CMA Report Uncovers Disturbing Email Trends

A report from the Canadian Marketing Association uncovered some
very disturbing data regarding peoples opinions and thoughts about
email marketing.

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Did you know:
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1. 97% of people say email that tricks them into opening it is
spam...

2. 93% of people say email from unknown senders is spam...

3. 93% say email with offensive subject matter is spam...

4. 58% say spam includes permitted email that is now arriving too
often!

5. 57% say spam includes permitted email that they now no longer
wish to receive!

6. 38% say anything that tries to sell them something is spam,
regardless who sent it.

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So, what can we learn from this?
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* #1 teaches us NOT to use 'bait and switch' tactics.

* #2 is pretty obvious - build a relationship BEFORE you pitch
someone.

* #3 Says use good taste - I know, subjective, but hey... you have
been warned.

* #4 and #5 deserve special attention. #4 suggests people who are
happy getting your email have a 'frequency' threshold. Send too
much and people respond negatively - again, highly subjective and
depends greatly on the list, the timing, the offer and other social
issues of the time.

* #5 is similar to #4 in that this is a not a question of sending
email to an unwanted recipient, this is now a function of the
recipient changing their mind and not telling you! You end up being
tagged a spammer because they changed their mind - not fair, but
nothing every is... except maybe the Lottery ;)

* And finally, #6 - nearly 4 out of 10 people don't like the idea
of you trying to sell them something - period. Until of course... the
moment they want it. But hey, who said business was easy?

Email may still be the 'killer app' when it comes to on-line
marketing, but these are some very important issues to consider and
I hope you heed the advice above.