As the downturn in banner advertising strikes fear into the heart of online
publishers and even the mighty Yahoo!, companies are switching their ad-dollars
from the web to direct email campaigns.
Most of us are aware of how annoying it can be when someone confuses being
a "marketer" with being an utter bastard -- by sending out massive amounts
of unsolicited bulk email but fortunately there are also a growing number
of ethical email marketers who operate well targeted double-opt-in lists.
Apparently (although I've not received a copy myself) there's one enterprising
company which is busy collecting email addresses by running a competition
which requires entrants to send copies of a message promoting the competition
and the company's products to ten other fools (oops) friends.
Apparently there's no reference to privacy policy or any indication as to whether,
once received, your email address is going to be re-used, re-sold, spammed
or just thrown away. That's bad form and leaves me very suspicious about
the intentions of the originators of this email.
What's worse, there's no website to go to for more information and there's
no email address, phone number or other contact method (other than the
competition entry address) where you can go to ask questions about what's going
to be done with your address.
And what prize might you win for spamming your friends? How about enough
Vodka to keep the entire Russian navy going for at least five years.
I doubt the way they've organised this method of collecting email addresses
is illegal but it certainly raises questions as to whether, without the
explanations that are clearly missing, it's ethical.
Before You Do It, Get Advice!
So maybe you too are thinking of trying out email as a marketing tool?
Well a word of warning -- make sure you do it the right way -- don't just
wade in boots and all, you could end up making more enemies than sales so
get some advice if you're at all unsure of how to go about it.
One of the few local sources of information aimed at steering people along the
right path to harness the power of email for marketing is
Debbie Mayo-Smith.
(Debbie -- please get someone to build you a decent website!).
I haven't had a chance to attend or review the content of her workshops but,
based on an exchange of emails, she certainly appears to certainly place plenty of emphasis
on doing things the right (and ethical) way. This is not an endorsement as such,
but a pointer to a resource that some may find useful.
Can The Net Undo The Bad Effects Of Television?
Robert Bastow (AKA TeeNut) died last week after a battle with cancer that
he ultimately lost.
"Who is Robert Bastow?" you might ask.
I don't expect you to know who he is. He didn't invent anything even remotely
related to the Internet, he didn't run an internet business, develop software
or even have his own website -- but when his wife announced that he'd passed
away, over 100 messages of sympathy and tribute from all around the world
were posted within just a few short hours.
The response to Robert's death is a perfect example of how the Internet has
created a global community that is in many ways even stronger than the
physical communities in which we live.
Robert was not a hero or figurehead -- he was just a regular guy who spent
most of his life as an engineer, working with large chunks of steel, welders,
lathes and other bits of machinery. He first "logged on" just a few short years
ago but in that time became an active member of a usenet newsgroup called
rec.crafts.metalworking. By sharing his knowledge and skills with many others
he became a part of a small but active community of faceless individuals, earning
their gratitude and respect.
It was while reflecting on this that I realised just how much potential the
Internet has to undo all the anti-social effects that television brought to
our society when it was introduced in the 1960s. Now, instead of sitting
passively in front of a flickering box for hour upon hour each evening,
people are once again engaging in conversation (albeit through a keyboard)
and sharing their lives, thoughts, experiences and hopes with others -- often
half a world away.
About time too.
The Weekly Trickles Out
This week's edition of the Weekly has started trickling out. It will probably
take a day or so before they're all sent but they're on their way.
As always, your feedback is welcomed and...
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