Having your own mailing list is important for remaining in contact with your fans (or customers). Particularly as it has the advantage of being independent of social media platforms so it means that your contacts cannot simply disappear if the platform closes. However, don’t forget that GDPR (General Data Protection Rules) will apply to data in the UK and Europe and countries elsewhere may have similar regulations.
If you collect information about individuals for any reason other than your own personal, family or household purposes, you need to comply. Whether you hold data on your computer, on your mobile phone or in the cloud, you will need to comply.
Data protection is the fair and proper use of information about people. It doesn’t need to be ‘private’ information – even information that is public knowledge or is about someone’s professional life can be considered personal data.
So you need to seek permission before including people in electronic mail-outs. You can ask people to sign up to your mailing list and by filling out a form they will be giving permission. You can also ask people to subscribe to your mailing list on your website. You then have obligations regarding the information that you store, so it is wise to be aware of what these are.
For further information:
The Musician’s Union has a list of general principles regarding data protection.
The UK ISM (Incorporated society of Musicians) also has GDPR guidance.AIM ( the UK Association of Independent Music) has a useful free to download guide to starting and growing a music business that has lots of other information too.