Email Marketing Automation

Email Marketing (Global)

Email is the only owned channel — algorithm-proof, free to re-reach. But legal differs HUGELY by region: US allows opt-out, EU mandates opt-in, SEA/LATAM mostly require opt-in. Pick the right variant — getting this wrong can cost up to EUR 20M (GDPR) or USD 51,744 per email (CAN-SPAM).

---

For newbies

Who is this skill for?

Audience	Concrete example
Founder / DTC brand running newsletter	Shopify store, SaaS company, B2B service
Agency setting up email automation for client	Welcome series, nurture, re-engage
Marketer migrating from one ESP to another	Klaviyo to Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign to Brevo
Multi-region brand needing legal-safe email	Selling US + EU + LATAM, must comply per region

Who is this NOT for?

• Vietnam-only email marketing -> Use 14-email-marketing (VN skill) — covers PDPA Vietnam (Decree 13/2023)
• Transactional-only (order confirms, password reset) -> Use ESP defaults; transactional emails have softer consent rules in most regions
• SMS / WhatsApp / push -> Different channels with different laws (TCPA US, GDPR EU)

30-second pre-read

This skill produces ONE email marketing strategy file with 4 components: subscriber segmentation, sequence templates (welcome / nurture / re-engage / promo), automation flow, and KPI tracking. Pick 1 of 4 region variants — the variant tunes the LEGAL framework (consent model, unsubscribe rules, data retention, cross-border transfer). Every email automation built without this risks legal exposure.

3 common errors

1. Reusing US opt-out logic in EU -> GDPR violation; fines up to EUR 20M or 4% global revenue
2. Skipping double opt-in for EU/Brazil/SEA -> Cannot prove consent if challenged; subscribers can demand deletion
3. Missing physical address in footer -> CAN-SPAM violation US; EUR 51,744 per email

---

Why do you need this skill?

Email is the highest-ROI channel (USD 36-42 per USD 1 spent globally), but legal compliance is non-negotiable. Without the right region variant:

• US brand using EU opt-in flow -> losing 30-50% of subscribers unnecessarily
• EU brand using US opt-out flow -> direct GDPR violation
• LATAM brand ignoring LGPD -> BRL 50M penalty risk in Brazil
• SEA brand mixing rules -> PDPA Singapore + per-country differences

Pick the right variant once -> all downstream emails compliant by default.

---

Workflow

Step 0: Check global context file
    |-- exists -> read product / region / customer info
    |-- missing -> suggest user run product-marketing-context-global first
Step 1: Pick region variant (US / EU / SEA / LATAM)
Step 2: Choose ESP based on region (Klaviyo / Mailchimp / ActiveCampaign / Brevo)
Step 3: Set up legal foundation (consent flow, footer, unsubscribe, DPA)
Step 4: Design segmentation (behavioral + lifecycle)
Step 5: Build sequences (welcome / nurture / re-engage / promo)
Step 6: Configure automation flow
Step 7: Set up tracking + A/B test plan

---

Step 0: Check global context file

Check whether .agents/product-marketing-context-global.md exists:

• Yes -> Read product, customer, region, language, regulation context. Do NOT re-ask.
• No -> Suggest running product-marketing-context-global first. If user wants to continue, ask 2-3 minimum questions about product + region.

---

Step 1: Pick region variant

Ask the user one question: "Which is your PRIMARY region: US, EU, SEA, or LATAM?"

Decision tree (LEGAL FRAMING)

Where do MOST of your subscribers live?
    |-- US / Canada
    |       --> 01-us.md    (CAN-SPAM Act 2003, opt-out OK, CCPA/state laws)
    |-- EU / EEA / UK
    |       --> 02-eu.md    (GDPR + ePrivacy, opt-in MANDATORY, EUR 20M penalty)
    |-- Southeast Asia (SG, MY, ID, TH, PH)
    |       --> 03-sea.md   (PDPA Singapore + per-country, mostly opt-in)
    |-- Latin America (BR, MX, AR, CO, CL)
    |       --> 04-latam.md (LGPD Brazil + LFPDPPP Mexico, opt-in mandatory)
    |-- Vietnam only
    |       --> Use `14-email-marketing` (VN skill) — Decree 13/2023
    |-- Multi-region
            --> Default to STRICTEST applicable region (usually EU GDPR)

Why "default to strictest" matters

If you sell in US + EU + LATAM, you can either:

1. Run separate sequences per region (best — but operationally heavy)
2. Apply EU GDPR rules globally (safe — but loses 20-30% US subscribers due to double opt-in friction)

For most early-stage brands, option 2 is the safer default. Document the decision in your DPA.

