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From a
reader:
Spam
has become a problem for many and also a cause for concern.
When are you spamming and when aren’t you? Two things occurred in the past month that caused me to think
I should ask an associate to write an article about the use of email in
marketing.
1. A client asked me to speak with a business operator who told her she could get more email addresses for her database very easily. When I spoke to him it seemed he was keen to sell her software that would pick up email addresses from websites she visited. I told her I didn’t think this would be a good idea – she already has a large proven database of permission-based addresses (people who have asked her to put them on her list) and I felt she didn’t want to taint her list with addresses that weren’t given by permission; and
2.
A business operator in the US emailed a large number of people
about something she was doing in business – the problem was she received
lots of complaints about the email and her approach had been considered
inappropriate. Discussions
with her found that she had purchased what she believed to be a
permission-based list and later discovered that this was not the case –
the guy who sold her the list couldn’t proved the list was
permission-based and the matter is now being put into legal hands.
How to lose
customers and opportunities at the click of a mouse –
Email
has become a recognised method of communication, as much as a phone call
or letter these days and for many of us in business, it’s often the
preferred way to talk to prospects and customers. But when email is abused, it brings out resentment and
annoyance that phone calls or letters have never been able to achieve.
In
the art of email marketing, an email address is just the beginning.
Correct business etiquette is demanded and business has been lost
by those who dare to assume they can simply email information to people
they don’t know.
But
just what makes us so protective about our email address? Part of the
problem has been through the millions of unsolicited email sent each day
promoting Via*gra, prescription drugs, body shaping, pen*is enlargements
and porn sites. The sheer
annoyance of receiving this type of email means the unsuspecting email
sent to you about something that you personally disagree with, has an
adverse reaction.
You
can easily check the correct email address in an email by viewing the
headers of the email. Most
offensive spam is sent with non-returnable email addresses and often
responding to a *remove me* link puts you on their list, NOT removing you.
So, ignore those one that seem to be obvious spam.
However,
if you believe you have been sent an email without your permission, and
it’s obviously business related, and you may recognise some of the
content and it annoys you, make the effort to send an email back and ask
the person where they get your name from.
The person should be able to clearly identify where your
information was obtained. It
is possible you may have signed up for something and forgotten, or perhaps
met them, handed your card to them and been put onto their mailing list.
On
the other side of the email – how do you introduce yourself or services
to someone you don’t know? How on earth was it done in the olden days
– the days before email? It
was usually by soliciting names on the phone, sending a letter or a fax.
All of these had an element of cost and effort to them, so overall,
less likely to be abused.
In
normal business practice, an element of spam or nuisance mail really does
need to be tolerated simply because if you are out handing your cards,
leaving your business details at different functions and location, it is
going to happen. Even though
laws may come in to eliminate this, the ‘closing the gate after the
horse has bolted’ approach isn’t easy to implement.
In
reality, if you receive an email that specifically stated – “Hi
Nina, I found your name in the Yellow Pages and I am emailing you once
only to ask you...” a
couple of thoughts would run through your mind, wouldn’t it?
Firstly – your name has been mentioned, secondly, there is a
clear statement of where the name was retrieved from, and thirdly –
it’s a once-off email, so while you might not like it, you could find it
more palatable because it was a once-off introduction email.
In
short, if you receive an email from someone who cannot clearly identify
EXACTLY where your name came from, it can be regarded as SPAM and you are
entitled to report the email accordingly to the websites that manage IP
Addresses (found in the header of email) and can blacklist them if enough
people complain.
-
Any reputable list owner is extremely protective over their names.
-
A reputable list owner WILL NOT hand their list over to any person who pays them.
-
A reputable list owner has received permission from ALL the members to allow third party emailing.
-
A reputable email campaigner can ALWAYS identify where a name came from.
If
you have any further questions about spam, feel free to email me
Nina Meiers, nina@emailer.com.au
www.emailer.com.au (as seen
in the October 2003 edition of BPR)
Web links can be found at
our site under Business
Partners. If you are interested in accepting credit
cards for payment from your clients, without the cost of setting up bank
merchant accounts – please check out the information under Stratapay.
Not only will you be able to accept payments by credit card, but
also through BPay, Billpay, Austpost and a number of other options. This is a new service now being made available to small
businesses – so we can provide the same facilities as big business.
Visit
Seminars
to find out about The Art of Influence. Testimonials under Case
Studies (if you’d like to contribute a testimonial your
contact details and weblink may be included). List of new ACS
members at VA
Directory. And click here for my own current rates.
Please note that these rates do not apply to the team
members of "A Clayton's Secretary" - each member works with
their own rates, depending on their geographical location, experience and
skill.
Have a great month and a great year!
Kathie
Award-winning
Secretarial
Support with Virtual Assistants
The
team at “A Clayton’s Secretary” wish you the very best for 2003 in
the way of business success, prosperity, family blessings, peace, joy and
contentment.
Providing global support in many languages
to businesses around the world!
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