ArchiveFebruary 2009

February 13, 2009

Double opt-in, it's not what you think it is

By laura

2 Min read

3 comments

13February

Bill McCloskey has a post over on ClickZ about single opt-in vs. double opt-in. The post itself is generating a lot of buzz in the industry and has pages and pages of comments. I’m not going to really comment on the post, as I think much of what I would say has been covered in the comments, in posts here and in every email marketing discussion that has happened in the last 5 years. I do...

February 12, 2009

Question from the comments

By laura

2 Min read

2 comments

12February

On yesterday’s post there is a question in the comments that I think needs a bit more discussion. I guess the real question as a recipient is if you are getting so much spam that you cannot spot the good from the chaff, what did you do to start with to get your address syndicated on so many bad lists? There are a lot of ways spammers get addresses. Some of them rely on users to submit email...

February 11, 2009

The unexpected email

By laura

1 Min read

2 comments

11February

In almost every discussion of “how to stop spam” someone will come up with the idea that if a recipient only allowed known people to send them email then the spam problem would be solved. There are lots of problems with this type of solution, but one of the biggest is that it ignores that sometimes the unexpected email is wanted. Typically, these unexpected but wanted emails is from...

February 10, 2009

Building a list for the long term

By laura

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10February

Mark Brownlow asks 2 key questions senders should be thinking about for their list building strategy for 2009. What do your emails offer that people can’t get from any other email list? If a competitor started offering the same content or similar offers, why would subscribers stay with your list? Discounts and coupons may generate short term subscriptions, but Mark discusses if they are the...

February 9, 2009

Negative branding, part 2

By laura

4 Min read

1 comment

09February

Last week I commented on negative branding in email. One of the comments on that post was an advertisement for a company called WrapMail. In the course of attempting to determine if this was spam or a real comment, I checked out their website. While the comment itself may not be spam, and it may not be providing services to spammers, the entire business model strikes me as a delivery nightmare...

February 5, 2009

Who is Julia and why won't she leave me alone?

By laura

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05February

There seems to be some new spam software in use. Julia <random last name> keeps telling me about her new webcam, how much she wants to date me and wants to know when I want to visit. These spams started February 1. I’ve had 179 caught by my MUA filters, and 152 caught by spamassassin (SA score >7 are filtered to a special account). This is exactly the type of pattern that causes...

February 4, 2009

List hygiene

By laura

1 Min read

1 comment

04February

Bronto blog has step by step directions on how to run a successful re-engagement campaign.

February 3, 2009

Finding relevancy

By laura

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03February

I frequently talk about sending relevant emails. Today Ken Magill reviewed the new book Successful E-mail Marketing Strategies, from Hunting to Farming by Arthur Middleton Hughes and Arthur Sweetser. In Ken’s words: “Successful Marketing Strategies” doesn’t just tell readers they should send relevant e-mail. It explains how to achieve relevance and measure it. It explains old-school...

February 2, 2009

Negative brand building with email

By laura

2 Min read

2 comments

02February

Seth Godin compares and contrasts two different email campaigns he’s received. One is a opt-in campaign that is highly relevant to him. The other is spam, sent to two “discovered” email addresses. The whole post is very good, but there are a couple things he said that bear repeating. There are a hundred ways to skulk around, to collect email addresses, to write clever privacy...