---

Step 2: Choose ESP (Email Service Provider)

ESP	Strength	Region fit	Legal features
Klaviyo	E-commerce / DTC	US (default), EU (with EU data center)	GDPR-ready, opt-in flows, suppression lists
Mailchimp	General-purpose, easy UI	US (HQ), EU (Intuit-owned, GDPR DPA available)	Built-in GDPR forms, double opt-in toggle
ActiveCampaign	CRM + automation	US default, global	Behavioral + GDPR consent tracking
Brevo (Sendinblue)	EU-native, transactional	EU (data residency in FR/DE), Global	GDPR by default, EU servers
Customer.io	API-first, developer-friendly	Global	GDPR + CCPA + LGPD ready
HubSpot Marketing Hub	All-in-one CRM	US default, EU (with EU hosting)	GDPR consent + cookie management

ESP picker per region

• US (DTC/e-commerce): Klaviyo (default) or Mailchimp
• US (B2B SaaS): ActiveCampaign or HubSpot
• EU: Brevo (EU servers), Klaviyo EU, Mailchimp + EU DPA
• SEA: Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign (no native local ESP dominant)
• LATAM: Brevo (BR datacenter via partner), ActiveCampaign, RD Station (BR-native)

---

Step 3: Legal foundation (varies by variant)

This is the CRITICAL step. Read the variant file carefully — it spells out the consent model, footer requirements, unsubscribe rules, and data retention specific to your region.

Universal requirements (all regions)

• Working unsubscribe link in every email
• Sender identification (brand name, physical address)
• Subject line accurately describes content (no deceptive headers)
• Honor unsubscribe within reasonable time (10 days US, 24h EU/SEA/LATAM)

Region-specific requirements (see variants)

• US: Physical postal address, opt-out within 10 days
• EU: Explicit opt-in (timestamp + IP logged), DPO if processing large data, DPA with ESP, right to erasure
• SEA: Per-country (Singapore PDPA strictest), opt-in for marketing
• LATAM: Brazil LGPD requires opt-in + DPO; Mexico LFPDPPP requires privacy notice

---

Step 4-7: Segmentation, sequences, automation, tracking

These are largely region-agnostic in CONTENT, but legal-bound in EXECUTION. The variant file documents:

• What data fields you can/cannot collect (e.g., EU requires "minimum necessary")
• Retention period (e.g., LGPD Brazil = 5 years max default)
• Cross-border transfer rules (e.g., EU -> US requires SCCs or DPF)

For sequence templates and KPI structure, the patterns are the same as the VN skill (welcome 3-email, nurture 5-email, re-engage 3-email) but with region-tuned subject lines, send times, and footer.

---

How other skills use this file

When 00-marketing-plan-global includes email as a channel, it references this skill for the operational layer. When 18-referral-program-global builds a referral flow with email triggers, it inherits the consent model from this skill.

---

Quality checklist

• Region variant chosen (US / EU / SEA / LATAM)
• ESP selected with region-appropriate data residency
• Consent model documented (opt-in vs opt-out)
• Footer compliant (physical address + unsubscribe)
• DPA signed with ESP if processing EU/UK/Brazil data
• Sequences tested in dev environment before launch
• Suppression list / hard-bounce auto-removal active
• A/B test plan documented (one variable at a time)

---

Related skills

• product-marketing-context-global — foundation context (run first)
• 11-channel-setup-global — channel infrastructure (when available)
• 18-referral-program-global — referral via email
• references/global-legal-compliance — deep legal reference

---

Global Skill 14 (Email Marketing) | Over Powers Agency | v1.0.0