Email Marketing Lists
Netiquette questions about Email Marketing – not to be labeled a spammer?
My target market are certain businesses that already have a list e-mail address on the internet. If I send a promotional email to them is this considered spam?
Almost any e receiving unsolicited e-spaces that products, goods, services, etc. for sale can be considered spam. Therefore, just because your email adddress is 'public' (and indeed all email addresses are) any promotional e-mail really is spam. Now, that said, there is legislation that serves to regulate spam: legislation in 2003, Congress enacted anti-spam that has become known as the CAN-SPAM Act, which states that for a commercial email message that is considered legal, it should: * Contains the message header information not false or misleading – the "To:" "From:" and "Received:" (routing messages) should be accurate headers * Contain no misleading "Subject:" * Provide information header recipient with a valid "opt-out" method for the sender's request to stop sending additional messages * Identify yourself as a commercial message and include the sender is correct, valid orders ("snailmail") While the address as a message meets the above criteria a commercial electronic mail message generated in the U.S. can meet the definition of "spam" – unsolicited commercial – however, be perfectly legal. The fact, of course, is that the overwhelming majority of spam contains all sorts of false headers and misleading information. However, the problem great is that even if existing laws are constitutional, are largely unenforceable because: * USA the police do not have the time, resources and manpower to pursue what is likely to amount to millions of person * A large proportion of spam complaints sent to the recipients of U.S. comes from foreign countries in most cases have no anti-spam laws at all, or whether they are equally incapable (or not) to track and prosecute. Hope this helps. (Clear as mud?)
