email marketing

The format of your newsletters can help in converting more leads to sale. Most online marketers consider the use of HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) messaging. HTML messaging gives your more control over your news reports by giving you more alternatives as to how you want your message to appear – layout, color, font, graphics, etc. HTML can make your emails for your clients look like web pages and can be browse as web pages. HTML messages can contain links, images and any kind of content viewable to the web. And things as such can make viewers enjoy looking at your updates.

HTML messaging does have benefits as mentioned but it has also disadvantages once used improperly. Usage of external editors like FrontPage or Netscape Composer can increase flexibility but can undermine your online campaign since these editors have different effects on the final outcome of the message because their codes are not all the time compatible. In order to avoid this problem have a programmer code your email template by hand. In addition, graphics embedded improperly in your HTML message will cause your clients to see a small red X and an empty graphic box instead of the graphics you intend your viewers to see. This can tarnish your reputation. In some cases slow loading time and image blocking are experienced by your clients, make sure to have a short tag describing the image so that you clients will have the idea of what they’re about to see.

Furthermore, virus outbreak is very offensive that is why mail administrators reject anything that might carry a virus. In HTML messaging, usage of scripts such as java script, visual basic, etc is discouraged.

Another friendly advice, use visuals sparingly so that your prospects won’t get distracted. Make your graphics fitted to your report – promotion or updates.

If you would like to try HTML messaging but has uncertainty of your message deliverability, or you have already tried HTML messaging for purpose of making your emails more enjoyable for your prospects but have delivery problem. EmailReach can help you fix your problem. EmailReach checks the content of your message as well as its HTMLcodes.

The CAN SPAM Act of 2003 is an acronym for Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act which became effective January 1, 2004. The said legislation sets the requirements for commercial emails and as well the penalties for the violators.

CAN SPAM Act of 2003 permits unsolicited mailing as long as the sender practices the agreed upon requirements for commercial emails. These agreed upon requirements include clarity that the message is an advertisement, accurate header information on which the email and IP addresses of the sender can be tracked. CAN SPAM Act also requires an explicit way for opting out and stop further mailings. Whenever an email contains adult content, the sender should place a message prompt or the like in the subject line to warn the reader. A misleading subject line is discouraged.

Furthermore, commercial emails sent to addresses compiled without permission, such as by automation and email address generation using ‘dictionary attack’ (combination of names, letters and numbers into multiple permutations) are prohibited. In addition, aggravated offense such as hijacking computers through Trojan or worms or using open mail relays for sending spam is also prohibited.

The content is exempted if it is purely religious, or if the content complies with the marketing mechanism specified by the law. Messages with national security content are also exempted.

To understand more about the CAN SPAM Act of 2003 – the governing bodies, the penalties, reactions and detail explanation about it, you can visit http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/canspam.htm.

Despite the measures established to fight spam, including CAN SPAM Act, most online marketers who send legitimate emails and are CAN SPAM compliant get block and thus experience low ROI. To further increase your understanding about email marketing and other considerations (other than those stated in the CAN SPAM Act) kindly check www.emailreach.com.

Types of Spam Filters

Spam filters are designed to block unwanted messages generated by unethical senders. Presently, there are different spam filter programs in the market available for email users to purchase. These programs are designed differently, which means that their methods of detecting spam vary.

Businesses which require email messaging for information dissemination would find it helpful to know the different methods used by spam filters. This will in turn help them tailor there message’s content as well as their mailing procedures. Thus, being aware of spam filter programs can help in the optimization of any internet campaign.

The most common type of spam filter is the Content-Based Filter. This type of filter as the name suggests, looks on symbols, words or phrases in the subject line, headers and content of the message which are suspicious. The filtering process is very dependent to phrases and words chosen by the user as spam, this means that spam messages with words or phrases not included in the list of the user will make it to the inbox time and again unless the user creates another filter to deal with those words and phrases. The good side of this filter is, it can be fashioned in anyway the user wishes to.

Another type of spam filter is the Bayesian Filter, unlike content-based filter; Bayesian filter undergoes ‘training’ where the filter learns the difference between a spam and a legitimate email. During this ‘training’ messages are broken into tokens and these tokens are then stored in databases (tokens of good messages are separated from those of spam). This type of filter requires minimal maintenance and can adapt easily to users’ usual message, just like if the user is a medical practitioner, anything that relates to medical field will be considered as good. The primary drawback of Bayesian filter is that optimum filtering will not take place immediately, since the filter is dependent on the messages on which it is trained.

