What is soft opt-in under EU law?
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Most EU email laws require explicit consent before you can send marketing emails. But there's a carve-out for existing customers, and it's called soft opt-in.
Soft opt-in lets you email a customer about similar products if four conditions are all met: you collected their contact during a sale or service negotiation, you're promoting your own similar products or services (not partner offerings, not unrelated products), you gave them a clear chance to opt out when you first collected their address, and you include an easy opt-out in every subsequent message.
The word "similar" does real work here. Someone who bought running shoes can reasonably expect to hear about other footwear. Emailing them about your new financial products stretches the exception well past its intent. The connection between what they purchased and what you're promoting has to be obvious, not explained.
Soft opt-in exists because the law (the ePrivacy Directive, implemented in the UK as PECR) recognized that requiring fresh consent after every transaction creates unnecessary friction. But it's a narrow exception for genuine customer follow-up, not a general license to email your entire customer base. The GDPR still applies to how you handle that data.
Not sure your customer emails qualify? The SOS call is free and we can walk through your specific situation.
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