The 3 Things To Avoid When Emailing Your List
Posted 11-17-2008 at 12:13 PM by Barbara Womack
When you have an opt-in list, it is not just a matter of sending your subscribers your promotional newsletters or catalogs. There are many things to consider in avoiding complications. While there are many ways you can get people subscribe to your list, there are also some things you must do to avoid subscribers from wanting to unsubscribe from your list.
Aside from that, you also want to avoid any problems with the law and your ISP, aka Internet Service Provider. There are now many rules and laws that have been applied to help protect the privacy of the internet users from spamming and unwanted emails. With the popularity of the electronic mail as a medium for marketing because of the low cost, many companies have seized the opportunity and have flooded many people’s e-mail accounts with promotional mail.
But, with an opt-in list, you avoid this annoyance because people subscribe to your list; they want to receive the newsletters and promotional materials. They have consented to being on the list by subscribing themselves, just don’t forget to put an unsubscribe feature each time in your opt-in list so that you avoid any confusion. There may be times when an email account was provided when the real owner didn’t want to subscribe.
It is essential that you keep your list clean and manageable. Arrange it by using the many tools and technologies available for your opt-in list. Do not worry; your investment in this marketing strategy is well worth it with all the coverage you will get which will likely be converted into sales then to profit.
Keep yourself and your business out of trouble and potential run-ins with the law and the internet service providers. Keep your operation legit and clean. Your reputation as a legitimate business person and legitimate site depends on your being a straight and true marketing strategist.
Here are three things to avoid when emailing your list.
1) Take notice of your unsuccessful sends. These are the e-mails that sometimes bounce. Bounced emails, also known as undeliverable messages, are those messages that, for whatever reason, were not successfully received by the intended recipient.
There are bounces that occur because the server was busy at that time but can still be delivered at a later time. There are also bounces because the inbox of the recipient is full at that time. There are those bounce messages that are simply undeliverable ever. The reason for this is that it may be an invalid email address, a misspelled email address, or an email address that was abandoned and erased already.
Manage your list by putting markings on those that bounce. Erase an email account from your list so that you have an accurate statistics and records as to how many are actually receiving your mail. You may also want to check the spellings of your email addresses in your list. One common mistake is when an N instead of an M is placed in the .com area.
2) Always provide an unsubscribe feature in your site and an unsubscribe link in your emails. When someone in your list files a request to be unsubscribed, always take that request seriously. If you don’t take them off your list and keep sending them your e-mails, you are now sending them spam mail.
If and when you are reported as a spammer, you and your business could get into a lot of trouble. You can be reported to the authorities and maybe blacklisted by many internet service providers. You will lose a lot of subscribers this way and many more in potential subscribers. Trust me, It is not worth it!
3) Do not put pornographic, shocking or disturbing content in your newsletters. It is hard to know the age of the recipient and many complaints may stem from this. Controversial issues also are to be avoided to not be branded by your subscribers. Stick to the nature of your site and business.
(Always remember these tips in this article so that you can have a healthy and happy relationship with your subscribers as well as be kept within the boundaries of what is allowed in sending emails to an opt-in list.)
Your feedback is always welcome!
Barbara Womack
http://bwwomack.blogspot.com
Aside from that, you also want to avoid any problems with the law and your ISP, aka Internet Service Provider. There are now many rules and laws that have been applied to help protect the privacy of the internet users from spamming and unwanted emails. With the popularity of the electronic mail as a medium for marketing because of the low cost, many companies have seized the opportunity and have flooded many people’s e-mail accounts with promotional mail.
But, with an opt-in list, you avoid this annoyance because people subscribe to your list; they want to receive the newsletters and promotional materials. They have consented to being on the list by subscribing themselves, just don’t forget to put an unsubscribe feature each time in your opt-in list so that you avoid any confusion. There may be times when an email account was provided when the real owner didn’t want to subscribe.
It is essential that you keep your list clean and manageable. Arrange it by using the many tools and technologies available for your opt-in list. Do not worry; your investment in this marketing strategy is well worth it with all the coverage you will get which will likely be converted into sales then to profit.
Keep yourself and your business out of trouble and potential run-ins with the law and the internet service providers. Keep your operation legit and clean. Your reputation as a legitimate business person and legitimate site depends on your being a straight and true marketing strategist.
Here are three things to avoid when emailing your list.
1) Take notice of your unsuccessful sends. These are the e-mails that sometimes bounce. Bounced emails, also known as undeliverable messages, are those messages that, for whatever reason, were not successfully received by the intended recipient.
There are bounces that occur because the server was busy at that time but can still be delivered at a later time. There are also bounces because the inbox of the recipient is full at that time. There are those bounce messages that are simply undeliverable ever. The reason for this is that it may be an invalid email address, a misspelled email address, or an email address that was abandoned and erased already.
Manage your list by putting markings on those that bounce. Erase an email account from your list so that you have an accurate statistics and records as to how many are actually receiving your mail. You may also want to check the spellings of your email addresses in your list. One common mistake is when an N instead of an M is placed in the .com area.
2) Always provide an unsubscribe feature in your site and an unsubscribe link in your emails. When someone in your list files a request to be unsubscribed, always take that request seriously. If you don’t take them off your list and keep sending them your e-mails, you are now sending them spam mail.
If and when you are reported as a spammer, you and your business could get into a lot of trouble. You can be reported to the authorities and maybe blacklisted by many internet service providers. You will lose a lot of subscribers this way and many more in potential subscribers. Trust me, It is not worth it!
3) Do not put pornographic, shocking or disturbing content in your newsletters. It is hard to know the age of the recipient and many complaints may stem from this. Controversial issues also are to be avoided to not be branded by your subscribers. Stick to the nature of your site and business.
(Always remember these tips in this article so that you can have a healthy and happy relationship with your subscribers as well as be kept within the boundaries of what is allowed in sending emails to an opt-in list.)
Your feedback is always welcome!
Barbara Womack
http://bwwomack.blogspot.com
