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Question about "Bulk e-mail"
Question:
Hi William, >I hope I can get some feedback on this. I run a small web development >company and as a side I offer web page promotion. I submit URL’s for a >nominal fee to about 400 search engines. It is not MLM or anything like >that, but, I have been considering using "targeted bulk e-mailings" about >once a month or so, probably no more than once a month.
Submit-It Gold $56.95 William $25 Submit-It looks like lots of hassle and hard work making lots of selections. William offers a personal service and does it all for you once you have filled in one form. So the offer is submission to 400 search sites and directories for $25. Why not put that in your sig and join a banner program like linkexchange with that message? First though, sort out some instant payment method like First Virtual and some more explaination on your site. What’s the difference between "description" and "comments" for instance. If possible, also get rid of the 10 keywords rule. Also consider allowing more than one url, perhaps at the same site. You’ll probably be hearing from me! John >– >William Woods >WWWEB Publishing >Internet Publishing, Promotion and Consulting >(503) 316-8591 >Web Page http://www.cyberhighway.net/~wwweb
John Block Creative, marketing aware work which Freelance Copywriter talks rather than blandly bores, actively promotes your product, International and aims to be the best Welcomes Dollar and Sterling. in your market sector.
Response:
:>: Hi there, :>: :>: I hope I can get some feedback on this. I run a small web development :>: company and as a side I offer web page promotion. I submit URL’s for a :>: nominal fee to about 400 search engines. It is not MLM or anything like :>: that, but, I have been considering using "targeted bulk e-mailings" about :>: once a month or so, probably no more than once a month. :>: Sniped a lot off the top. Well, you got your answer. Most people hate the idea of unsolicited E-mail. I don’t read it I DO bounce it I also send it to the Postmaster. I think that most of us would give up completely on the Usenet if it wasn’t for the efforts of people like John the Moderator man to wade through the junk and spam that seems to be everywhere. and for what it’s worth: I don’t think anyone here is upset with you about asking the question. Just try to understand that there are very strong feelings about the subject matter. At least you asked about the ramifications BEFORE you went and shot yourself in the foot. The RhinoMan at C&S Technologies, where high tech solutions make a difference in everyday products.
Response:
> 1. What would be the best way to gather these e-mail addresses? I know > there is software out there that will scan a newsgroup for e-mail > addresses. Is this a good way to do this? What would be the best > software for this? What would be the best way to gather "targeted" e-mail > addresses, I don’t want to flood everybody and anybody with my ads.
Perhaps the best way to get addresses would be to conduct an online survey on a Web page of yours that gets fairly heavy traffic (if you don’t have one, you might want to strike a deal with someone who does). You can then enter the addresses in NetMailer or another bulk e-mailer program, which lets your categorize and sort the addresses based on various criteria. In addition to getting addresses, you can also gain valuable feedback about your business and your Web presence. If you find yourself having a hard time getting people to fill out the survey, make a free offer, such as a small premium, to those who fill out the survey. > 2. I only plan to do this once a month, with a mailing of about 1000 to > 2000 mailings, I really don’t want to piss anybody off, and I am not > running a get-rich-quick scheme, this is a business. What can I > REALISTICALLY expect as a return?
It’s hard to say, but it might not be that dramatic. Probably you won’t get much more than a 5% response rate, though if your offer is good enough, you could get significantly more. > 3. What, if any, is the backlash I could expect from "pissed off" people?
If people sign up for this mailing list on their own, you shouldn’t get much of a backlash. However, you should include a preamble in your messages reminding readers that they are receiving this information because they requested it, and that they can unsubscribe at any time by e-mailing you. And on your survey form, be sure to include an option allowing people *not* to subscribe to the mailing list (hopefully few people will select this, but its presence will make people more comfortable). Good luck! — Brian Pomeroy – Web Developer, Instructor & Writer http://www.slackinc.com/yoursite/ * http://www.ison.com/pomeroy/ Author, "BeginnerNet: A Beginner’s Guide to the Internet and WWW" http://www.slackinc.com/books/33225hom.htm
Response:
> I hope I can get some feedback on this. I run a small web development > company and as a side I offer web page promotion. I submit URL’s for a > nominal fee to about 400 search engines. It is not MLM or anything like > that, but, I have been considering using "targeted bulk e-mailings" about > once a month or so, probably no more than once a month. > Like I said, it would only be once a month and targeted, by that I mean I > would target people who have web pages for my URL submission service.
