Hello,

I am writing because a potential client asked me today if I could help him. He is looking for support for the new branch of his business. He said he would need more support but for now he wants to start with "Blast" emails.

It was very brief meeting. We exchange information so I will clarify this with him but I am assuming he wants to send "mass" emails to a variety of mailing lists to market his business.

I have no issue with doing this for him, however, I am not sure where to come up with list of email addresses for the mailing list. He mostly works for doctors and lawyers and is looking for the same client base in his new area.

Any ideas on where I can get hundreds of email addresses?

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks,
Sarah

Sarah - Oh boy, this is so typical, and so difficult. Your client might get a response or two to a 'blast' email, but it's really not the recognized best practice. If he already has his own mailing list, okay; but if he's buying them, he has no opt-in from the contacts, and doing blasts will likely earn him scorn and derision rather than customers. Isn't that just like all the spammers who fill your inbox all the time and are so unwanted and irritating?

So many salespeople have not tuned in to the fact that media has changed, and we much prefer 'permission' marketing these days. Why would you waste your time on cold contacts who have not indicated the slightest interest in the product? Use public relations, articles, press releases, etc. and social media to build a list over time that actually would like to receive informative emails from you, and you'll have much better luck.

Sorry to be such a wet towel (?), but IMO the best you could do for this client is educate him about marketing practices that earn respect, instead of ones that really turn people off.

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Mary H. Ruth/Virtual Writing & Communications
http://www.writingVA.com

Great advice. I had the same thought when he asked me this, I know I just delete emails from unknown users but he seemed firm that is what he wanted. I had a thought to create an FB page and Twitter for him and other types of marketing that you suggested like flyers to be sent to doctors and lawyers in his new target area. I think that is the better route.

Sarah,

I agree with Mary on all thoughts.

I would also be concerned that if he spent alot of $ on buying email lists and then paying you for your time, he might not come back to you for more work. He might be discouraged when he doesn't get any feedback and not partner with you again.

It's worth the risk to tell him what his best options would be, such as Mary suggested. It also places you out there as an expert in online marketing.

Why not start out 'small' and offer to set up an auto responder email list for him. There are free sites which have been listed here on VAF you can use or perhaps sign up for a trial on Constant Contact. Ask people to sign up for weekly tips or useful information about his products or services. Do this on a social networking site or create a blog and have people sign-up over time. (There are other ways to do this.) If you send out flyers, you can include the url to the sign up there. Of course the results are not immediate but then you get the permission marketing Mary referred to which can garner far greater results over time.

Janine

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Great advice.... There's so many potential pitfalls when it comes to purchasing or renting email lists, or even going about them in the way of email mining (searching for email addresses off of websites.)

It's really in their best interest to have you set up a way to start collecting a database of emails from their own websites. Probably the best way that they can quickly generate a number of emails from their websites is to offer the new sign-ups something like a report or discount.

Good luck

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Vivi Gonzalez
www.VirtualBusinessPartners.com

Sarah,
I want to parrot the advice from the others. I would adjunct it with: Pick his brain a bit more about why he's chosen the blast as his current marketing tactic. He may have some compelling reason to do it or he may just have read about it and wants to try something. Assist him in recongizing the pros and cons. Hopefully he'll see the "error of his ways" and then garner your recommendations for alternatives. Another huge argument against the blast is his audience. I'm not confident that either doctors or attorneys have the time or desire to read emails from an unknown source. It simply depends on his overall vision of the success rate this tactic generates. General consensus is that it's a not his best use of resources. Keep us updated on the final decision.

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Trish Hallmark
www.thvaonline.com