Creative & technical
Backup for marketing and communications agencies on tight deadlines
Mindtime backs up the mailboxes, Drive or OneDrive folders, laptops and NAS where your campaigns are made, and keeps immutable copies in its own data centres in the Netherlands and Germany. Every job is checked, so a deleted folder or a hijacked account does not take a client's work with it.
In Dutch, German or English.
- NL · DEStored only in our own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany
- ImmutableObject Lock storage plus an air-gapped copy; every backup job is checked
- ISO 27001 · NEN 7510Audited security, with a data processing agreement in every contract
- NL · DE · ENSupport from people, no offshore call centres or chatbots
In short
Marketing and communications agencies need independent backups because client assets, approvals and contact lists are spread across cloud accounts and laptops, and one compromised login can wipe a campaign. Mindtime backs up Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, laptops and the studio NAS to its own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany, immutable and with an air-gapped copy.
What's at stake
The data marketing and communications agencies can't afford to lose
Campaign source files
Layered design files, video edits and copy decks are what you charge for. A flattened PDF in the client's inbox is no help when they ask for one change to last year's campaign.
Briefs, approvals and usage rights
Signed quotes, client approvals and the licences for photos, fonts and music settle disputes about what was agreed. They tend to sit in one account manager's mailbox.
Contact lists and consent records
Mailing lists and the proof that people opted in belong to your clients, but you hold them. Losing the consent trail can stop a campaign or leave a client unable to show it may send.
Rules and obligations
What the rules ask of marketing and communications agencies
Summarised from the sources listed at the bottom of this page. This is general information, not legal advice.
Prove consent for up to five years
Under Article 11.7 of the Telecommunicatiewet you may send commercial email to consumers only with prior consent, apart from existing customers. The ACM says you must be able to prove that consent for up to five years after sending, so keep the records that show it. [1]
You are often the processor
When you handle a client's customer data on their instructions, the client is the controller and your agency is the processor. The Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens requires a processing agreement between the two that sets out exactly what you may do with the data. [2]
Tell the client about a breach straight away
If your agency loses or exposes client personal data as a processor, you must inform the client as soon as possible. The client then decides whether to report to the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens and to the people affected. [2]
Agencies are outside NIS2
Marketing and communications services are not among the sectors in the Cyberbeveiligingswet, the Dutch NIS2 law. Clients that are in scope must secure their relationships with direct suppliers and may ask you how their data is protected. [3]
When it goes wrong
A phished login and an emptied Drive
Illustrative example: an account manager at a communications agency enters her password on a fake login page, and the attacker deletes her Drive folders and empties the trash to hide what was copied. Nobody notices until a client asks for the open files of a spring campaign more than a month later. The agency restores the folders and the related mail from its Mindtime backup, which sits in Mindtime's own data centres and could not be changed through her account. Because client personal data may have been exposed, the agency also informs the affected clients so they can decide on reporting.
How Mindtime protects it
Backup for marketing and communications agencies, workload by workload
- Google Workspace backupBriefs, approvals and campaign folders often live in Gmail and Drive, where one hijacked account can delete them.
- Microsoft 365 backupClient mail and shared campaign documents run through Outlook, OneDrive and SharePoint.
- Laptop and endpoint backupDesigners and editors work on large local files on their laptops, often between syncs.
- NAS backupStudio NAS devices hold video, photo libraries and the archive of finished campaigns.
The software you use, and what we protect around it
| HubSpot | HubSpot lets you export records and download a backup of your CRM data. Mindtime does not back up HubSpot itself; store those exports in Google Drive, OneDrive or on a NAS and Mindtime protects them with the rest. |
|---|---|
| Adobe Creative Cloud | Working files saved on laptops or the studio NAS are covered by Mindtime's endpoint and NAS backup. For files kept only in Adobe's cloud storage, check Adobe's retention terms. |
| Figma | Figma lets you save a local copy of a file (.fig), without version history or comments. Saved copies in Drive, OneDrive or on a laptop are included in Mindtime's backup. |
| Google Workspace (Gmail, Drive) | Where many agencies brief, share and approve. Mindtime backs up Gmail and Drive to the Netherlands and Germany. |
| Microsoft 365 (Outlook, OneDrive, SharePoint) | For agencies on Microsoft, Mindtime backs up mailboxes, OneDrive and SharePoint outside Microsoft's environment. |
Google Workspace
Google Workspace backup for marketing agencies
Agencies on Google run their work through Gmail threads with clients, shared folders in Drive and shared drives per account. Google's trash and Vault cover everyday mistakes and legal holds, but they are not a backup you control.
- Files deleted in Drive stay in the trash for 30 days; once a user empties it, an admin has 25 more days to recover them.
- Deleting a user's account removes their data from Google, and an admin can restore their Drive files for only 20 days afterwards.
- Google says plainly that Vault isn't designed to be a backup or archive tool.
- Mindtime backs up Gmail and Drive to its own data centres in the Netherlands and Germany, and you can try it free for 7 days.
Before you switch
What marketing and communications agencies ask us first
The client owns the data. Isn't backup their responsibility?
They are responsible, but you are the one holding the files and the processing agreement says how you must look after them. Mindtime works under its own data processing agreement and keeps your copies in its own data centres in the Netherlands and Germany.
We are a twelve-person agency. Do we need this?
Small agencies rarely have someone checking backups, which is exactly when a deleted folder goes unnoticed. Mindtime checks every backup job, monitors around the clock and gives you support from its own people in Dutch, German or English.
Where does client material end up?
To two locations: Mindtime's own data centres in the Netherlands and Germany. Data is encrypted in transit with AES-256, admin actions require MFA and Mindtime is audited against ISO 27001.
FAQ
Questions about backup for marketing and communications agencies
Can Mindtime back up HubSpot?
Not directly: Mindtime has no HubSpot connector. HubSpot itself lets you export records and download a backup of your CRM data; save those exports to Google Drive, OneDrive or your NAS on a fixed schedule and Mindtime keeps immutable copies of them. Check HubSpot's own terms for what it retains on its platform.
How long must we keep consent records for email campaigns?
The ACM says senders must be able to prove consent for commercial email for up to five years after sending. If you manage lists on behalf of clients, agree in the processing agreement who keeps that proof and where. Set your backup retention so the records survive at least as long.
What happens if ransomware hits our studio NAS?
You restore from copies outside your network. Mindtime keeps backups immutable with Object Lock, holds an air-gapped copy and scans backups for malware before you restore. As a processor, you also inform affected clients quickly so they can decide whether to report the breach.
Is Google Drive's version history not enough?
It helps with small mistakes, but it lives in the same account as the file. If the account is compromised or deleted, history and trash go with it. A separate backup in Mindtime's own data centres stays independent of what happens in your Google or Microsoft account.
How quickly can we start?
Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 backup come with a 7-day free trial, so you can test a restore of a real campaign folder before you decide. A free 15-minute demo covers laptops and the NAS. Mindtime has been in business since 1998.
See it with your own data
Book a 15-minute demo
We show you a backup and a restore, and answer your questions in Dutch, German or English. No offshore call centres, no chatbots.