First of all, a little background… I’m sure your intentions are sincere. On the surface, sending a batch of 1,000 emails sounds perfectly fine and acceptable. But here are some things going on that you may not yet be aware of: 1. Internet Service Providers incur real costs each time they receive email. Some pay per-kilobyte charges or per-time charges. They don’t mind if by receiving the email they are pleasing their customers. They begin to mind when they are paying to receive email which their customers do not want. 2. Some users incur real costs for each piece of email they receive. These costs can include long-distance telephone charges, per-minute usage charges, metered-phone charges. It becomes both a nuisance and a financial burden when they download email they haven’t requested. 3. The worst kinds of spammers send hundreds of thousands, even millions, of email messages. The effect on the receiving ISP can be crippling — email boxes so full that other mail has no place to be stored, bandwidth so choked with email that their users can’t use the Internet. 4. Even though you are *not* this kind of spammer, ISP’s generally agree that if they make exceptions for your UCE, they will be opening the floodgates to hundreds of businesses like yours and creating "spam-like" situations as described in #3 above. 5. Some folks cherish the privacy of their emailbox. There is a general antipathy toward unsolicited advertising, particularly when it is not individually addressed. Further, it is socially acceptable to treat spammers with the most extreme malice and prejudice you can muster. 6. Because of the five points above, your ISP will likely disallow you to engage in the bulk emailing in the first place. Now, onto your specific questions… > The questions I have are these: > 1. What would be the best way to gather these e-mail addresses? I know > there is software out there that will scan a newsgroup for e-mail > addresses. Is this a good way to do this? What would be the best > software for this? What would be the best way to gather "targeted" e-mail > addresses, I don’t want to flood everybody and anybody with my ads.
Electronically harvesting email addresses from newsgroups is a bad idea. I don’t think there’s a reliable way to pick targeted email addresses; you’d likely be pulling in a majority of email addresses from those who do not operate websites and have no interest in your services. The best way would be to visit websites individually and send a short introductory email to the website administrator. This is a business email address and so suitable for sending individualized unsolicited email. Refer specifically to their site so they know you are not sending bulk email. You could also respond to newsgroup posts from persons expressing an interest in finding ways to promote thier site. Again, an individual as opposed to bulk approach is best. > 2. I only plan to do this once a month, with a mailing of about 1000 to > 2000 mailings, I really don’t want to piss anybody off, and I am not > running a get-rich-quick scheme, this is a business. What can I > REALISTICALLY expect as a return?
I would recommend against repeat emailings to the same address. One email is sufficient to open a dialog and give them the opportunity to respond. If you send repeat requests to them, your ads will take on a "spam-like" quality. Traditional direct marketing generally results in 1-2 per cent response rates. You can increase that rate if you engage in followup phone calls. Again, I would not recommend following up by email to those who didn’t respond to your introductory email. > 3. What, if any, is the backlash I could expect from "pissed off" people?
The most recent GVU survey found that roughly 10% of users reply to spam in a hostile manner. This is likely not the case with the kind of emails I’m suggesting above. In repsonse to bulk email, roughly 10% will send email to *your* ISP with messages that range from "kindly see that this does not happen again" to "kick this # spammer off the system." People are becoming more than annoyed, especially since the worst kinds of spammers just find another account and send you the email again. > Oh, as a side note, I am going to talk to my ISP about this also, I really > don’t want to get my account killed.
A responsible and professional approach. Bruce Gabrielle Internet Marketing Specialist
Response:
: Hi there, : : I hope I can get some feedback on this. I run a small web development : company and as a side I offer web page promotion. I submit URL’s for a : nominal fee to about 400 search engines. It is not MLM or anything like : that, but, I have been considering using "targeted bulk e-mailings" about : once a month or so, probably no more than once a month. : : Like I said, it would only be once a month and targeted, by that I mean I : would target people who have web pages for my URL submission service. : I don’t care what your mailing out or how often. If I didn’t write to you : The questions I have are these: : : 1. What would be the best way to gather these e-mail addresses? I know : there is software out there that will scan a newsgroup for e-mail : addresses. Is this a good way to do this? What would be the best : software for this? What would be the best way to gather "targeted" e-mail : addresses, I don’t want to flood everybody and anybody with my ads. What makes you think that because I have participated in a newsgroup I want to pay for your unsolicited commercial announcement? : : 2. I only plan to do this once a month, with a mailing of about 1000 to : 2000 mailings, I really don’t want to piss anybody off, and I am not : running a get-rich-quick scheme, this is a business. What can I : REALISTICALLY expect as a return? You can realistically expect about a thousand copies of your message sent back to your mailing address and a polite request to your service provider to shut your ass down. : : 3. What, if any, is the backlash I could expect from "pissed off" people? I think we have covered this. find the spam FAQ. There is no such thing as acceptable unsolicited commercial email. : I appreciate any help on this thanks. : No problem glad we could stop you before you became a menace and a royal pain in the ass.
