, others won’t. So it’s important that you get into the habit of always requesting reviews from your customers.

There are a number of ways you can do this, including face-to-face, at the point of sale, via email, or via text. Make it a priority to ask for feedback at some point during all business transactions using the method that seems most appropriate for that particular customer.

Experiment With Different Ways of Asking for Reviews 

Today’s consumers are used to communicating with businesses in a number of different ways, including on social media, in a text message or messaging app, via email or in person. It’s beneficial to know how to ask for reviews through a number of different mediums as this gives you a range of tactics that you can deploy depending on the customer and the situation.

• Ask for Reviews in Person

Asking for reviews in person may be the easiest and most convenient method if you run a brick-and-mortar business, or a service-area business, such as an HVAC repair firm, plumbing service, or pool cleaning company. 

This can be achieved as easily as verbally asking your client to review you once the job is complete or the item has been purchased. You could additionally add a link or QR code to your invoice or cash register receipt, or display a poster that a customer can scan before leaving the premises to provide a review. Having a tablet at the side of the register that you can direct customers to after requesting a review, is a good way to ensure your in-person request leads to an actual review. 

Ideally, all review requests will take an omnichannel approach in order to capture as much feedback as possible. With that in mind, aim to follow up an in-person review request with a different method of communication, such as email or SMS. 

• Ask for Reviews by Email 

It’s quick, easy, and convenient to ask for reviews via email, especially if you automate the process by using a review management tool. You can also make life easier for yourself by having a few review request email templates drafted up and ready to go. 

Your email request should ideally come soon after the interaction with your business. Don’t be afraid to follow up a few days later if a consumer isn’t responsive to your first email.  

• Ask for Reviews by SMS

If you have telephone contact information for your customers, you can use SMS to request a review. With email inboxes increasingly filled, and cell phone use growing, SMS offers a creative alternative to email. 

• Ask for Reviews on Your Website

Whether you’re already familiar with how to ask for reviews or you’re new to the task, having a page on your website that links back to your review profiles is a great idea. Be sure to include a call to action inviting visitors to share their feedback. This tactic can also be used in email signatures and on social media. 

• Encourage Live Chat Agents to Ask for Reviews

If you have a live chat option on your site, then your customer service agents can also ask for reviews after they have successfully dealt with a query. If you have a chatbot rather than a human team, you should be able to add in a simple review request instruction. 

• Include a Review Request on Your Business Card 

If you hand out business cards to customers — and have some space left on your card — you can add a line requesting a review alongside an icon of your preferred review platform. 

• Request Reviews on Invoices and Printed Receipts 

Whether you provide a customer with a printed receipt or invoice, you can also use this document to request a review. This will often reinforce other mediums, such as an email request. 

• Use NFC and Link Mode

If you have BrightLocal’s Reputation Manager and an NFC box at your location, you can connect the two to ask for reviews via NFC. 

Don’t Wait Too Long Before Asking for a Review 

Keep in mind that simply asking for a review may not always get you the results you want. Building a review generation strategy that focuses on growing reviews requires thinking about the when, the why, the how, and the way that reviews are asked for.

A common mistake is to wait too long before you ask for a review. Reaching out to customers three months after you’ve done business with them isn’t likely to bring you much success. Ensure you’re asking your customers for feedback immediately after the transaction or soon after in a follow-up email.

Offer a Variety of Review Platforms

Another key consideration when asking for reviews is where consumers are directed to. Optimizing this aspect of your review requests gives you a much better chance of gathering more reviews. 

The secret to success lies in being able to offer a variety of review platforms. If you only have Tripadvisor set up, or restrict customers to just Facebook Recommendations, the consumers that don’t have the relevant account or aren’t familiar with the platform could be discouraged from leaving a review. 

If you haven’t already, establish profiles on Facebook, Yelp, Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business), and any niche online review sites that apply to your industry, such as RateMDs.com, Angi, or UrbanSpoon.

Making it easy for consumers to find a platform they’re comfortable with can be as easy as creating a dedicated page on your website. This page can contain links to your profiles on Yelp, Google, and other review sites, or install widgets on your homepage or service pages. Include a message that prompts visitors to write a review using the platform of their choice, but do keep in mind that the rules around soliciting reviews are different for each platform.

