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207Chapter 13: Mailing Direct to Your Market

Direct mail — or junk mail?

Direct mail becomes junk mail when consumers feel that the offer isn’t per-
sonal. For example, if a college student lives in an apartment and gets a mail-
ing for landscaping services, she automatically determines that it’s junk
mail — especially if she has received the same offer three times already.
Timely and targeted messages that communicate information and offer good
value, however, are not considered junk mail. As a direct mail marketer, it’s
your job to tow the line.

E-mail Marketing

It’s only partly coincidental that the preceding section on junk mail is fol-
lowed by this part on e-mail marketing. The sequence isn’t meant to imply
that e-mail mass mailings are junk mail, but a good many of them spiral into
the junk mail category, and for legal and marketing reasons you’ll want to be
sure yours don’t.

Opt-in e-mail

The unanimous advice from reputable online marketers regarding unsolicited
e-mail is this: When in doubt, don’t. Commit to an opt-in policy instead and
limit your e-mail marketing messages to the following recipients:

ߜ Those who have opted in by providing their e-mail addresses and asking
for more information. In fact, many e-mail marketers now use a double
opt-in system that allows a person who opts in to confirm his decision
by responding positively to a first e-mail that provides the recipient the
opportunity to restate interest or opt out immediately.

ߜ Those who are friends, colleagues, suppliers, customers, or prospects
who have requested similar information in the past.

ߜ Those who were referred to you by a colleague or by a group related to
your business with the assurance that they will appreciate receiving
your information.

Before clicking Send, see that you can answer yes to at least one of the fol-
lowing questions:

ߜ Did the recipient ask you to provide information?
ߜ Is the recipient a friend, colleague, supplier, customer, or prospect who

has previously requested related information from your business?