Messaging Toronto customers under CASL: consent, timing and how often to send

A message on a customer's phone is one of the most powerful tools a restaurant has, and one of the easiest to misuse. Send the right message to the right people a few times a year and it fills tables. Send too many, or to people who never agreed, and customers switch notifications off, complain or worse.

In Canada, commercial messages also come with legal rules. The consent rules are covered in the guides on CASL consent for texts and loyalty sign-ups and CASL and email marketing. This guide covers what to send, to whom and when. It is general information, not legal advice.

What does CASL require of restaurants?

Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation, known as CASL, governs commercial electronic messages: messages that encourage someone to buy something, such as an offer, a promotion or a new menu announcement. In broad terms it requires consent to send them, a clear identification of who is sending and an easy way to unsubscribe. The CRTC and the federal government publish guidance for businesses.

CASL recognizes express consent, where someone actively agrees, and in some cases implied consent. The CRTC's guidance says implied consent after a purchase generally lasts two years from the purchase, and after an inquiry it is shorter, six months. The sender must be able to prove consent. Every marketing message needs a working unsubscribe, and the CRTC says to act on a request within 10 business days. The penalties are serious: up to 10 million dollars per violation for a business, according to the CRTC. The safest route is the stricter one: send offers only to customers who actively said yes to marketing.

What is the difference between a transactional and a marketing message?

• A transactional message is about something the customer did: your booking is confirmed, your order is ready, your table is waiting. It does not ask for anything.
• A marketing message promotes something: an offer, a new dish, an event. It needs the customer's agreement.

A customer on your list may be someone you can confirm a booking with but cannot send an offer to. That is the rule working as intended.

How do you grow the list of customers you can message?

Give people a reason to say yes. The most reliable reason is a loyalty program they value, because members want to hear about rewards and new things. Ask clearly, at a natural moment, and explain what kind of messages they will get. Never pre-tick a box, and keep a record of when and how each person agreed.

How often should a restaurant send marketing messages?

Rarely. Every marketing message risks someone switching off notifications, and that also cuts them off from the messages they want, like booking confirmations. Two or three well-chosen messages a year, each with something genuinely worth saying, outperform a monthly habit. Pick your two or three biggest moments, such as a new seasonal menu, a festival or a member event, and plan one message for each.

What makes a good restaurant message?

• A specific reason: a named dish, a dated event, a clear offer on stated days
• Short and plain: one idea, one action
• Timed well: a lunch offer mid-morning, a dinner offer mid-afternoon
• Aimed at the right people: regulars who have gone quiet, members, people nearby

"We miss you" is a feeling. "Our braised short rib is back on Thursday" is a reason.

Should messages go to everyone or a segment?

To a segment. Regulars who have gone quiet, members, or people who ordered a particular dish are each more likely to act than your whole list. A message about a Leslieville patio means little to someone who lives in Etobicoke.

When are Toronto diners most likely to act?

A message that arrives while someone is deciding where to eat is worth far more than one that arrives after dinner.

• Late morning suits lunch offers.
• Mid to late afternoon suits dinner plans.
• Thursday and Friday suit weekend bookings.
• Avoid late evenings and early mornings.

Match timing to the city's rhythm: a game-night message works best on the afternoon of the game, and a Winterlicious reminder the week bookings open.

Who on your team should send them?

One or two people, not everyone. A message sent in a hurry by a well-meaning staff member during a quiet shift can go to the wrong group, at the wrong time, with an offer you did not intend. Plan marketing messages in advance and have the owner or a manager approve them. Booking confirmations and reminders about something the customer did can run without approval.

How do you measure whether a message worked?

By how many people came in or ordered, not how many opened it. A striking message with a weak reason gets read and ignored. A plain message with a good reason gets acted on.

More from Toronto: TIFF and big event weekends and Winterlicious and Summerlicious bookings.

More in the Canadian guides for food businesses.