It’s much easier to transform verbal testimonials into positive online reviews when you offer a variety of platforms. Whenever you receive positive feedback from a customer in an email, in person, or on the phone, get into the habit of asking the customer if they would mind turning their comments into an online review. Check which platform they prefer and then simply email them a link to that profile.

To go even further, add links to your review platform profiles to your email signatures, order confirmation pages, and social media pages.

Respond to Reviews 

Responding to the reviews your business receives is an important part of building a strong review profile. Doing so can encourage other consumers to leave their review, too. 

Responding to reviews allows you to publicly demonstrate that you value feedback. With 57% of consumers saying they would be very or fairly unlikely to use a business that doesn’t respond to reviews, it can make the difference between cementing a consumer’s opinion of your business and having them decide to take their buying power elsewhere. 

Responding to negative reviews is just as important as acknowledging positive comments, so don’t be tempted to ignore them. Our guide to dealing with negative reviews is a very useful resource if you’re unsure about how to do this.

Ask Specific Questions 

There’s a world of difference between knowing how to get reviews and knowing how to get great reviews that are full of useful details for consumers and Google’s local SEO algorithms alike. 

Including specific questions within your review request can help your consumers to leave more detailed reviews, which are more likely to include helpful information that readers of those reviews could expect to see. 

For example, if you’re a bar owner, you could ask what the guest’s favorite drink on the menu was, Or, if you’re running a hotel business, ask which amenity the customer most enjoyed. You could even ask if there was a specific team member that deserves a shout-out. These prompts tease out very specific nuggets of information that add richness and depth to the review. 

Let Reviewers Know How Long a Review Will Take

The last thing you want is to have someone abandon their review because they hadn’t realized just how much time it would take them to complete. Including an estimate of how long it will take to leave a review will ensure each reviewer goes into the platform knowing they’ll need to set aside a certain amount of time. 

Some platforms ask for way more information than others, so if it’s the case that you have a more time-intensive review platform, such as Tripadvisor, add a second speedier option for time-poor reviewers to use instead, such as Yelp. 

Use Marketing Materials Provided by Review Platforms

If your chosen review platform offers marketing materials, such as printed stickers, door hangers, posters, menu inserts, and so on, make use of those assets in your place of business. 

Google has a free marketing kit, while Tripadvisor also has a range of marketing materials that are ready to use, such as posters and stickers.  

Email is a tried-and-tested method used by many local businesses to obtain reviews. It’s also a very accessible means of approaching your customers or clients. Email doesn’t require any specialist tools or subscriptions and it’s fast — especially if you create a reusable template to ask for reviews. What’s more, email is the preferred method of communication for the majority of consumers when interacting with brands.

To get the best results when sending emails asking for reviews, you’ll first need to ensure you’re collecting up-to-date email addresses from consumers. Secondly, you need to have a solid template for review requests that your recipients find compelling enough to then take the desired action. 

How do you write an email asking for a review? 

The secret to writing a great email asking for a review is to KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid). Your email should be short and succinct, personalized for the reader, and polite. You should also stress that their feedback is valuable and helps you to further improve your products and services.

Remember, many review platforms don’t permit rewards or incentives for reviews, so don’t be tempted to offer freebies or anything else. 

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Review Request Templates

The following templates cover a wide range of business and customer scenarios. They can be used as they are or edited as required. 

Generic Review Request Email Example 

Use this email template when you’re reaching out to a customer that you dealt with a while ago.

Review request template for a recent customer

This email is intended to be sent to a recent customer to gather their feedback while it’s still fresh in their mind.

Review Request Email Example for Hospitality Businesses

If you’re in the hospitality business, use this email template to reach out to your guests after their visit or stay with you.

Service-area Business Review Email Template

If your business serves a specific area, this template offers an easy way to reach out. It can be used for any service-area business and adapted for those businesses covering multiple geographic areas.

Medical Practioner’s Template for Reviews

Suitable for doctors, dentists, and other medical professionals, this template for requesting reviews from patients is carefully worded to stress that there’s no need to share personal details when reviewing the care received. 

An Important Note When Requesting Reviews Via Email

Many countries have data protection laws to govern how and why personal customer data, such as contact information, can be used. Before you begin sending out email requests, ensure you have the relevant permission to do so and are abiding by appropriate legislation.

