The new GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) rules that if your mailing list is opt-in, consent to opt-in to receive marketing communications must be be "freely-given, specific, informed and unambiguous".
It is no longer permitted to use mailing lists on the basis of the old opt-in wheeze of a series of double negatives to leave a box unticked agreeing to be contacted by "the company's marketing partners". The ICO's (Information Commissioners Office) guidance on interpreting GDPR specifically rules out pre-ticked boxes and states that any third party using a mailing list must be named when the consent is given.
From May 2018 a mailing list can only be opt-in if a person has ticked a box next to a statement that specifically names your company. So your client list and any one who has signed up to receive info from your company on your website are opt-in lists. Third party opt-in lists are pretty much out after May 2018 and any company or list broker promoting opt-in mailing lists is not up to speed on GDPR.
The good news is that ICO guidance also states that
You don't always need consent. If consent is too difficult look at whether another lawful basis is more appropriate.
Electric Marketing mailing lists are compiled and used on the lawful basis of "legitimate interest". If you have a business interest in contacting a person, you may contact them without gaining their prior consent to do so. This applies across mailing, telemarketing and email, with some key restrictions.
There are no restrictions on postal mailing. Direct marketing with envelopes and stamps is swinging back into fashion. It is expensive compared to email marketing but compares well with other forms of digital advertising.
Business-to-business telemarketing is restricted to companies which have not added themselves to the CTPS register. All Electric Marketing lists do contain the phone numbers of CTPS registered companies and they are marked up as CTPS. You can buy mailing lists excluding CTPS registered companies. It is worth noting that companies must renew their registration each year so a company's CTPS status can change over time. You can check a company's status by putting their phone number into our free CTPS Checker.
Email marketing for business-to-business marketing is restricted by your own list of individuals who have unsubscribed from receiving emails from your company. This is a key point of difference between consumer email marketing which definitely does require consent. The reason for the difference is that email marketing is governed by a different EU directive, known as the Privacy & Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). PECR states that it is permitted to send emails offering business services to business people at their business email addresses, but if they ask you to stop emailing them, then you must remove them from your list and must not email them again.
So the opt-in mailing list is dead. But email marketing for business-to-business communications lives on.