Do You Have Permission for That?

E-mail is still a "killer app" of the Internet, even in these days of "spamming," and has become the marketing tool of choice in an otherwise lackluster online marketing world. According to Jupiter Research, by 2004, e-mail campaigns will command 15 percent of all online advertising dollars, up from less than 3 percent now. E-mail marketing also beats other online marketing tools in response rate comparisons, often achieving a 20-30 percent response rate.

With a projected 100 million people already on the Internet and more than 3 million joining each month, the potential reach of e-mail has online marketers salivating. E-mail is a potent weapon in the hands of those marketers who know how to use it intelligently. However, to exploit the marketing opportunity presented by e-mail, you need to be able to send e-mail to only those people who may be interested in your products and not to those who may not be. This is easier said than done. The companies that have done this with consistency have prospered whereas those who could not are still trying to get a handle on  their e-business operations.

A study conducted by IMT Strategies and sponsored by the Association for Interactive Media, a subsidiary of the Direct Marketing Association, found that the e-mail marketing targeted to prospects and customers who have previously consented to receive marketers' information is one of the most cost-effective marketing tools.