How to Get Your Ezine Read in Spite of Spam Filters

Permission email marketing is what fuels success on the Internet and includes ezines, newsletters, product update notification emails, auto responder courses, etc. Nobody likes spamming (it's gone up 600% this year)-- and I hope you aren't -- but if you have a legitimate ezine that's being blocked from your opt-in subscribers, here are some things to try.

1. Consider alternate ways of mailing blocked issues of your ezine.

If your list is small, you can customize ezines for people whose issues were filtered. Otherwise consider an announcement version or posting on your website.

2. Avoid using the "s" word anywhere in your ezine.

I'm sorry to tell you that saying "This is NOT spam" alerts filters.

3. Don't use all caps for your subject line.

Filters are designed to find "hype". Also avoid using lots of exclamation points !!!!!!!

4. Have your subscribers work with their servers.

Despite the fact that your list is opt-in or even double opt-in, filters still apply; they don't know the difference. Some subscribers don't even know there are filters on their email.

5. But do use good headers/subject lines.

Some filters block what they consider "malformed email", e.g., missing headers, invalid return addresses, non-existent domains.

6. Use an ezine mail service that has the "name" option, such as Constant Contact (www.roving.com).

80-90% of spam mail is sent without a valid To: or a valid Cc: header. They use the same header for every piece of mail ("subscriber"), so this is one thing spam filters look for.

7. Avoid "excessive" mailing.

What the definition of this is, I'm not sure -- surely more than once a day -- but excessive emailing will get your pieces filtered.

8. Quit using the word "Viagra".

I can do that, or call it by its generic name, but how can I avoid using the word "Resilience," when it's the name of one of my ebooks and Joanne in the UK can't receive it (which happened this week)? "Resilience" is evidently considered "obscenity." And I can't just change the title of the ebook or attachment, the content is also being filtered. ANd listen to the trials and tribulations of the editor of TidBITS. The following words kept their ezine from being delivered recently: "Viagra," "my," "X10," "Napster," and "pictures." "In short," says the editor, "we're starting to see signs that email, often hailed as the Internet's 'killer app,' is in danger of becoming an unreliable, arbitrarily censored medium - and there's very little we can do about it."

Using the word "Viagra" caused 4,000 TidBITS issues to be rejected by over 1,000 sites.

9. Ways around?

If you have an anti-spam policy, which is good to publish, you're going to have to use the word, so write it this way - spam, or this way - sp*m. Write free this way; it's a flag.

10. Put a notice about this in your ezine.

Alert subscribers of what's going on, and be prepared to ofofer alternate sources. Subscribers can also ask their administrator if they're performing content filtering on incoming email.

P.S. Expect this issue to escalate. Another article refused by servers was entitled "Goodies from Kensington."

Susan Dunn helps individuals market their professional services online. Visit her on the web at www.webstrategies.cc . Mailto:Susan Dunn for FREE ezine.

sdunn@susandunn.cc
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