privacy laws require an individual's consent to the collection and use of their e-mail address where it can be traced to them

It's the consent to collection and use that's the kicker there though - it leaves the email-sender wide open to interpretation by the rec'ving party. Interesting though that Canada doesn't have any legislation - not as law-suit addicted as the States I guess

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I spoke with a representative from a company in Ottawa that sells a newsletter service and he advised that we are subject to the same anti-spam laws as the US, so I've always worked on that basis.

What IF you were to send out individual emails to say members of the local chamber of commerce introducing yourself, you have your full street address listed and have a little opt-out clause at the end of the email? Would that be considered CANSPAM complient?

I have been wondering about that because I have applied to ads on Craigslist and then mysteriously started to receive marketing info from new companies via email and noticed the opt-out at the bottom of the email.

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Dawn Riley
A Virtual Assistant in Paradise
Our business is about making yours better

Originally Posted by vainparadise

What IF you were to send out individual emails to say members of the local chamber of commerce introducing yourself, you have your full street address listed and have a little opt-out clause at the end of the email? Would that be considered CANSPAM complient? I have been wondering about that because I have applied to ads on Craigslist and then mysteriously started to receive marketing info from new companies via email and noticed the opt-out at the bottom of the email.

I would check the laws for your State but if you were to do what you have outlined above I believe it would be fine as long as you immediately remove any person who wants off your list. I'm not sure of the exact number of hours you have to remove unwanted subscribers but the sooner the better. The FTC, while the official watchdog of the internet, only has so much control over SPAM. That's why individual States have tried to make their own laws surrounding it. So, if you live in Florida the law might not let you send spam to other residents of Florida but that doesn't mean that someone from another State can't send you Spam and vice versa. Does that make sense? That's why its important to include opt-out and adhere to it. It can keep you out of trouble all the way around.

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Shari Sultana
Online Business Manager (marketing for retail ecommerce)

I am not planning on doing it just wondering if would comply. I use Verticle Response and love them, but for others that are just starting out could it be an option?

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Dawn Riley
A Virtual Assistant in Paradise
Our business is about making yours better

I wouldn't recommend it because of the nature of email in general. It's very personal and the majority of people don't like soliciting emails from people they don't know. Marketing is a process of steps and establishing a relationship is one of the first steps. You need to build trust with your prospects and I don't see how email soliciting can build trust. Building a list is much better. However, there are those who will disagree with me and that's okay.

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Shari Sultana
Online Business Manager (marketing for retail ecommerce)

Originally Posted by vainparadise

What IF you were to send out individual emails to say members of the local chamber of commerce introducing yourself, you have your full street address listed and have a little opt-out clause at the end of the email? Would that be considered CANSPAM complient? I have been wondering about that because I have applied to ads on Craigslist and then mysteriously started to receive marketing info from new companies via email and noticed the opt-out at the bottom of the email.

If you are a member of a Chamber, they may possibly have an email blast that you can purchase. My Chamber offers an email blast to all members for only $50.00. In addition, we have a section on our Chamber web site, called Hot Deals, where members can post advertising there for free up to three times a year.

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Doreen R. Patrick, MVA, ACS, CIVA
www.virtualbusinesspartners.net

Doreen is right.

Our Chamber offers the same thing. As long as you are a member there's nothing to say you can't email other members. You have an affiliation with them and that's different than if you were not a member and decided to email them.

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Shari Sultana
Online Business Manager (marketing for retail ecommerce)

Not to get off the subject of compliance, but I've done a lot of email marketing for myself (all from opt-in), and the best way that I have found to keep the email from bouncing into the spam/junk folder is to have the receipient's name in the Subject line as well as in the Intro of the email. I use GetResponse for my autoresponder, and if you collect the first and last name of the prospect during the opt-in phase, you can then use this in your letter.

Hope this helps.

I do email campaigns and have had success. Keep it short and sweet and you are less likely to annoy the reader and also be sure to get your point across as clearly as possible!

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Amy
www.virtualadminconcepts.com