Fighting Back At Email List Complainers (updated)

A good friend of mine and long-time customer, business partner, co-host and all-round great guy runs an e-mail list through my facilities. To this list (of about 10,000 addresses), he sends the results of his answers to people about their tax questions.

David Ingram (the Taxman) has two criteria for the list: you either opt in by signing up manually (and double opt-in by acknowledging the email sent to you), or, as a "cost" of him answering your question (he charges $450/hour to answer by phone or in person), you are put on the list which is where your question's answer is posted - that's the only way you'll see the answer unless he also posts it on his web site, which typically happens much later.

This means it is not really a "double opt-in" list, but it certainly is an opt-in list since every one of the pages that tell people how to send him questions says this is how the answers get back to them.

I don't have a problem with this.

What I (and he) have a problem with is people getting their answers - then rather than using the very obvious and quite effective "unsubscribe" option on each and every email, they push the "spam" button on their ISP's email system and report the list as spam.

Today my friend blacklisted AOL and all the subscribers he has on that system. This means that if you have a tax question you'd better be prepared to provide an email address that is anything but AOL. Other systems may follow - but for now AOL is the only one that has truly been a problem. His list is on their white list and I get feedback each and every time - and he manually unsubscribes the address each and every time - and some of them even "spam-button" the notice of unsubscribe!!!!

Now I've been at this for a LONG time - ever since AOL (and Compuserve and other "BBSs") first connected to the internet and allowed email transfer to/from it. Considering the number of "spam" AOL "install" CDs I've received - none of which were ever solicited - their making the reporting of spam so easy is just a bit hypocritical IMHO.

Anyway - AOL users - you get what you pay for - a "walled garden" - too bad the weeds are so high you can't see what lies outside and actually interact with it reasonably.

Consider this one of the first shots across the bow of email patrons who push the "spam-button" too quickly. I predict that soon you won't be able to get any information such as this - from anyone! Maybe I'll put together the infrastructure to allow email list services to know who has a good/bad recipient reputation. Might be interesting. 

As a matter of interest, I also consult with a large direct marketing firm that provides opt-in list services to some fairly major businesses such as real estate companies, banks and such. We've talked about cutting off some of the major email providers such that my customers' clients won't be able to sign up anyone from them - they'll have to solicit "real" email address such as their ISPs or companies give them - no "throw away" addresses from the likes of Hotmail, Yahoo, AOL, etc.

Opt-in email is still a powerful force - and the spam problem is not going to go away - but maybe by forcing people (who really want the information that opt-in lists provide) to use something other than a throw-away address we'll get back to having reputation on both sides of the fence; the mail list users will work at having good reputations (such as Email Reach can certify for example) and the email receivers will have to work at having a good reputation too or they'll simply be blacklisted and not get their information. 

Just think of it - we have spammer blacklists, now maybe we (the email providers) will put together recipient blacklists too.

The evolution of reputation on the internet is proceeding. It used to be like the Wild West - no reputation and the fastest guns won out; fastest sending spam and fastest hitting the "spam-report" button.

Not anymore - civility is coming to the web in general and to email in particular.

richard

UPDATE: One of the AOL addressees has given David his "real" address - and completely understands why :)

Tag: email aol mail list complaints spam