How to Stop Unwanted E-Communications from Wineries (and Other Businesses)
- Marla
- 6 hours ago
- 4 min read
If you’ve recently visited a winery, purchased wine directly, or otherwise shared your contact information with a winery, you’re probably hearing from the winery more often.
This is no surprise. As more than half of the revenue for most U.S. wineries comes from direct-to-consumer sales, wineries are becoming more reliant on direct-to-consumer electronic communications as a way to survive and thrive in today’s market. They’re making a bigger effort to collect consumers’ contact information and use it to alert people about promotional campaigns, advertise events, or just to say hello. They’re adding sales and marketing staff and increasing their marketing budgets accordingly.
They’re also expanding the communication methods they use to engage customers. For instance, a winery that had relied on calling or emailing consumers may start using text messaging, which many people prefer and respond to more quickly, according to Jennie Gilbert, co-founder of text message marketing company RedChirp, who spoke at a recent webinar. Thousands of consumers in the past year have asked a winery to communicate with them by text, she said.
I’m a big fan of this outreach. I don’t have time to visit every winery’s website for the latest news. This is a great way to find out about a close-out sale, free shipping promotion, or new release. It’s a win-win!
But what if you don’t want to hear from a particular outfit? Or if you prefer to be contacted by email but don’t want to be interrupted by texts or calls? Perhaps surprisingly, there is some law that helps you stop unwanted e-communications from wineries and other businesses.
How Does the Law Help?
There are several laws that may apply here.
Emails and some texts are governed by the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act. This law, regulated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), establishes requirements for commercial emails and some commercial texts, gives recipients the right to stop such communications, and mandates that businesses honor such requests promptly.
Phone calls and some other texts are governed by the Federal Communications Commission’s Telephone Consumer Protection Act. This law is geared more toward automated robocalls/texts. Consumers can halt these communications by contacting the business to stop the communications and by adding their phone numbers to the federal government’s Do Not Call Registry.
Both of these laws enable you to opt-out of communication, typically by clicking on a link in the message. It usually says “stop” or “unsubscribe.” Businesses that don’t honor these requests are subject to penalties.
Additional laws may also come into play. For example, the FTC has a Telemarketing Sales Rule that limits how businesses can telemarket. If you’ve agreed that telemarketing calls are okay or you are in an established relationship with a business (say you’ve recently bought wine from the winery), then if you want to stop unwanted communication you need to specifically tell it not to contact you anymore. Again, this may be as simple as clicking on a link in the message you received.
Some states, such as California, Colorado, Nevada, and Virginia, have their own regulations regarding commercial emails and texts.
What To Do
I often ignore unwanted e-communication, especially if it’s from a winery I like. While I might not be interested in a particular promotion or event, the next one might be exactly what I’m looking for.
If an employee has reached out personally, I’ll typically respond even to say no thanks.
But there have been occasions when I don’t want to be inundated with communications from a particular place and have utilized the opt-out option. The opt-out instructions are usually at the end of an email or text. Sometimes I have had to utilize the opt-out provision more than once before it kicks in.
What if there is no opt-out provision in the communication? For instance, some wineries (and other businesses) implement e-communications without checking the law first or without using third-party marketing assistance, so they may not realize they’re supposed to provide it.
Sometimes a business has included an automatic opt-out option but neglected to mention it in its message, so you don’t know it’s there. I’ve also encountered communications where the opt-out link is in the communication but doesn’t function. Try responding anyway by sending “stop” to the email and/or text. This has worked for me on several occasions, either because the automated opt-out is still operational or because employees are monitoring responses.
If a winery (or other business) continues to contact you after you’ve opted out, or you aren’t being given the opportunity to opt out and “stop” doesn’t work, then contact the winery in writing by replying and/or using the information in the “contact us” section of the winery’s website to stop the unwanted communications and remind them of the law. No business wants irate consumers. If all else fails and it’s really bad, file a complaint with the applicable government agency. In rare, really egregious situations, there’s litigation as a last resort. That’s unlikely when dealing with legitimate, small businesses.
I hope this information on how to stop unwanted e-communications from wineries (and other businesses) helps you juggle the calls, emails, and texts you receive.
Have you ever been bombarded by unwanted contact? What happened? Let us know! We’re at info@winewithourfamily.com.
Note: This article does not constitute legal advice and is not intended to substitute for legal advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, please seek the services of a competent professional.
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