Our Monthly Digital Doctor Feature sees John Donnelly from Digital Salon Group addressing key Digital related issues affecting the Salon Industry. This month he looks at GDPR and how it affects the Digital footprint of your Salon.
GDPR is now a reality. Lots has been written about it and if you haven’t heard of it yet, you better start researching it because non-compliance with GDPR carries very stiff penalties of up to 4% of your annual revenue.
Salons are affected by GDPR in a number of ways. This is not a complete list of all the GDPR requirements, but it offers a good general overview of things you’ll need to be thinking about now. A more detailed list of GDPR Requirements can be got on the Government’s dedicated website http://gdprandyou.ie/
1 Your Website
Under GDPR legislation, your website needs to display your Privacy Policy in the form of a detailed Privacy Statement. Your Statement needs to be easy to understand and should include:
• What personal data you collect.
• Why you collect it and how it is used.
• Who it will be shared with.
• When and why it will be deleted.
• What you will not use personal data for.
Once you have your Privacy Statement done, get your web developer to add it to your website or contact us in Digital Salon Group for assistance.
2 Salon Software:
If you use salon software, you will need to review the personal data you record and how you use it. Many salons hold a wide array of personal information about clients and staff on their salon software, and use it for various reasons such as marketing, allergy test results, colour notes and missed appointment records.
Your software supplier should be ready and able to offer updates and general advice to ensure your salon complies with GDPR.
3 Provision of Information:
If requested, you will have to provide your employees and clients with the information you hold about them free of charge, and they will have the right to correct any information that is wrong. Information must be provided within one month of receiving the request.
4 Right to be deleted
People will have the right to ask you to delete the data your salon holds about them unless there is a good reason not to.
5 Marketing
You probably send many clients appointment reminders, e-newsletters, special offers, birthday vouchers and seasonal greetings. Under GDPR, you must comply with strict rules about contacting clients with marketing messages. Your clients must actively agree to receive marketing information from you. This means they must opt in – not be given the opportunity to opt out. You don’t need to get new consent to send out marketing messages to existing clients if certain conditions are met. For example, you must have collected their contact information as part of providing a service or product to them.
GDPR is now a reality. You really need to sit up and take note of the changes it will have on the way your Salon operates. As always, a carefully planned strategy for implementing GDPR will result in fewer problems down the line.
Digital salon are offering our BeautifulJobs members this exclusive voucher.
If you have any Digital related questions for John, you can email him directly at john@digitalsalongroup.com or phone 01 6853755.