Email Marketing vs Spam

An online marketing staple should be email marketing. Used properly, it can be a great tool to create demand, inform and remind. However, used improperly, and it gets viewed as spam. It's really too bad that unwanted email is automatically labeled as spam, because it's not. Spam is typically email from unknown persons, selling fake Rolex watches, or worse - fake Viagra. Email from legitimate companies, with the ability to unsubscribe, to parties that recognize the sender's name is email marketing.

According to Ipsco-Reid, a well known research company, spam is actually been going down significantly and not near the problem it used to be. Because ISPs do a much better job of filtering spam now, and with the severe penalties that the CAN-SPAM allows for, there is much less spam than there used to be. Also, email service providers are very careful to follow the rules to keep from being shut down.

Emailing more than twice a month to the same list is not recommended. And try to email offers or tips that will benefit your audience. Make it attractive and something they look forward to, instead of something to dread, and you'll find email a powerful online marketing tool that works.