In addition, there is a Blacklist-Whitelist filter where the whitelist is composed of the ‘good’ email addresses and the blacklist is composed of email addresses believed to send spam. This kind of filter ensures that received emails are from whitelisted senders only and any address aside from the whitelisted ones will be blocked. With this, email users can expect a zero false negative. The main disadvantage of this filter is that, whenever a real-time blacklist (RBL) is used, there is a tendency that the whole IP is considered as spam sender, though only a part of it used to send spam.

Challenge-Response Filter on the other hand sends messages to unknown senders asking them to do further action/step to justify their intention of sending the email. These further actions can be a request for the senders’ website to ensure that the email is legitimate. This type of filter is quite applicable to low traffic email users.

Community filter is another type of spam filter. This filter has a central server where users can send suspected spam; the server itself then saves the ‘fingerprint’ of the message to the database. When enough users flagged the message as spam, the ‘fingerprints’ of the message will be blocked in the future. But before a spam is blocked, many users have already opened it.

If your business makes use of email in sending promotional or newsletters, you should at least know if your email address is in the real-time blacklists so that you can apply for whitelisting. And at least know the basic symbols, words and phrases to be avoided in sending emails. Try visiting www.emailreach.com for more information about spam filters.

Online marketers find email messaging helpful in their campaign. Thousands of email addresses are prospects and can increase sales if correct marketing strategies are used. But since spam senders compete with legitimate marketers, a great amount of money is lost every campaign period. Large amount of emails are blocked because of Unsolicited Commercial Emails (UCE) commonly known as spam. ISPs and mail administrators make use of blacklists to muffle its effects. These blacklists are lists of known spam senders, but some legitimate ones are also included in these lists. This problem arises because of a poor email format, a misleading subject line, etc. Once you get blacklisted your emails will not reach your targets.

As the fight against spam becomes intense, marketers have to device ways to deliver their message to their prospects. They need to ensure email delivery amidst spam filters and blacklists. But email delivery monitoring is a big task, and can kill your time, giving you less opportunity to think for other business strategies.

Blacklist Monitoring is a type of service that monitors your IP status. Blacklist

Monitoring can detect if you get blacklisted in any ISP and inform you about it. The said service can pinpoint what blacklist are you in, when the blacklisting happen and ways for delisting or removal from the blacklist. Through blacklist monitoring service you can track if your emails did reach your clients/prospects inboxes, how many of your emails ended in bulk folders, and the ISPs blocking your emails.

If you’re managing an online business, it would be of great help if you look for a Blacklist Monitoring service. If you are not sure whether your IP is in the blacklist, consider these following measures. If some of your emails do not reach your prospects inboxes then you’re suffering from spam filters/content filters but if all your emails are blocked, more likely you are in the blacklist.

To help you further about blacklist monitor service try checking http://www.blacklistmonitor.com/ For additional resource about email delivery, blacklisting-whitelisting you can visit www.emailreach.com

Online marketers know the importance of internet marketing campaign. Most marketers, if not all are convinced that good marketing strategy is the key for their companies’ progress. Online marketing campaign aims to promote product or service to prospects, and convert these prospects into customers. Basically, online marketing uses SEO (Search Engine Optimization), this will improve your placement in search engine listings. Another thing is sending follow up messages for those who have visited your site and opted-in for mailings.

One of the major problems online marketers are facing nowadays is fighting spam filters from flagging their legitimate emails as unwanted, unsolicited, etc. Stringent spam filters tend to hamper internet marketing. If you are running an online business, you have to know what a spam filter is, and what does it do. Spam filter detects unsolicited emails which are often offensive – promoting violence, pornography and the like. But because unethical senders keep on looking for ways to make there emails look legitimate, spam filters become aggressive in detecting unwanted messages, but since these filters are not perfect there are false-positive and false-negative. False-positive emails are emails flagged as spam, although they are not. On the other hand false-negative occurs whenever a filter fails to detect a spam message as spam.

