Growing Your Email Marketing List: Better Built Than Bought

by Andrew Schulkind

It’s tempting to turbocharge your email marketing efforts by buying lists to quickly extend your reach, but for most businesses this is a misguided approach.

My latest column for Biznology has been published. In it, I lay out the problems you’ll face in buying names, the regulatory issues you’ll run into, and outline ways to build your list that are ultimately more effective than buying one.

Nobody on a purchased list knows you, even if it’s a legitimate opt-in list
You may be in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act or similar regulations
You are either violating your Email Service Provider’s terms of service or putting your own domain at risk of being tagged as a spammer
Building your subscriber base is only half the problem – you have to hold their attention, too

Given the need to hold your audience’s attention, you may as well apply the effort you’re already making there to attracting their interest in the first place.

Biznology.com

Read the full article now at Biznology.

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