Sending CASL-Compliant Text / SMS Messages in Canada

In Canada, the law governing the sending of text messages is known as “Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation” or CASL (pronounced “castle”).

This law does not pertain to text messages alone, but applies to most forms of digital communication, including email and social media communications.

In order to send CASL-Compliant Text/SMS to your contacts, prospects and clients, it is critical you abide by this law for three reasons…

1. The penalties for sending unsolicited emails are very harsh, with fines running into 6 figures.
2. Sending unsolicited messages to your clients can be very damaging to your brand; people are very sensitive as to what they perceive as spam on their cell phones.
3. Spamming reduces the viability of this marketing channel for everyone.

Luckily CASL is significantly more flexible than U.S. law, allowing Canadians more opportunities to reach their respective audience via bulk or mass texting.

Let’s talk specifically about what you need to send CASL-compliant text messages to your contacts or customers…

• Express consent, or
• Implied consent, and
• CASL-compliant templates.

1. Express Consent

Express consent means pretty much what it sounds like it means; your contact, client or prospect gives you “express” permission to contact them via text messages. This can happen via…

1. A handset initiated opt in (i.e., your client subscribes to your service on their phone by texting a keyword to either a long code or short code).
2. Oral permission (you will need to document this in some way so you can support it should you ever be challenged).
3. Written permission (either physical or digital).

Express consent is the most desirable form of consent because it does not expire (it can be revoked by the client at any time, but that’s a different story). You’ll see why this is important in a moment.

If you do not have express consent, don’t worry. Very few Canadian business owners have written or signed consent from their clients of contacts. Luckily, you have one other option…

2. Implied Consent

Here’s where the flexibility of Canadian law becomes evident.

In the U.S., if you don’t have express consent from your audience you’re out of luck.

You can’t message them.

In Canada however, business owners catch a bit of a break. The fact that you have an existing business relationship with a client gives you their implied consent to send them text messages…

If and only if the date of your last transaction occurred within the last two years.

In other words, the tricky thing about implied consent is that it expires.

Businesses that have regular ongoing relationships with their clients—like dentists, chiropractors, dog groomers, furnace maintenance, massage therapists, etc.—almost never have to worry about obtaining express consent for messaging. That’s because the two-year expiration period necessary for implied consent is reset with every new transaction.

In other words, every new transaction resets the clock on that two-year time period.

However, if you have only periodic contact with your clients and your business doesn’t lead to regular repeat business, this two-year expiration data becomes critical. That’s because if you send bulk text messages to them outside of this time frame you are technically spamming them, and subject to stiff government fines.

Putting this Into Proper Perspective

Since CASL came into effect in 2014, there has been a lot of hand wringing and hair-tearing in the business community. But reality, CASL is not that tough to deal with, if you keep a couple of things in mind…

1. The two-year expiration is critical if you’re importing a database of client phone numbers into a mass text messaging service. In this case, you really need to know when your last transaction was, because if it is outside of the two-year window, you’re spamming.
2. The expiration period is less critical if your client is added to receive your SMS broadcasts at the beginning of your relationship (i.e., at the time of the current transaction). Why? Well, it seems unlikely to me that a client who happily receives your SMS broadcasts over the next two years, yet does not complete another transaction to extend the period of implied consent is suddenly going to be enraged and report you when she receives your marketing messages at two years + one day. In reality, clients who don’t want to receive your messages will have opted out of receiving them ages ago. Those who still receive them obviously find them valuable.

I’m not a lawyer, and I don’t play one on T.V. This should not be considered legal advice or a recommendation on how to conduct your business. Messaging contacts outside the two year implied consent window is illegal, and there is a risk in doing so, even if it’s infinitesimally small (in example #2 just above). I raise this point because I think it’s important that a practical perspective is presented and you have a realistic idea of the risks you assume.

3. CASL-Compliant Templates

The last thing Canadian businesses need when sending mass broadcasts is a service that provides CASL-compliant messaging templates.

In other words, all messages are automatically appended with everything you need to stay legal.

What Do CASL-Compliant Templates Include?

CASL requires two things…

1. A one-action opt-out or unsubscribe option. This is the “reply STOP to end” message you may have seen tacked on to the end of SMS marketing messages. Replying with “Stop” must immediately remove the contact from the messaging database, with no additional steps required.
2. Information identifying the identity of the message sender. In an email, this information can be included in the email itself, but because of the character limitations of text messaging, it’s appropriate to include a shortened link to a mobile responsive web page that displays this information.

Local Text Marketers’ Canadian Mass Texting service includes CASL-compliant templates…