When those who do not sell products online think about marketers, many immediately associated them with being spammers. There’s really no wonder why. No matter how much we try to protect our email accounts, we still end up with lots of spam on a regular basis. However, if you have been considered purchasing emails and blasting out tons of unwanted emails, you may want to think again…unless you are ready to face the consequences of possible prosecution to your actions.
The term “spam” is used to describe emails that are no wanted or requested. They are usually sent out by the thousands, and do not apply to many of their recipients. Ethical marketers do not bother with this shady method of doing business for a number of reasons. It can quickly kill your credibility, you can easily have your accounts shut down, and it’s actually a waste of time when it comes to conversions. Your autoresponder services can be halted and you could even land into some trouble with your ISP as well.
The best way to go about emailing others is with the use of an opt-in form. Those that fill out the form are requesting more information from you. It’s even safer on your part that you require a double opt-in so that you can be sure that your subscribers are in fact welcoming your future email messages. A single opt-in only requires a name and email be entered into the form. What happens, however, when someone goes a little crazy and decides to sign up 5 of their friends…or 10 of their enemies?
Because of this, a double opt-in the preferred route of collecting subscribers. Most popular autoresponders offer this option when you are setting up your mailing list. This is basically how it works:
Once an internet user lands on your squeeze page, blog, or wherever your opt-in form is housed, they will enter their information in the form. This info is usually given in exchange for a free product, such as an audio file or ebook. Then, the autoresponder will automatically send the address given a message that basically says, ”Are you sure you want this person contacting you?” The subscription will need to be verified by clicking a link in the email.
This prevents visitors from signing up lots of other people. If they do, and those people receive the confirmation email, they can just ignore it and they will not be added to your list. This also helps you because, with many autoresponder services, you are charged fees according to the size of your list. You only want to be paying for people who truly want to be on your list.
Also, make sure you always follow the permission marketing standards. These people trust you enough to hand over their contact information, so don’t try to sell their details or abuse them. If you respect the people on your list, it will grow and you’ll have a readymade list of prospects that can help you earn more money on both a short and long-term timeframe.