As an online marketer, you have to be aware of the different filtering strategies employed by spam filters of mail administrators and ISPs, so that you would be able to make your emails legitimate not just in nature but as well as in appearance, preventing them from being blocked. Most filters use content assessment – looking for a word or a phrase that is associated to spam. Another type of filter is the Bayesian filter, where the filter is accustomed to good and bad emails. During the ‘training’ the messages are broken into tokens and these tokens are then stored into databases (tokens obtained from legitimate emails are separated from those obtained from spam). In addition, there is a Whitelist-Blacklist type of filter. This filter would simply allow you message to reach the inbox if you are listed on its whitelist, otherwise your message will be blocked.

There is also a Challenge-Response filter where you are challenge to do further actions before your message gets to your prospect’s inbox.

(Preventing your message from being flagged as spam and making your message reach your prospects’ inbox)

To ensure deliverability of your newsletters, make your message appears unspammy. Learn the words, phrases or symbols to be avoided in a subject line, such as the word ‘free’, #, $, etc. Encourage your prospects to place you in their whitelist if they are using a whitelist-blacklist filter. If you want to know more about email deliverability, try checking www.emailreach.com.

To prevent your message from being flagged as spam use a double opt-in, this means that your prospects are required to confirm their intentions on your updates and follow ups before you add them into your database for mailing. This would give you an idea of who are interested on your product with a little possibility of getting reported as spam. Another thing is, make your opt-out procedure easy, just like attaching an opt-out link on emails to be sent or simply require your prospects to send an empty email whenever they decide to undo their subscription. Once you impose a tedious procedure for opting out, your prospects might report your message as spam to expedite their unsubscription.

The web keeps the business world revolving. Infinite possibilities are unfolded as online business comes to exist. Through the internet, marketing campaign, promotion, news reports and many more are made in just a matter of minutes. With this, transactions are made easy resulting to more sales. But this is not the real score nowadays, with people sending unsolicited emails (dubbed as spam), mail administrators and users tend to install spam filters in order to prevent annoying and offensive messages from reaching their inboxes. But the thing is, your legitimate message can be blocked.

Spam filters are generally designed to eliminate spam messages in the inbox by either directing the received message on the bulk folder or deleting it. In other words, spam filters cleanse the user’s inbox from unwanted ‘trash’ – pornography, violence and the like. Since these filters are not perfect, legitimate messages can be flagged as spam as well.

Spam filters vary in terms of the method used in detecting spam. The most common type of method is content assessment. This method relies greatly in the content of the sent message or looking for ‘kill’ words or phrases. Bayesian logic is also one of the methods used. Unlike content-based filters, Bayesian method has some sort of ‘training period’, wherein the filter is accustomed to what a legitimate or a spam message appears like. One of the drawbacks of Bayesian method is, it is so dependent on the ‘training’ made. Furthermore, other spam filters use Whitelist-Blacklist method. If the message address is in the whitelist, then it will be directed to the inbox, otherwise in the bulk folder.

In addition, spam senders keep on devising tricks to make their emails appear legitimate; As a result, spam filters become more stringent in their filtering. And worst, your opted in promotional might not reach your prospects/clients inboxes. EmailReach can help you in assessing the content of your message, which will lessen your possibility of getting flagged as spam. If you want to increase your sales amidst stringent content filters try visiting www.emailreach.com.

Spam has not only affected email users but as well as online businesses, big and small alike. Spamming caused mail administrators and ISP to adopt blacklists for the purpose of providing a good service to their subscribers. Unfortunately, Real Time Blacklists (blacklists that can be obtained through the internet) contain innocent domains. Due to imperfect filtering of spam busters, some legitimate emails were included in the blacklists. Furthermore, disgruntled users are also a major source of spam reports.

Once a domain or an IP address landed in any blacklists, it would not only be hard to send a message from that domain or IP, it would be impossible. Because of this dilemma, online marketers have to go through the delisting process once caught in the blacklist.

If you are running an online business and you’ve got many bounced emails, your domain might be blacklisted, you need to perform delisting. Now what is delisting from a blacklist, and the things which entail it? Delisting is just a term referring to the process of removing your domain or IP in the lists of known spammers.