In the United Kingdom, you’ll need to adhere to GDPR guidelines (as will any businesses outside of the UK contacting UK-based customers). In the USA, a network of privacy legislation exists, much of which is state-specific, but opt-in isn’t required for commercial email. However, the CAN-SPAM act covers commercial emails, so your emails should be sent in a compliant manner, including providing an opt-out capability. 

In a similar vein, having a range of tactics and strategies for requesting reviews is also useful, as not every customer will respond to the same approach. While some may be happy with a telephone call, others may prefer an email they can deal with in their own time. It could be that some customers find an email easy to ignore but would respond to a request at the point of sale. In addition to those options, you can also request reviews by text message. 

How do you ask for a review in a text? 

When sending a text message review request, the key is to keep your message short and to the point. Ideally, your message will be just a few lines long. Begin by greeting the person by name, thanking them for their custom, and then getting right to the point. Also, be sure to include a link to the specific platform you’d like the review to be left on. 

Is SMS better than requesting a review via email?  

Email and SMS are two different mediums and they perform differently, too. 

Data source: Gartner

Email marketing is continually cited as one of the longest-standing and most beneficial forms of marketing communication. However, today’s inboxes are increasingly cluttered, which makes it harder to stand out. Data shows that the average professional will receive around 120 email messages a day, while consumers will spend just ten seconds reading brand emails and the average email open rate is just 20.94%. 

When you consider that 62% of marketers send out three or more marketing emails per week (and a quarter send more than eight emails per week), it makes sense to have an additional method of outreach for those who aren’t responsive to email requests.  

SMS messages are an effective alternative, with a 98% open rate and 45% response rate. 

What are the benefits of requesting reviews via text message? 

Receiving an SMS Feels Personal

With marketers sending so many emails per week, it’s the norm to have a steady stream of promotional materials hitting your email inbox. SMS inboxes, on the other hand, are generally reserved for friends and family.

As such, sending review outreach through SMS gives your business that personal touch — especially for those who communicate via SMS from the very beginning.

For certain businesses, such as service-area businesses — locksmiths, plumbers, window cleaners, etc. — and any other business that communicates with its customers over the phone, requesting reviews via text message is a natural progression in that communication.  

Most SMS outreach tools allow you to personalize your message, making it appear more natural to the recipient.

Most People Can Receive an SMS

Mobile proliferation is high around the world, with many consumers using their mobile device to remain connected around the clock. Research confirms that 97% of the US population has a cell phone — it’s useful to note here that even older, basic mobile devices can receive an SMS message, so the recipient doesn’t need to have a modern smartphone.

SMS Notifications Are Difficult to Ignore

While some people do have email notifications enabled on their phone, it’s not true of everyone, especially those who don’t need to be connected to their email outside of work hours. It’s fair to say that in contrast, almost everyone has notifications for SMS messages enabled, meaning any text message review request will trigger a notification to appear on the recipient’s phone. This alert enables the recipient to act quickly while they’re still clear on your service delivery.  

It’s highly likely that the automatic nature of SMS notifications contributes to the 98% open rate that this medium averages. 

Customers Are Open to Receiving Text Messages From Brands

One of the most important things to bear in mind when considering how you communicate with your customers, is whether that method of contact is appropriate for them. 

Research confirms that the majority of consumers are happy to receive SMS communications from brands, with a Yotpo survey concluding that more than half of consumers were keen to receive texts from their favorite brands. 

Sending review requests via SMS not only solidifies your relationship with the customer but also makes their life easier by streamlining the review-leaving process. Another advantage is that it can be used alongside existing methods of review collection to encourage even more customers to review your local business. 

As SMS marketing has grown in popularity, so has awareness of privacy issues, with new legislation such as GDPR and the CAN-SPAM Act introduced in many countries to protect consumers’ privacy and restrict unwanted marketing via electronic communications such as text messaging. 

There are a lot of similarities between these rules in some areas, such as the requirement to obtain users’ express consent to send marketing communications, and to provide accurate contact details. However, the necessary steps to comply with regulations can also have their own quirks.

