Last reviewed:
Translated from German; if the versions differ, the German version applies.
Not legal advice: Legal content on this page appears only as verbatim quotations from statutes, court rulings or authority papers, with their source; quotations from German texts are our working translations. We do not assess them ourselves, and no lawyer has reviewed this page. It is no substitute for legal advice in your individual case.
Welcome series and automations
An automation is an email that does not go to everyone on a fixed date but is triggered by an event: a sign-up, a purchase, a date. The best known is the welcome series – a short sequence of emails to new subscribers. Once set up, it runs by itself for every new reader. That is exactly why it pays to plan it carefully.
Before the start: confirmation is not a welcome email
At the beginning is the confirmation email of the double opt-in procedure. With it, the person confirms the sign-up; it contains the confirmation link. Whether it may contain advertising beyond that is not expressly answered by the quoted texts (Double opt-in). Only after the click does the welcome series begin. How the procedure works and what Germany’s Federal Court of Justice has said about it: Consent and double opt-in.
A welcome series in three emails
An example for a monthly newsletter; intervals and number depend on your topic.
| No. | Timing | Content |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | directly after confirmation | thank you, what to expect (topics, rhythm), how to unsubscribe or change topics; a first piece of useful content |
| 2 | a few days later | the most important items from the archive, frequently asked questions, how to get in touch |
| 3 | about a week later | invitation to choose topics; note on the next regular issue |
What has proved useful:
- Deliver what the sign-up promised. Anyone who signed up for club news does not expect a sales sequence.
- Keep it short. Three good emails are better than seven mediocre ones.
- Do not duplicate the regular newsletter. Someone in the middle of the series does not also need the monthly issue on the same day.
- Unsubscribe in every email. Anyone who no longer wants the series should be able to leave it with one click (see Unsubscribing).
Further automations
| Trigger | Example | What the quoted sources say |
|---|---|---|
| Date | birthday greeting with a voucher | DSK guidance, section 1.1: birthday and Christmas mailings mentioned (quotation below) |
| Purchase | satisfaction follow-up | DSK guidance, section 1.1: satisfaction enquiries mentioned (quotation below) |
| Abandoned basket | reminder of an unfinished order | not expressly dealt with in the texts quoted |
| No reaction for a long time | asking whether the newsletter is still wanted | on deliverability see Spam folder |
| Click on a topic | follow-up email on this topic | analysis of behaviour; wording on Segmentation |
Quotations from German laws, court rulings and authority papers are our working translations; only the German wording is authoritative (see the German version of this page). The German Data Protection Conference (Datenschutzkonferenz, DSK) writes in its guidance on direct marketing: “The courts also base their decisions on this far-reaching view of advertising and thus also regard, for example, satisfaction enquiries to customers after a transaction, birthday and Christmas mailings etc. as advertising.” (our translation; guidance on direct marketing, February 2022, section 1.1, p. 3) Which conditions Section 7 of the German Act against Unfair Competition (UWG) sets for advertising by email is quoted verbatim on the pages Consent and double opt-in and Advertising to existing customers.
Transactional email or advertising?
Transactional emails are messages that belong to the handling of a transaction: order confirmation, shipping notice, invoice, password reset. Google explicitly exempts such messages from the one-click unsubscribe requirement and names password resets and reservation confirmations as examples.
Whether a transactional email with an advertising addition – for example “You might also like” below the shipping notice – counts legally as a promotional email is not expressly answered by the law or the authority texts quoted here. Under the heading “Contractual information that also contains advertising information (‘enclosure advertising’)”, the DSK writes:
“If contractual information and, connected with it, also own or third-party advertising information is sent to contractual partners by letter, this is possible within the limits of Art. 6(1) subpara. 1(f) GDPR as long as the data subject has not objected to advertising under Art. 21(2) GDPR.
In the case of email advertising, the assessments of Section 7(3) UWG are to be observed, whereby the relief provided there does not apply to third-party advertising.” (our translation)
— DSK guidance on direct marketing (February 2022), section 4.3, p. 15
Technology: what your platform must be able to do
- Triggers: sign-up, date, click, purchase – depending on which automations you plan. Purchase triggers require a connection between shop and sending platform.
- Exit conditions: anyone who unsubscribes leaves every running series immediately. Anyone who has bought no longer receives a basket reminder.
- Log: which person received which email from which series, and when? This helps with complaints and with access requests.
- Test mode: run a series completely with your own address before it starts for everyone.
Maintaining automations
Automations are easily forgotten because they run in the background. Check at least twice a year: are links, prices, contact persons and privacy notices still correct? Does the content still match what the sign-up promises today?