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JCB

New Member
Hello, first post but I expect to add more with time :)

We're deciding on whether to pursue the email marketing or direct marketing method to contact possible customers for our new business.

How do companies react to email marketing? I mean, when we're up and running, even though we'll be quite a small business, I don't think I'd pay much attention to email from unknown senders and probably just delete it.

Direct marketing is obviously more expensive, but I see it as more personal and in my opinion, will be more effective compared to email marketing.

What are your experiences/opinions?

Regards,
JB.
 

mneylon

Administrator
Staff member
It depends how you build your lists.

If you send unsolicited email you will end up being blacklisted as a spammer....

If you send snail mail it may cost you more, but you could get a higher return depending on how you do it
 

addoc

New Member
It depends how you build your lists.

If you send unsolicited email you will end up being blacklisted as a spammer....

Would this apply to a free service. I'd be just making a company aware of a free service available to them.
Im looking to start a website (as ive said in a previous post) so get content a some initial traffic i wanted to offer a free service. Would you still reckon its spam.

It would basically be, pick x amount companies from thr golden pages. Send them a simple text mail stating we are whoever and ye can do abc on our site for free. A once off? what u think.
 

mneylon

Administrator
Staff member
It doesn't matter if the service is free or not. If you send unsolicited email you will upset people.

The better alternative is to pay for advertising space in someone else's newsletter
 

kbannon

New Member
from Spam Guide - Data Protection Commissioner - Ireland
Data Protection Commissioner said:
The provisions of Statutory Instrument 535 of 2003 [European Communities (Electronic Communications Networks and Services)(Data Protection and Privacy) Regulations 2003] took effect on November 6th 2003. Since that date, the sending of unsolicited electronic communications from within the Republic of Ireland for the purpose of direct marketing has, in certain situations, been an offence.
 

FrankC

New Member
Interesting, if you read the information on that link - it says that you are allowed to send marketing emails to companies (not individuals) provided they haven't expressed any desire not to receive them :

A phone call may be made or an SMS/MMS/e-mail or fax sent for the purpose of direct marketing as long as the sender has respected any opt-out preference expressed by the recipient.
So, it looks as if you can safely send at least an initial marketing email.
 

FrankC

New Member
Ok - it would be unsolicited, but it wouldn't be bulk email.

What I was thinking of was a single email, to a single company, with a specific proposal for them. Looks as if that is acceptable.

And conversely, what would be spam, would be to send identical unsolicited emails to loads of different companies.
 

addoc

New Member
What I was thinking of was a single email, to a single company, with a specific proposal for them. Looks as if that is acceptable.


Would people agree with Frank that this is acceptable?
Could some reciepient companies still view it as spam?
 

mneylon

Administrator
Staff member
Would people agree with Frank that this is acceptable?

Yes. IF it's actually properly targetted and done properly.

Could some reciepient companies still view it as spam?

Yes.

If you send an email to me directly and address me directly by name, I'm a lot less likely to consider your mail to be spam.

If you send me a huge bloody attachment unsolicited I will spamcop you, report you to your ISP etc., etc. as you are wasting my time and clogging up my network
 

Kieran H

New Member
your reputation

Hi

I think you might find some useful information on the Irish Direct Marketing Association website...

The issue is really whether you want to be seen or perceived to be spamming. Remember the 3/11 rule, do something well, 3 people will be referred, do it badly and the client will bitch and complain to 11 people!

Whether it is spamming or not, from a technical legal perspective, is IMHO irrelevant.

What is at issue is what reputation you want to have going forward.

If you feel the benefits from your site to everyone you send a text to will outweight any irritation value, you could probably get away with it...

But, if that is not the reality, then you could find yourself burning badly...

Any direct marketing campaign - and email or SMS is no different - should see you test the instrument - test the message you are sending - to ensure that it is not ambiguous, it is effective, and that it targets the customers' needs and generate the appropriate response, the call to action, in this instance presumably visits to your website.

Maybe that should be a starting point for you?

Or drop it back a step further and ask what of all the marketing and PR options open to you would be the best?

FWIW
 

mneylon

Administrator
Staff member
The issue is really whether you want to be seen or perceived to be spamming. Remember the 3/11 rule, do something well, 3 people will be referred, do it badly and the client will bitch and complain to 11 people!

Whether it is spamming or not, from a technical legal perspective, is IMHO irrelevant.

What is at issue is what reputation you want to have going forward.

That's contradictory.

If you do proper permission based marketing you will not be accused of spamming, yet you seem to be advocating people to "give it a go" on the offchance that the negative backlash will be small enough to let them get away with it.
 

paul

Ninja
Why not send them a letter with a proper proposal ? Seeing as you plan to go through the goldenpages and contact them. And just write to their business address.

I'm sure you are more likely to get a response if you make it look more professional.
 

mneylon

Administrator
Staff member
Why not send them a letter with a proper proposal ? Seeing as you plan to go through the goldenpages and contact them. And just write to their business address.

I'm sure you are more likely to get a response if you make it look more professional.
Personally I find the direct letters more memorable and more effective.

I am a lot more likely to signup if I get one
 

Kieran H

New Member
That's contradictory.

If you do proper permission based marketing you will not be accused of spamming, yet you seem to be advocating people to "give it a go" on the offchance that the negative backlash will be small enough to let them get away with it.

okay, I'll have to be more precise in future :)

I was seeking to focus the poster on the key issue for him i.e. what the customers' perception of the message and its delivery will be...

The best campaigns wander near the rim - witness Trocaire's gender inequality splash. I made an assumption based on the previous posts that the poster would appreciate why it is best not to use illegal methods...

The pilot instrument canbe tested on a willing cohort, with opt-in permission sought and validated.

Cheers
 

Kieran H

New Member
That's contradictory.

If you do proper permission based marketing you will not be accused of spamming, yet you seem to be advocating people to "give it a go" on the offchance that the negative backlash will be small enough to let them get away with it.

okay, I'll have to be more precise in future :)

I was seeking to focus the poster on the key issue for him i.e. what the customers' perception of the message and its delivery will be...

The best campaigns wander near the rim - witness Trocaire's gender inequality splash. I made an assumption based on the previous posts that the poster would appreciate why it is best not to use illegal methods...

The pilot instrument can be tested on a willing cohort, with opt-in permission sought and validated.

Cheers
 

paul

Ninja
Great , the person I reported to SPAMCOP has now said that they will sue me if any damage is done. Clearly they don't understand Article 13(1) (Paragraph 2) of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive [here]. :rolleyes:
 

mneylon

Administrator
Staff member
Great , the person I reported to SPAMCOP has now said that they will sue me if any damage is done. Clearly they don't understand Article 13(1) (Paragraph 2) of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive [here]. :rolleyes:

They're not meant to know who is reporting them unless you did something silly ..
 
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