Know-How Exchange : E-Marketing

You will probably hear a fair number of responses telling you that you're spamming and that you should never send email in this manner.

Having said that, in the real world people do this all day. And my guess is that no one's going to talk you out of it. I mean, with all those tasty email addresses just staring at you, how can you resist?

So, since you're going to do this, you might as well follow as close to best practices as possible.

First, I'd send only a text email, and I'd keep it short.

Second, I'd make some attempt to make the email look like it's just you sending that person a one-on-one email, meaning you're going to make reference to the recipient's first name, company, industry, etc. You need to do this tactfully.

Yes, most people will know that you're merging the email, but many won't. Also, the ones that know will still probably appreciate the fact that you didn't send something that looks like a full on blatant promotion.

You're not going to get a 100% response rate, so you might as well really please the tiny percentage of people who are going to reply.

I'd make the call to action easy. What's the goal? Phone call? Meeting?

And of course, make the email compliant...your name, address, and a remove link must be in there.

We don't provide this kind of support to our clients because we have to keep our noses clean to keep deliverability up for our other clients. But, we know that some companies do exactly what you're talking about doing, and they do it very successfully with minimal complaint.

Good luck.

OK, I realize this will sound harsh... but permission means permission. You either have it or you don't.

As for optin/optout not being a legal requirement - that's news to me - but I do know for a fact that complaints can lead to prosecution and that you can be fined up to $11,000 per email. Hardly seems worth it.

Here's the link to the FTC website with the rules.

https://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/canspam.shtm

Instead of spamming people, why not do something else to get their attention? Have a contest. Send postcards or FedEx packages. Charge a lot of money. Partner with someone else. Send notes to each exec promising to donate 10% of all proceeds to his/her favorite charity.

Do something, if I may paraphrase Seth, that's remarkable. What's your "purple cow"??

As for optin/optout not being a legal requirement - that's news to me - but I do know for a fact that complaints can lead to prosecution and that you can be fined up to $11,000 per email. Hardly seems worth it.

It is entirely possible to run an opt-out campaign and maintain full compliance with CAN-SPAM.

You do not need opt-in or permission to be in compliance.

Sending personal (1-1) emails to people you do not know in the US is legal.

Sending mass emails to peole who have not given you permission to email them MIGHT be legal, depending on HOW the email address were gathered. In this case you bought them, so you need to figure out how the original source got them.

You should make sure that the list source you are using has signed an agreement with you saying that they gathered the emails in such a way that if you send a mass email it will comply with Can-Spam and they will assume liability for any problems or lawsuits. That way if you get sued, you can blame them and they will pay. Most companies make all of thier list brokers sign an agreement like this, and if they will not sign, you don;t use them.

But that does not mean any of this is a good idea. It can damage your reputation and your response rate will probably be pretty low.

You might want to think about doing more inbound marketing, using search engine optimization, blogging and social media to attract customers into your business.

Here is a link to a number of
free marketing webinars on these topics.

Your contacts may (or may not) be the proper touch point in the organization. Instead of blasting out a generic message, see if you can segment your list based on company size, industry, etc. and create a better letter (using your great copywriting skills) to just them. Split test your email and measure open rates, etc. Start slowly to build an effective email campaign.