Email Newsletters: Privacy and Unsubscribing

As you likely know from personal experience, the value of email has been greatly tarnished by spam, unsolicited messages, online junk mail. So, many subscribers and would-be subscribers care very much about the exposure of their email addresses.

Since this issue is so important, articulate a privacy policy for your newsletter. Will you rent, sell, or exchange the names of your subscribers to other organizations or persons? While most of us have no plans to do so when we are small, that opinion can change as we grow our list.

Quite frankly, once your list gets to a certain size, you may be able to earn quite a bit of money by renting it out. Many magazine and subscription publishers find that the difference between a profit and loss is list rental income.

If you do decide to keep the list names strictly to yourself, post a message to that effect somewhere, either in the email newsletter itself, at sites where you collect the names of subscribers, or both. By posting, and adhering to, a privacy policy, you will get more subscribers. To read an example, go my newsletter's web page at http:// www.abbottletter.com .

If you're not sure whether you will or will not sell or rent the addresses, then put a note to that effect instead. Many companies do this by saying something like this: "Would you like to receive information messages by email from our valued partners?" To that, of course, you add a checkbox. The default position should be off, which is to say, subscribers have to click on the box to receive those mailings. And, needless to say, you must then respect the choice they make.

You must also make it quick and easy for subscribers to say good-bye. Each issue of your newsletter should contain information explaining how to unsubscribe or be removed from the mailing list. There are many forms this information can take. To choose one, go through the email newsletters you now receive, and decide which you like best. Then, prepare your own notice, using this one as a guide. Of course, you will not copy anything directly, which would be plagiarism.

On the flip side, add information to each newsletter that explains how to subscribe, and consider, too, putting in a line asking recipients to pass along your newsletter to someone else who would benefit from it. A simple reminder like that could help you build your list, painlessly. Recommendations from a trusted colleague or friend will boost your subscriber list quickly.

Summing up, develop a privacy policy and stick to it. In addition, give your subscribers an escape hatch they can access quickly and easily.

Robert F. Abbott, the author of A Manager's Guide to Newsletters: Communicating for Results, writes and publishes Abbott's Communication Letter. Read more articles about Internet communication, as well as email and printed newsletters at: http:// http://www.communication-newsletter.com/ic.ht ml

---

21 Questions to Ask Any List Service Before You Sign on With Them

If you publish an e-mail newsletter, or "e-zine," you'll need... Read More

Work Less, Earn More As An Infoproduct Publisher

There's no doubt, publishing information products to sell online is... Read More

7 Power Packed Tips To Increase Your Ezine Publishing Success

1. Use autoresponders to publish and promote your ezine.Autoresponders with... Read More

Putting the YOU in Your E-zine

I get many e-zines in my inbox every week, and... Read More

You Can Develop An E-zine Even If You Dont Enjoy Writing!

Do you know that many business owners market their businesses... Read More

Newsletters ? Keeping Your Customers Informed

Many businesses use email newsletters to introduce themselves to new... Read More

Gosh, What Am I Going to Put in My Email Newsletter THIS Month?

So you decided to put out a monthly newsletter, because... Read More

How To Make Money Online With A Newsletter

Many online internet marketers tell us "its all in the... Read More

Does Your Subject Line Do the Job?

It's proven that the FROM field of your emails is... Read More

Create An Immortal Ezine: Evergreen Newsletters

This article is particularly for those people who want to... Read More

Search Engines Can Be The Online Writers Best Friend

It's an exciting time for online writers, with a wide... Read More

Ezines VS. Trade Journals

As many people know Industry Trade Journals in America have... Read More

Write Your Weekly Ezine in 5-Minutes! (or better yet, dont write it at all)

How to write your ezine in 5 minutes by legally... Read More

10 Newsletter Ideas to Write Articles for Your Newsletter

Since you publish your newsletter on a regular basis, sometimes... Read More

Is It a Newsletter or Just One More Commercial?

When I purchased my very first computer, not too long... Read More

10 Ways, How To Get Significant Exposure For Free

Ezine are one of the best source of information on... Read More

Need Ezine Content - Think Holidays

Publishing an ezine certainly has its benefits and rewards, but... Read More

WHOOPS -- There Goes My List! (Are You Backing Up YOUR Biggest Asset?)

Have you ever accidentally lost an important file on your... Read More

Are You Wasting Your Time With Free Ezine Ads?

There are lots of ezines (newsletters) out there that offer... Read More

3 Money-Making Reasons for Displaying Your Newsletters on Your Website

Seeing is believing. Unless your website visitors can experience your... Read More

Top 3 Steps to Success Building the Relationships

Marketing is a broad business subject that encompasses a range... Read More

Internet Marketing Strategy: 9 Pragmatic Ways Increase Your E-zines Subscription

It is possible to increase the subscription to your e-zine... Read More

Explode Your Business

You can make a decent income selling products and services... Read More

OK People - Lets Get Real!

It's all about numbers - or so some ezine publishers... Read More

The Magic Button That Earns $3,546 or more

Ever wonder how a "guru" earns $3,546 or more just... Read More

Ebook Rebranding - The New Ebook Marketing Power?

Well, it is definitely yes!In the early day of internet... Read More

Are We Dating or Married?

You've convinced me that I want to sign up for... Read More

EZines: Get from Adequate to Fabulous

If my in-box is any indication, most of the business... Read More

Delivering Your Email Newsletter

After creating your email newsletter, you face the challenge of... Read More

Word Newsletter Templates - How to Easily Create Them

You can use Word newsletter templates for both Word and... Read More

Covering All The Bases: How to Make Sure Your Newsletter Gets Opened and Read

It's not enough to prepare and distribute a monthly newsletter,... Read More

Coping With Those Dreaded Ezine Publishing Deadlines

Time, of course, doesn't stand still and never did, and... Read More

The Number One Tried and Tested Method For Exploding Your Ezine Subscriptions

We all know how cagey and stubborn prospects can be... Read More