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Mailchimp support

Mailchimp “parent/child” accounts

Communications & Marketing owns and manages the university’s central Mailchimp account. Departments and faculties can operate their own “child” Mailchimp accounts to send commercial electronic messages (CEMs) to ensure compliance with Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) under this structure. 

What C&M provide

  • Brand-aligned, CASL-aware templates (so required elements like identity/contact/unsubscribe are built in as a Mailchimp default)
  • Guidance on configuration and sending practices (we can help get you set up)

What departments/faculties are responsible for

Even with Mailchimp, your unit is responsible for:

  • Your content (what you say, claims you make, accuracy, tone - brand and editorial compliance)
  • Your mailing lists (how addresses were collected, consent status, suppression/unsubscribed handling)
  • Your audience targeting and frequency 

Mailchimp can help you deliver compliant emails, but it can’t create consent you didn’t actually get. CASL compliance still requires list quality and consent evidence.

Managing your emails:

Sending emails

  • Sending a newsletter or campaign email through mailchimp with C&M support

    Use the C&M model when:

    • You’re emailing external audiences at scale (newsletters, campaign sends, event promotion)
    • You need reliable unsubscribe handling and list management
    • You want templates that already match the university’s brand and web accessibility expectations

    Typical workflow

    1. Fill out our Project Initiation Form to begin the process of working with C&M on setting up your account and newsletter
    2. Build/confirm your list source (how consent was collected, whether it’s express or implied, and whether implied consent has expired) - this will be imported into Mailchimp. If you don't have a list and are asking for subscriptions on your website, we can help with this.
    3. Use approved C&M templates in your child account
    4. Include a clear purpose and keep the message aligned to what people consented to receive
    5. Send a test, validate links and footer content
    6. After sending, monitor bounces/unsubscribes and keep your list clean
  • Manage your own emails outside Mailchimp

    Sometimes people send messages using Outlook, another platform, or event tools.

    That can be fine for:

    • True one-to-one communication
    • Messages that aren’t CEMs
    • Narrow operational messages where you’re not doing promotional broadcasting

    But if you’re sending CEMs in bulk, you still must:

    • Have consent (express or implied)
    • Identify sender and include valid contact info
    • Include a working unsubscribe mechanism
    • Process unsubscribes within 10 business days
    • Keep records, because you must be able to prove consent

    Note: f you don’t have tooling that automatically tracks unsubscribes and suppression lists, bulk sending becomes a compliance risk.


Before you hit send, confirm:

  • Is this a CEM? Does it encourage participation in a commercial activity (even partly)?
  • Consent: Do we have express consent, or a valid form of implied consent that hasn’t expired?
  • Identification + contact info: Does the message clearly identify who is sending and how to contact us?
  • Contact validity: Will that contact info remain valid for at least 60 days?
  • Unsubscribe: Is there an unsubscribe mechanism that’s free, functional, and easy to use?
  • Unsubscribe handling: Do we have a process to action unsubscribes within 10 business days?
  • Proof: If someone asked, could we prove how/when consent was obtained?

Where to get help

For official background reading on CASL and oversight bodies, see the Office of the Privacy Commissioner’s CASL overview.