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Safelists, a pet peeve!
By Joe Myna
I am sure that you
have followed all the sage advice of the "experts" in setting up
your Internet money machine.
You have
skillfully crafted an information product or purchased resell rights
to a hot new ebook that you are sure everyone will be clamoring for!
Also, you have
designed a killer mini-website with sufficient attention getting
headlines and enough testimonials to choke a horse!
However, there are
still two things you find in short supply, visitors and customers!
You realize that
you need to build up your own list of contacts from your customers
and those few who trickle through your website. But, your anxious,
it's slow going, and there has got to be a faster way!
You reminisce how
offline prospecting, by direct mail, was much simpler. Your only
task then was locating a list of targeted recipients.
Whether they were
unsolicited or not was somewhat of a mute point.
However, you
understand that in the paranoid world of e-commerce it's a different
matter. You are aware of the dangers inherent with e-mailing your
advertisement to anyone who has not given their prior blessing.
Possible loss if ISP, etc.
In fact, a profit
oriented e-mailing, without first acquiring approval, would, no
doubt, render you a "Spammer!" In the minds of many, "A low-down
dirty scoundrel!"
Yet, when you
think about it, it's odd that if you sent a non-commercial email to
the very same person, they might consider you a little rude, a kook,
but certainly not a sender of "Spam!"
At this point
you're wondering about those enticing ads for so-called 'Safelists."
Could these lists be the solution?
The inference with
these ads being that the folks who join such lists are a mixed array
of buyers and sellers.
What could be
better than eager buyers just waiting for your offer?
Nevertheless, the
apparent desirability to join such a list should itself alert you to
the fact that only sellers would be enticed.
In fact, the
websites promotional materials state that the sole motivation to
join the list would be to market your products, not bargain.
In perspective
each list member is attempting to feed off of each other list
member!.
(All of which begs
the question: "Do piranha's dine with or on each other?")
You may have
guessed by now that I am not an enthusiastic supporter of these
programs. However, I must admit that at one time I did take the
bait!
While they are
relatively safe to email to you'll find these lists are almost, if
not entirely, useless when it comes to marketing your wares.
The other
individuals are more interested in sending you their proposals then
acquiring yours.
In fact, the
popularity of so-called "Dump email address" can be directly traced
to these programs.
A "Dump Email
Address' is were the contents of an inbox can be deleted quickly, if
not robotically.
A more desirable
type of list does exist, but they are often cost prohibitive for the
small merchant.
The point of this
all is to highlight the value and singular effectiveness of creating
your own contact lists. There is no shortcut to this work.
While, such a task
may be time consuming and require ingenuity, building your own list
of contacts will provide you with a bountiful field of prospects
from which you can forever harvest.
Quality ezines,
like the one your reading now, Were built and continue to thrive on
this reality. And that is why ezines are such an excellent place to
share part of your advertising budget
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