The other day, I was asked if I had ever handled purchased email lists before. After throwing up in my mouth a little bit, I proceeded to say, “No, I don’t do that.”
There was a bit of an awkward silence, but then the conversation moved on to another topic.
But that little snippet of conversation has led me to announce that Scott Writes Everything is officially joining the Email Marketers Association for Puppy Protection (EMAPP).
EMAPP is an organization devoted to protecting puppies, especially since “every time you buy an email list, a puppy dies.”
The Email Guide has more information on how you can join EMAPP >
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I’ve said it before, and numerous Email Snobs have as well: You can’t buy permission. Email (and the power behind it) is permission-based marketing. People need to opt in.
Yes, permission may not LEGALLY be required to send an email to someone, but it’s the right way to go about it for many reasons:
- People who opt in WANT to receive your messages, therefore are more likely to engage with any offers you send them.
- Considering the awful attrition and valid email address rates of purchased lists, it makes no real sense to buy a list when you won’t get great value of it anyway.
- Your deliverability rates for your valid email addresses will thank you.
- Puppies will thank you.
To follow up on the second bullet above, I can’t remember the source but I saw somewhere that the value of an email address is somewhere in the $180-$190 per range. I saw yesterday someone offering 1 million email addresses on a list for $500. Do the math. It doesn’t add up.
The bottom line is: Don’t buy email lists. It’s naughty. Email is opt-in.
If you’re interested in the continued protection of puppies from the atrocities of email list buying, join EMAPP today!
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