Blacklists have different ways of removing blacklisted addresses. The first thing you need to do is visit their website, know the type or kind of blacklist your are in, then understand the purpose of that blacklist. Know their basis of flagging a message as spam. By doing this you may understand somehow why you were blacklisted.

The next thing, know the delisting process. In some cases automatic delisting is used, but other blacklists might require you to send an email or a phone call, to substantiate your intention for delisting. Have in mind that delisting can be expedited through a third party, especially one with a good reputation.

After the delisting process, know the necessary changes you need to adopt to prevent you from getting blacklisted in the future. This may include email server setting or email format.

Opt-in, Double Opt-in, Opt-out features can also be adopted in your newsletters in the future so that you will not land again in the blacklist. Encourage as well your clients to place you in their whitelist. For further explanations about delisting, blacklist problem, email format, etc., you can visit www.emailreach.com.

As the medium of communication evolves, so is the marketing world. Businessmen keep on taking advantage of the internet as their campaign vehicle. Through online marketing campaign, targets can receive emails – promotion, updates, etc in just a moment. Internet marketers were free to send newsletters to as many recipients as they wanted not until blacklisting issue came to exist.

Blacklists are lists of addresses believed to send spam (unwanted and unsolicited messages sent by unethical marketers). These lists are maintained by certain individuals and groups who monitor the internet for spam reports. They then compile the IP addresses or the domains of those sources reported as spam senders.

Since spam is unlikely and never productive, email users want to exclude this from their inboxes. Because of users demand for a clean mail box, major ISPs and mail administrators look for a blacklist to meet their users need. Once you’re IP or domain address is included in the blacklist your email messages will not reach your prospects’ inboxes unless you apply for whitelising.

The main drawback of a blacklist is that some innocent senders are included on it, thus legitimate emails from legitimate senders are blocked. Marketers face blacklisting dilemma in terms of sending opted in promotional and news reports for their clients. Spam filters block their messages because their domains are included in the blacklist used by their clients’ mail administrator. You can be blacklisted if you have sent a legitimate message in the past which was flagged as spam.

Spam filters check messages based on subject line, content, html code, etc. Your message can be flagged as spam even though you are a CAN SPAM compliant if you fail to take into consideration content assessment of your message.

To help you understand more about blacklists and blacklisting problem kindly check www.emailreach.com. Also, content assessment and whitelisting procedures are included in this site.

Autoresponders are designed to help you manage your online business and internet marketing campaign. Generally, autoresponders can do the sending of your quick messages to your clients/website viewers. These quick messages can be a ‘simple thank you’, which can serve as a relationship builder between you and those who viewed your site. These website viewers are prospect customers, and should be followed up properly. Another thing is, those quick messages can just be a confirmation of the viewers’ intention of subscribing in your mailings, which will prevent you from getting reported as spam sender.

Indeed automation of messages is time saving, giving you more time to focus on other factors that can help in the growth of your business. You can even do business while sleeping or doing other stuff. The primary consideration in this type of messaging is how you fashion your message for the benefit of your prospects. In other words, for you to convert more leads into sales would require a good structuring of your messages – updates, promotions, etc. Furthermore, to prevent your automated message from being flagged as spam, you should send messages that cater your prospects’ need and can penetrate stringent spam filters.

For the meantime let’s just focus on ways to prevent your autoresponder emails from ending up in spam filters or from getting reported as spam. The first thing is, introduce your company to your prospects and tell them how you obtained their email address. Together with this, you can embed a link – say revisiting your site, to make sure that the email you have added in your list came form legitimate viewers. You also need to place a short description of the message you are sending as well as the reasons why they receive such mails. If you are planning to send follow ups for the purpose of marketing your products, make sure to inform your prospects about your follow up mailings – what they can expect from your company and when are you mailing them. Termination of your prospects’ subscription must be plain and simple. For example, you can just have your prospects mail you an empty email for undoing their subscription. If you make unsubscription tedious to your prospects, they might report your automated message as spam to hasten the unsubscription process, even if your message doesn’t appear like one.

In other cases, your message is filtered out by spam filters. It means that your message landed in bulk folders instead of landing in your prospects’ inboxes. Most of the time it’s in the content of your message and the like. To know further about proper structuring of you message as well as content assessment to avoid getting flagged as spam, try visiting www.emailreach.com.