When Joel Cheesman initially reviewed Jigsaw’s privacy and removal policy last September, he wasn’t impressed. At all.
Cheesman wrote a fairly scathing review of the business directory’s muddled privacy and removal policies:
A look at Jigsaw’s Suppression Request Form (PDF), reveals a process riddled in inconvenience (fill out a paper and send back stuff) and no real promise of your privacy, saying “suppression means that my information may be hidden from view on Jigsaw.com, but may or may not be removed from the database” and “suppression may not prevent the reentry of the same or similar information.”
In an environment wrought with trust issues – $700 billion bailout anyone? – companies earning a high level of trust with consumers are the biggest winners. Jigsaw isn’t in this category.
In an effort to bring up his grade from an “F,” Jigsaw’s CEO Jim Fowler reached out to Cheezhead for a second chance to showcase Jigsaw’s new Privacy Central tab, which is now displayed in the site’s ‘About Us’ page.
“Joel’s post gave us a much needed kick-in-the-butt,” Fowler said. “We have always been far more open and transparent than the Data Dinosaurs, but it wasn’t enough. We believe with automated removal/suppression that we have widened the gap.”
So what’s changed? According to Fowler, the PDF removal form has been expunged in favor of an automated process. By clicking on the “Am I in Jigsaw?” link at the bottom of every Jigsaw page or within the new Privacy Central Section (the FAQs), anyone listed on the Jigsaw Directory can remove themselves.
Except people aren’t really REMOVING their names – they’re just ’suppressing’ them. Get it?
Fowler explained, “When someone wants to be removed from the directory, what they really want, when they understand what is going on, is to be suppressed. If we remove someone’s record it can just be added back the next day. Suppression keeps the record on the database in a suppressed state so that it cannot be viewed – and cannot be re-added.”
He goes on to say that most people don’t want to be removed anyway. “Interestingly, the percentage of people who want to be removed or suppressed is miniscule compared to the number of people who want to be on the directory. I think this is because we allow people to post preferences and instructions, which forces members of Jigsaw who contact them to read their instructions first.”
Fowler said that with the addition of the automated supression policy, Jigsaw is differentiating themselves from competitors.
“The whole purpose of us spending a bunch of time to create this is to make sure that Jigsaw is absolutely open and transparent about what we do, what our policies are, and give everyone listed on our Directory the opportunity to remove/suppress their business card,” he said. “We believe we are the only B2B data company which even has a Privacy Central or goes to any lengths to educate about privacy.”
Here is Jigsaw’s Privacy Policy in detail. The FAQs state that it is Jigsaw’s policy to notify each person within the database that their info is listed. It is then up to that same person to decide whether they want to suppress their identity or change their preferences. Are these policies transparent, or do you think they could be ameliorated more?
Fowler wants your input. He said, “I would value your feedback on how we can improve on this concept as Privacy Central is still a work in progress. Our intention is to make sure we are dead clear about what we do and don’t do.”
Popularity: unranked [?]
June 19th, 2009 at 9:16 am
@Vaneesa,
Not sure if you are saying that “suppressed” is a bad thing..or a trick. Suppressing is what is needed in this type of situation for the reason Fowler explained…you don’t want the process repeated.
Same thing with unsubscribing from email newsletters, they don’t delete your data..they just tag as “Do Not Email.” If they are a “spam company,” they then probably just sell it to another spam company and the cycle continues.
I used to work as a systems analyst for a large mortgage lender (before the bomb) and they would buy the customer list from a major tv satellite provider…reason…if you get satellite tv you probably have it attached to a house you own and we would call you to re-write your mortgage.
I also used to work as an systems analyst for a staffing agency/payroll provider that would send the payroll list to the FBI looking for dead beat dads.
The “data deals” that go on behind the scenes at companies is extremely interesting…and spooky.
There is something to be learned here for recruiters by what Jigsaw is doing. That is, what do you do when you email or call someone and they say, “No, not interested.” Most recruiters just move onto the next name…only to find themselves repeating “the process” regarding the first “no” somewhere down the line. Or, perhaps they put a note in the spreadsheet they are working from…which only they see and goes nowhere and sits unused after they are done with that list.
If you are using a CRM to recruit, even when they say no…add them to your CRM and note that. Then, you will “learn from today for tomorrow” and you won’t have to repeat your work. If you work in a team off that same CRM, you all get to share the info and can all “learn”…and future recruiters who work at that company can also “learn from history.”
This is a simple way to go from being a transactional recruiter to building a recruiting program. I am continually amazed at the number of companies that have HUGE talent databases and they do nothing with them.
Word to the wise about companies seeking “Social Media” interaction. You really should have a strong grasp of your “talent database” that you already have before looking to add to it in the way that social media works. That would be like giving the outside of your house a new coat of paint while your house sits empty of furniture.
One last point on “candidate declines.” When they say no, ask them why and track it in your CRM. Over a small period of time, you will get some very interesting metrics. Its also great for “push back” data when it comes to meetings with your business line. People won’t work for us because…
June 19th, 2009 at 7:13 pm
Vanessa,
First off, I love that you do follow-up stories. It’s a sign of good journalism, so keep it up.
I think Sean’s comment nails it. Suppression is the right move in this context…
Guy Kawasaki had a great summary, and a solid interview with Jim Fowler nearly three years ago. (useful to see how far Jigsaw has come). Guy states: “This is a heinous invasion of privacy, but if I find out that any of Garage’s portfolio companies aren’t using it, I will expect a good explanation.”
http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2006/08/ten_questions_w_1.html