Failing to follow these rules could lead to significant fines and legal action from unhappy customers. Since these rules exist to protect people from unwanted marketing and privacy breaches, it is also likely to have a very negative impact on your Net Promoter Score. And improving NPS should be a focus of any great customer service team.

Effective Ways to Get Customer Phone Numbers

Wherever your business is operating, in addition to following the regulations you also need to actually convince people to sign up for your SMS marketing campaign. Most consumers aren’t going to give you their contact details unless they can see what is in it for them. 

There are a number of ways to offer value to users in exchange for a marketing opt-in:

Sign-Ups and Purchases

Users who are in the process of signing up or purchasing from your business are clearly interested in your products, so it is a great time to offer messages about future products and deals while their enthusiasm is still high.

Competitions and Contests

A social media contest or giveaway gives your audience a clear incentive to take action, by asking them to sign up for your SMS marketing in order to enter the contest.

67% of consumers are more likely to buy from a brand they follow on social media, so this can be a great way to attract attention to your SMS marketing campaign that translates into actual purchases. If you’re not sure how to create an effective social media contest, analyzing the competition can be a great place to start.

Exclusive Deals

By offering promotions and discounts which are only available to your SMS subscribers, frequent customers can be rewarded with exclusive offers. Your promotion doesn’t need to be anything extravagant either. Taco Bell was able to increase its mobile marketing subscribers by 13,000 people over 5 weeks simply by offering a free drink with food item purchases.

Business Updates and Service Changes

Customers who are engaged with your business might want to get updates about your business and changes that affect their services, such as new features, upgrades or extras.

In-Store Promotion

Many of your customers might not be aware that they can get discounts and updates via SMS. Providing a number that customers can text to opt in to marketing in your online or physical store can greatly increase awareness of your SMS marketing campaign.

Now that you’ve got some ideas about how to grow your SMS list, let’s move onto the legal stuff — how do you get consent to send SMSes to customers?

Use the links below to get to the information relevant to your market.

• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the USA
• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the UK
• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Canada
• How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Australia

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the USA

To send SMS marketing in the USA, you need to comply with rules set out in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and CAN-SPAM Act. These regulations cover how and when you can contact people, and the correct way to obtain marketing opt-ins. It is important to remember that in addition to these federal regulations, there may be additional rules and requirements from state to state.

TCPA

The TCPA was primarily aimed at restricting cold calls and recorded voice messages, however, it introduces a few rules which also apply to SMS marketing:

Identification

Marketing must be sent using systems that identify the business sending the message and provide contact information, including the number used to send the message.

Privacy

Marketers cannot send marketing messages to consumers before 8am or after 9pm local time without their express consent. Some bulk text messaging providers, such as TextMagic, will automatically adjust your SMS marketing schedule to local time zones.

Additionally, all marketing must respect the National Do Not Call Registry, and maintain their own company-wide Do Not Call list. The best CRMs for small businesses can track and maintain your Do Not Call list across all contact methods.

CAN-SPAM

The CAN-SPAM Act covers all forms of commercial electronic messages, including SMS and email. It shares the same rules on identification and privacy as the TCPA, with the additional stipulation that messages must also include an accurate postal address for your business. 

The CAN-SPAM Act also introduces new rules concerning the proper disclosure of marketing opt-ins and the content of messages, as well as consumers’ rights to stop receiving marketing from you.

According to the CAN-SPAM Act, you can be held legally responsible if marketers working on your behalf are using non-compliant methods.

Opting In

You cannot send someone marketing messages without their express consent, even if you already have their contact details from a previous transaction. You need to obtain consent separately for each contact method – having permission to email someone does not mean you also have permission to call or text them.

Consent is not valid unless you clearly explained what kind of messages your recipient is agreeing to receive, and whether they are agreeing to a one-off message or recurring contacts from you.

Identification

All marketing messages must be clearly identified as advertising. Similarly, the subject line of your message should accurately reflect the message’s contents.

Opting Out

Every marketing message you send must contain clear instructions on how to stop receiving future messages. For SMS marketing, the easiest way to do this is to let consumers opt-out by replying ‘STOP’ to your text. Opt-out requests must be honored within 10 working days.

