Hello? This is Spam Calling... is There Anybody Home?

Yes! Yes! I am here.

Of course we all know that 95% of spam isn't really spam as we somehow somewhere inadvertently signed up for something, gave our e-mail address to get that fabulous free thing, or wanted to get inside information only available if we gave our precious personal info and now we are part of the list. The secret is in the list and as hard as we try to collect we find ourselves at weak moments being the ones who are collected.

Well you know what? It's okay.

There is a way we can use this so called not-spam spam to our advantage. Think about these messages this way. A salesperson comes to your door selling "Fuller Brushes" but he does not realize that he has knocked on the door of the "Rainbow Vacuum Cleaner" salesperson and he will soon be leaving with a vacuum in tow. Perhaps now he will be selling, along with his excellent brushes, excellent vacuum cleaners.

Yes. These non-spam spam messages are basically like people knocking on your door wanting to buy from you. They are already marketing. They are our target audience! They know the language and they are working the biz. If you have a great promotion that makes money they 'want' to know about it. Bottom line is ...we are all here to make money.

Here is an example of a recent return of a marketing mailer. (I have excluded e-mail addresses and personal info for privacy sake)

Hi There!

I will take some time to look over your solo ad service. Mainly I am into my own list collecting but you never know.

Hey, if you get a chance take a look at my traffic blog. Not Sales, Not Hype, Just Good Web 2.0 Advice,

http://thetrafficmaster.blogspot.com

Hope your summer has been going well 'and' you are having a great day!

Julie Zbeetnoff
http://www.grabthepopcorn.com

P.S. Why not try out my free Google Groups mailer to promote your endeavor. It works really well. http://www.Googalisitic.com

Cheers!

"S.A.M." wrote:
Hi Julie,

I signed up for this ne w 20.30.40 Biz last week & I couldn't wait to share it with you.

Which one are you?

An internet marketer that purchase s products or services and
resells them for profit OR are you one who purchase s pro-ducts and
services to market their own adventures.

We ve developed a system that markets to both groups...
The Brand N.E.W. 20-30-40 Biz.. *Just Released*

http://xxxxx.pxxxx-x.xxx/c/r.php?id=xxxx

This program features 20 top-notch blasters.

All 20 programs can be used to market any of your products and
services on a daily basis. .

Send millions of ads daily in a few short clicks.

There are 3 levels of participation:

Silver - Earn 50% with 20 Lifetime Submitters.
Hi Julie, I signed up for this ne w 20.30.40 Biz last week & I couldn't wait to share it with you.
Gold - Earn 75% with 20 Lifetime Submitters.

Platinum - Earn 100% with 20 Lifetime Submitters.

With each one of the up to 20 programs you will be sending to a total
of one million prospective buyers and they are reloaded every month.
This is a great program for sellers and users alike and is sure to be a big hit with everyone...

Click here to get started: http://txxxxxx-n.biz/c/r.php?id=xxx

This is a member solo ad as per an agreement you made. You agreed to receive newsletters in exchange for the right to be able to submit your own just the same to fellow members. To submit a letter to this subscriber group hit reply, add your campaign & hit send. To remove yourself from any mailing campaigns & delete your account please hit the un-sub scrible link below. -

If you wish to cancel your subscription, simply click once on the link below.
Click Here to Unsubscribe

So the next time you see these so called 'spam' messages be sure to take a look at the e-mail address sending it. Is this a real user, a mass mailer or phishing site? If it is a real user re-package that spam add your promotion and send it right back! Be sure to add their e-mail address to your mailing list as well. Keep the original message with the IP and timestamp as proof of your future non-spam. I generally create a folder labeled 'mailing list' to direct these to just in case of future accusation.

Tell them how much you love their brushes and you will definitely consider them but in the meantime be sure they leave with a brochure on vacuum cleaners.

Oh yes and even if you have all this info in order to be 100% non spam accusable you must comply to the CAN-SPAM act...http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/canspam.shtm

I am not condoning spam. Sending unsolicited e-mail without permission is a federal offence.

I am condoning list building. Which is gathering a list of people with their permission to share in your marketing experiences, newsletters and endeavors.

Always be sure to add all the proper info to our mailers and always give an opt-out resource and comply to it! The secret is in the list! So guys go forth and build....and when that e-mail comes knocking at your door welcome it with open arms full of what you have to offer!

P.S. - If you enjoyed reading this post why not subscribe to the TrafficMaster newsletter? Not Sales, Not Hype, Just Good Web 2.0 Advice.

P.S.S. - Have you tried out the Traffic Master's free Google Groups Mailer? Googalistic has launched and is thriving!