Compliant Cold Outreach in every country

In Germany for example, the Act against Unfair Competition (UWG) regulates cold calling and prohibits contact by electronic mail in §7: “Unreasonable harassment is always to be assumed ... (2) in the case of advertising using an automatic calling machine, a fax machine or electronic mail without the prior express consent of the addressee”.

According to UWG §7, cold calling is only permitted with presumed consent: “Unreasonable harassment is always to be assumed 1. when advertising with a telephone call to a consumer without their prior express consent or to another market participant without their at least presumed consent”

LinkedIn messages also fall under §7 of the UWG and are only permitted if a contact request has previously been accepted.

Anything is possible, from no reaction to legal proceedings. However, violations of the UWG are not classified as a criminal offense but as an administrative offense and are therefore limited to a maximum of €300,000. In practice, penalties of up to €6,000 have become established. However, violations of the GDPR can be significantly higher.

The UWG allows cold calling by e-mail if “an entrepreneur has received the customer's electronic mail address in connection with the sale of goods or services”. In plain language: only if a customer relationship already exists or the potential customer has given an opt-in.