Re: legitimate unsolicited commercial e-mail vs spam

From: Bob Fertik <bob_at_i-progress.com>
Date: Sat 6 Nov 1999 14:02:52 -0500

MODERATOR WROTE:
> Bob Fertik's post was definitely harsh.

I apologize.

I read David's original post and came away with the
impression that he had considered all of the arguments
against spam, and had simply decided to ignore them. I
considered this arrogant in the extreme.

Point, shoot, aim.

In a personal exchange, I learned that David meant no harm,
but was simply under-informed. He said he found my posted
articles helpful. I apologized to him personally.

As for the topic at hand, no one is going to start a flame
war over a polite personal email, even if unsolicited.

But there is simply no way to carve out a category of
"legitimate" unsolicited e-mail. If you open the door even
slightly, spammers will jump through it by the thousand,
falsely claiming that they are complying with the
principles even as they thoroughly abuse them.

To me, spammers are like cockroaches. You have to squash
every one you see, and make sure there is no food lying
around to attract them. Occasionally you have to call in
the exterminator. I recommend spamcop.net, which was
recently introduced to me by a list member.

I don't see why any intelligent marketer needs to resort to
spam of any kind. The Internet offers so many cheap and
effective channels to reach narrowly targeted audiences.

Maybe this list needs to help its members find all of those
channels. I know how difficult it is to keep up with all of
the targeting possibilities. I go to every conference I can
and read as many newsletters and listservs as I can. Even
so, I barely scratch the surface of possibilities.

I have yet to find a site that provides A-Z on
cost-effective targeted prospect marketing on the Internet
using legimate techniques - banners, ezine sponsorships,
and opt-in e-mail ads.

Would folks like to suggest some sites? If there is no
complete site, maybe we could create our own annotated
guide for targeted prospect marketing.


Bob Fertik, President
i-Progress
Internet Fundraising, Publicity, and Advertising
For Progressive Candidates and Causes
www.i-Progress.com
bob_at_i-Progress.com
212-396-3457
PO Box 20594 New York, NY 10021




Received on Sat Nov 06 1999 - 13:02:52 CST