Pub Talk
By Rob Yoegel
About Rob
Rob Yoegel takes an active role in North American Publishing Company's online efforts including content, sales, marketing, usability, functionality and vendor relations as Vice President, e-Media. Rob works directly with publishers and editors in developing a consistent strategy from print to online.
A former journalist, Rob has been involved in Internet strategies since 1996 serving as an associate editor of Target Marketing magazine, where he regularly contributed articles related to the Internet, including e-commerce, Web site design/development, e-mail, fulfillment, customer service and marketing integration. He also spent one year as publisher of PhillyTech Magazine, a regional technology magazine published by Philadelphia Newspapers Inc. E-mail him at ryoegel@napco.com or call (215) 238-5344.
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Getting Your E-mail Newsletter Delivered, Opened and Read
Some suggest to go the extra yard and do a “double opt-in” where the user who signs up has to do something else to confirm the subscription, for instance click a link or fill-out another short Web form, but in this case your content better be worth subscribers basically telling you twice that they want your e-newsletter.
This is contrary to a more traditional publishing model where once you sign-up, subscribe or register for something, you start getting other products or services “that may be of interest to you.” This opt-out method should be clearly explained in a privacy policy. Subsequently, everything you send must provide the recipients a way to remove themselves from a list as required under the CAN-SPAM Act, regardless of whether or not your list is opt-in or opt-out. Make sure you include a postal address as well!
Keep in mind that by not opting-in someone to receive e-mail, you are not breaking the law. However, you could still easily be perceived as a spammer and the result could be just as harmful. Also (and hopefully), when the law changes and publishers must prove someone asked to receive e-mail, you won’t have any interruptions in your business or lost ad revenue trying to opt-in your subscribers.
Your IT folks or marketing department have probably told you about “whitelists.” Getting on a whitelist means a subscriber has added your e-mail address or domain (i.e., yourcompany.com) to a file on an e-mail server or e-mail client/program consisting of addresses they approve to get e-mail from. The other side of this is a “blacklist,” consisting of the e-mail address or domains of spammers. Compiled by Internet providers that often share them, make sure you’re off any known blacklists.
Lastly, I’m amazed at the number of people who add a message like “be sure to add email@yourcompany.com to your whitelist or approved list of senders” to a challenge or welcome e-mail message, but don’t use the same message on the confirmation Web page after the opt-in request has been made.