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in the UK

In the UK, the rules covering SMS marketing and other communication services are set out by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). Most of its rules only apply to unsolicited messages. An ‘unsolicited’ message is anything you send which is not a direct response to a specific customer request. This means that marketing messages are considered unsolicited even if you have the recipient’s express consent to send them. 

While similar in principle to US regulations, PECR gives more specific guidelines for SMS marketing compliance:

Identification

All marketing messages must include the name of your business, a contact number and a postal address. 

Opting In

When asking people to sign up for SMS marketing, it must be made obvious that they are agreeing to receive marketing messages. This information has to be displayed prominently, including it in your privacy policy or terms and conditions does not count.

To opt in to your marketing, users must make a clear positive action, such as ticking a checkbox in your sign up form. These options cannot be pre-selected or have opted in as the default setting. This is good practice even in countries where it is not a requirement. Pre-ticked opt-ins will only annoy customers and result in a high unsubscribe rate.

Opt-in pages must specifically name the business which will contact recipients — consent to receive marketing from ‘third parties’ or other vague terms is not valid.

Opting Out

People need to have an easy way to opt-out of your marketing messages at any time, ideally via a STOP message.

You cannot ask users to complete complex steps such as filling out forms in order to opt-out, and you are expected to honor any clear indication they want your marketing to stop, regardless of the contact method. Opt-out requests must be handled immediately, with confirmation sent to your recipient.

Record-Keeping

In the event of a dispute, you will need to have records proving your compliance with PECR. This includes keeping records of when your user opted in and what they opted into, as well as records of their opt-out requests.

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Canada

Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) covers email and SMS marketing as well as some uses of social media. In addition to obtaining a consumer’s express consent to send them marketing messages, CASL rules also allow you to message people using implied consent under certain conditions

Implied Consent

You are allowed to send marketing messages to people you have a previous business connection with, for example, someone who made a purchase from your business and provided their contact details. This lasts for two years after your most recent transaction with a customer, after which you will need their express consent to continue sending marketing communications.

Identification

Every marketing message must include your business name, postal address, and an additional contact method. You are allowed to provide this information via a web link.

Opting In

To obtain someone’s express consent for SMS marketing, you must clearly state that they are signing up for marketing messages, and can’t include this permission as part of your privacy policy or other small print.

You also cannot use pre-checked boxes to make opting in the default option. Users need to sign up for marketing via their mobile device and must confirm their subscription after the initial request before you can start sending marketing.

Opting Out

Your SMS marketing must allow recipients to opt-out at any time through a one-step process such as sending a STOP message and also have to honor opt-out requests made through other contact methods.

Record-Keeping

If a recipient disputes giving you permission to message them, you need to have records showing what they agreed to and how you got their permission. A double opt-in system is a great way to ensure you have a record of opt-ins, while also reducing unintentional opt-ins. Similarly, you should also have records of opt-outs.

How to Get Consent for SMS Marketing in Australia

In Australia, SMS marketing is covered by the Spam Act 2003. Like CASL, it allows you to message recipients based on inferred consent, although the definition of this is very different. It also has rules covering the use of address-harvesting software.

Inferred Consent

Under the Spam Act, inferred consent is based on specific existing business relationships. If you have a user’s contact details, you can send them marketing messages which are relevant to their previous purchases or the interests they have expressed to you.

In addition to past purchases, consent can be inferred from subscriptions to your newsletter, signing up for an online service or membership of a loyalty club.

Marketing messages must be relevant to your existing relationship with a customer.

Address-Harvesting Software

Address-harvesting software, or scraping software, is used to collect contact details from online profiles and databases. The Spam Act bans the use of scraping software, and the use of contact details obtained by scraping software. 

Identification

All of your marketing texts must include your business name, contact details, and Australian Business Number (ABN). This information cannot change for at least 30 days after you send out marketing.

Opting In

Getting express consent to send SMS marketing requires your recipient to agree to receive marketing through a deliberate action such as ticking a checkbox.

Opting Out

All messages must also include a clear opt-out option, such as sending a STOP message. You can’t charge for use of an opt-out message and will have up to five working days to stop sending the user messages. You also cannot change your opt-out method for at least 30 days after sending a message.

Disclaimer: Please note that this advice is for informational purposes only and is neither intended as nor should be substituted for consultation with appropriate legal counsel and/or your organization’s regulatory compliance team.