Response:
: Hi there, : : I hope I can get some feedback on this. I run a small web development : company and as a side I offer web page promotion. I submit URL’s for a : nominal fee to about 400 search engines. It is not MLM or anything like : that, but, I have been considering using "targeted bulk e-mailings" about : once a month or so, probably no more than once a month. <SNIP> : — : William Woods Glad you asked! I suggest you take a look at the thread on "Is all unsolicited email objectionable?" before you decide to use a "targeted" audience. You might try instead to participate in news groups and keep your eyes peeled for questions about "how do I make a web page?". This may take more time, but you won’t be annoying people and you might just help someone. Good luck. DKC — Doug Cottrill, PTM Software ANY unsolicited email (UCE) will be returned unread. A message will also be forwarded to your postmaster asking that you be stopped from sending further UCEs.
Response:
[snip] : I have been considering using "targeted bulk e-mailings" about : once a month or so, probably no more than once a month. : Like I said, it would only be once a month and targeted, by that I mean I : would target people who have web pages for my URL submission service. : The questions I have are these: : 2. I only plan to do this once a month, with a mailing of about 1000 to : 2000 mailings, I really don’t want to piss anybody off, and I am not : running a get-rich-quick scheme, this is a business. What can I : REALISTICALLY expect as a return? : 3. What, if any, is the backlash I could expect from "pissed off" people? There is a very good chance your mailbox will get full, most likely from responses from people who did not want to recieve the email. My standard policy is to bounce the message back to the sender and the postmster at the site saying no to spam. Most mailing software cannot handle much more than 1-2MB of messages, so a mailbox typically gets full after 200+ messages (depending on size of message etc.) Another logistical problem you my face is the uneven distribution of effort. In the old days of junk snail mail, it made economic sense to do a bulk miling, as this recieved a preferential rate. For junk email (which is what you are proposing), a better solution would be to send 50-100 messages daily. That way you will get feedback faster about the efficiency of the mechanism and only annoy 200 people before you cease and desist. The model of using bulk junk email only works when there are a few polluters. As more "marketers" discover the joys of email (free "targetted" messages), we all get so much garbage in our inbox that it makes email an impractical communication mechanism. It is nearly getting to be as bad as Usenet, where some (most?) newsgroups are now 95% spam, that finding the few useful snippets takes too long to be of any use. So I suggest finding another way of getting your message out, because unsolicited bulk email immediately puts you into the category of all the scam artists. Pete — Pete McBreen, Roshi Software Engineering , Calgary, AB http://www.cadvision.com/roshi Using Creativity and Objects for Process Improvement
Response:
Hi there, I hope I can get some feedback on this. I run a small web development company and as a side I offer web page promotion. I submit URL’s for a nominal fee to about 400 search engines. It is not MLM or anything like that, but, I have been considering using "targeted bulk e-mailings" about once a month or so, probably no more than once a month. Like I said, it would only be once a month and targeted, by that I mean I would target people who have web pages for my URL submission service. The questions I have are these: 1. What would be the best way to gather these e-mail addresses? I know there is software out there that will scan a newsgroup for e-mail addresses. Is this a good way to do this? What would be the best software for this? What would be the best way to gather "targeted" e-mail addresses, I don’t want to flood everybody and anybody with my ads. 2. I only plan to do this once a month, with a mailing of about 1000 to 2000 mailings, I really don’t want to piss anybody off, and I am not running a get-rich-quick scheme, this is a business. What can I REALISTICALLY expect as a return? 3. What, if any, is the backlash I could expect from "pissed off" people? I appreciate any help on this thanks. Oh, as a side note, I am going to talk to my ISP about this also, I really don’t want to get my account killed. — William Woods WWWEB Publishing Internet Publishing, Promotion and Consulting (503) 316-8591 Web Page http://www.cyberhighway.net/~wwweb