Our goal is to keep all direct marketing channels open, safe and productive for business and consumers, helping the DMA to advance and protect responsible data-driven marketing. The best way to do this is through vibrant, peer-led marketing ethics committees and strong self-regulatory standards.
DMA has, for decades, been a leader in establishing comprehensive self-regulatory guidelines for its members on all facets of direct marketing. In our experience, self-regulatory guidelines are the most effective way to address changes in marketing technology, changes in markets, and new marketing business practices. DMA guidelines provide members with generally accepted principles of conduct, prevent unnecessary regulation, and are flexible and adaptable.
DMA and its member companies have long recognized that promoting best practices through effective self-regulation enhances consumer trust and confidence. Addressing potential concerns about emerging practices and curbing potential abuses through self-regulation is the best approach. Our members understand that their success on the Internet, in the mail, via mobile or on social media is dependent on consumers’ confidence and trust, and members support efforts that enrich a user’s experience while fostering consumer trust across marketing channels.
DMA’s Guidelines for Ethical Business Practice are used by the association’s Committee on Ethical Business Practice and its Ethics Policy Committee as the standard to which direct marketing promotions and practices are compared. We ask that all marketers support the guidelines in spirit and not treat their provisions as obstacles to be circumvented by legal ingenuity.
The DMA has two Board-level ethics committees, the Ethics Policy Committee and the Ethics Operating Committee. Each is comprised of experienced marketers who seek to advance marketing ethics and accountability for the data-driven marketing industry.