The nonstop flood of emails I’m receiving daily continues, touting every book development and marketing service imaginable.
Dozens of these arrive in my mailbox every morning, only to be quickly deleted.
They all have non-traceable Gmail addresses. So I set a rule to send all Gmail to a junk folder, thinking that solved the problem.
Only many folks I WANT to hear from also use Gmail, and they end up in the same junk folder.
Sifting through is a never-ending battle.
SIGH!
Adding to my frustration is the tsunami of political email and texts constipating my inbox. The closer we get to election day, the worse it gets.
Cheaper (though less compelling) than physical mailers, email and texts are much more prevalent.
My direct marketing professor told me decades ago that it’s called junk mail when it doesn’t work.
This crap doesn’t work.
The volume of texts is the worst, because the same messaging comes from 20 different phone numbers. I block one, and six more appear. It’s like a giant game of Whack-A-Mole.
How did it start? I donated to a cause several years ago, and these guys all share their lists. Plus, between voter registration files, petitions I’ve signed, data brokers, and subscriptions, there are dozens of ways they could’ve added me to a list as a good prospective donor.
And because political campaigns don’t need to comply with the CAN-SPAM Act or let you unsubscribe, there isn’t much anyone can do about it.
So I just block them, then block some more.
And don’t think donating will get them to leave you alone, because it encourages them and makes things worse.
The list of “service providers” and political groups relegated to my junk folder grows hourly, and I’m now reluctant to contribute to the folks I’d like to support. It’s self-preservation, and I feel they’ve saturated this particular market.
Because while I recognize the importance of repeating your message, there’s such a thing as going overboard.
Meaning, if you’re thinking of following this “flood the zone” strategy to market your own business or nonprofit, you should know I’m not alone in this view.
Folks on the receiving end will be much quicker than ever before to block, delete, and report you as spam.
With that said, I wish you a week of profitable marketing. Get fresh marketing ideas. www.askmrmarketing.com.
