When I tell my friends that I work in the Email Marketing industry, they cannot help having an odd reaction, like if they were thinking so… are you sending SPAM to people? So I have always to clarify than email marketing does not equal to SPAM.

I explained to them that sending personalized emails with relevant information about my company, products or services is just another tool to contacting customers and people who have requested this mailing for business or own interest. 

I also tell them that responsible email marketing, based on permission, is actually a new communication channel that may substitute the traditional mailing. We can think in a Bank as example, they may save millions in paper just sending their information and new products’ information by email instead of through my mailbox.

Given the Internet adoption in our household nowadays, email marketing definitely becomes a saving-costs and resources advertising channel, highly efficient and even ecologic.

But they are partly right. There are always people taking the advantage of the new technologies, abusing, sending unsolicited email advertising to the Internet users. However we cannot let this people to ruin a fantastic mean.

For instance, I wouldn’t personally buy a customer database to launch my marketing campaign. These commercial databases are sold telling you that the persons involved have already agreed to receive your email campaign. In my opinion, these persons may have given permission to this company, but not my company specifically, Therefore I think that this would be a very aggressive manner to reach my potential customers and so, my marketing efforts would be ruined.

If I like to reach new potential clients, I would send them a personalized email, introducing my products and services and inviting them to join my database. It´s not only respect and politeness, it is also be responsible with your business reputation.