posted on January 22, 2001 06:02:08 PM
I have several questions about setting up a customer database for my online auctions, so that I can send out special offers to my established customers...
What is the easiest way to compile a list of customer email addresses?
How do I go about bulk emailing the list of customers that I have compiled?
In relation to the previous question, can I just save a list of my customer addresses in, say, Microsoft word, and then copy and paste those addresses in the "Send To" bar of my email program - or is there a better way?
Is it legal to e-mail additional promotions to my customers without asking them to opt-in (because they have already purchased from me)?
I would greatly appreciate any help you could give me!
posted on January 22, 2001 06:19:17 PM
I would be very very careful. There would probably be a few people that would be upset at being added to your list without prior permission.
I think it may even be a suspendable offence in Ebay's eyes (don't quote me there though). You may want to e-mail Ebay to see what their view on it is.
posted on January 22, 2001 06:28:07 PM
I must admit..I have done this.
I must a small disclaimer on the bottom of the email..something like...you are being emailed because you purchased from me in past..I am ordering new items and wanted to get ideas as to what you are looking for to assist in my ordering. This gives me an idea what color and types of items folks are looking for. I have made sales this way too.
Why would Ebay care? This has nothing to do with Ebay..they got their share from the auctions..I don't see where the problem is.
posted on January 22, 2001 06:31:38 PM
I, for one, would hate to think that I ended up on someone's solicitation list because I purchased something from them. Perhaps the auctions should have a place you can check if you DON'T want to be added to a list..???
______________________________
Sticks & stones may break my bones, but words can break my heart.
posted on January 22, 2001 06:36:19 PM
Eager,
Sorry - I wasn't being clear. I meant that Ebay probably has an anti spam policy - I wasn't meaning fee avoidance.
posted on January 22, 2001 06:45:57 PM
I have a customer database, but I DO NOT e-mail any of them for the purpose of soliciting. I have the database only as a reference of past buyers so I can acknowledge them in their future buys. People like to be remembered, I think, and if they feel special, then they remember you and search out your auctions. I get lots of advertized e-mail and must admit I get defensive towards them and just delete, block and don't bother.
posted on January 22, 2001 06:47:48 PM
The best way to do this is to give the customer control and to offer them a reason to want your emails. I inform all my customers that they are now members of my list. They are entitled to free tech support and will be getting a monthly newsletter about internet deals and scams. Though the newsletter mentions my items, it also contains a list of useful internet sites and special deals I have come across like items with large rebates and warnings about scam sites. I offer special deals on my items to subscribers and a drawing 4 times a year for a color printer. The newsletter starts off with a notice that they can unsubscribe at any time with an email. I have over 2,000 subscribers, with several new ones signing up each day by referrals or from my web site. I have given away 4 printers and lots of smaller items but the increased business has more than made up for it. And when I get a direct sale, there are no auction fees to pay.
posted on January 22, 2001 07:26:15 PMIs it legal to e-mail additional promotions to my customers without asking them to opt-in (because they have already purchased from me)?
I dont know if it's legal to email your customers but I have been put on two sellers email lists and about every two weeks - for the last TWO YEARS - have the displeasure of receiving their email catalogue, auction "highlights", "special offers"....
They also inform me that "This is not spam because you have purchased something from me..." (?) and if I dont want their catalogue I should contact them. People just love negative billing.
Sorry, I send the spam to safe harbour everytime, like SH really cares.
Buying something from someone once, does not entitle a buyer to a continuous barrage of unwanted mail. Just a waste of bandwidth.
posted on January 22, 2001 08:13:15 PM
I occasionally email my best repeat customers if I'm putting something unusual up that I think they'll be interested in. These are all folks that I've exchanged friendly email comments with during past transactions, folks I'm on a first name basis with because of repeated sales. I've never had a complaint, and I almost always get a friendly reply of "thanks for the heads up!"
These are folks that I've developed an ongoing relationship with, and I feel comfortable contacting them in that manner. I mail each email individually, and personalize the email with their name in the body. I can usually handle this in a reply to a recent email they've sent me.
I wouldn't even consider sending a batch of email to my entire customer database, for reasons others have stated above.
posted on January 23, 2001 05:42:19 AMlufkin ...
From now on, ASK the winners to tell you if they would like to be contacted when you have similar items listed, and ask what other items they might be interested in. ALSO, if you want to send of-eBay special offers, indicate HOW OFTEN and HOW BIG these emails will be (don't barrage your lists, it pisses them off, and they will tell you to bug off).
IF they reply with a YES, SAVE THE EMAIL, and put the customer info into a database (spreadsheet would work) that indicatates exactly what they want to be notified about. If they are EAPG collectors, don't bother them with ads for Goofus Glass.
If they ask to be removed, DO IT IMMEDIATELY!
"can I just save a list of my customer addresses in, say, Microsoft word, and then copy and paste those addresses in the "Send To" bar of my email program"
... sure, if you want ALL of them to see your whole list of customers, and you don't want to know what happens when someone hits the REPLY TO ALL button by mistake.
What you need to look into, no matter what email program you use, is "mail merge" or "mailing to a list". Pegasus is one FREE mail program that can do this easily. Then you select the list of customers that want to know about Vaseline glass (sort the spread sheet, OR query the database) and make a list of their addresses to feed to the email program.
"Is it legal to e-mail additional promotions to my customers without asking them to opt-in "
Legal? Not in some countries (the UK and Germany have STRICK regulations on how lists of personal info MUST be registered and maiontained, and Norway just banned UCE completely).
It also may be against the TOS of your ISP, and it DEFINITELY is against the TOS of eBay. How fast do you want to lose your accounts?
Eagerbeader:
"I must a small disclaimer on the bottom of the email..something like...you are being emailed because you purchased from me in past.."
A prior purchase from you DOES not entitle you to add my name to your list of advertising recipients. If I ask to be added it's OK, but forcing me to subsidize your sales is not OK. It's like sending unrefusable junk mail with postage due!
"Why would Ebay care?"
Because NOT WANTING SPAM is the main reason people do not buy on line - they don't want their mail boxes clutered with unsolicited crap. Ebay does not want eBay buyers to be spammed by sellers because it drives off buyers. And if I didn't ask for it (unsolicited), and you hope to profit from it (commercial), it's UCE/SPAM and you shouldn't send it.
yisgood
"I inform all my customers that they are now members of my list."
Oh really? That's damned rude of you to assume that a single purchase entitles you to add someone to anything without asking their permission.
"The newsletter starts off with a notice that they can unsubscribe at any time with an email."
So does every fricking spam I get! Spammers add names without permission and think that offernig an unsubscribe feature somehow makes it acceptable.
I see no reason to have to ask to be removed from any list I did not ask to be on. When I get an email informing me that I "have been added" to a list that I did not ask to be on, I do not ask the list owner to remove me from their list. I DO ask the ISP to remove the list owner's connection to the internet, for adding me to a UCE list without asking (it's called running an opt-out list, and it is grounds for termination on many ISPs).
genie9 -
Forward these to eBay specifically saying SPAM, and send a complaint to their ISP (usually abuse@ will get it there) ... that usually gets something done.
If you really want to nail them, post a few things on any alt.sex newsgroup with the seller's email in the FROM line (just change it in your news reader) AND pick a few of those MAKE MONEY FAST spams and reply to them with the sellers email address and physical mailing address. Hey, if they don't mind sending it, they shouldn't mind getting it!
posted on January 23, 2001 10:52:03 AM
I really do not see a problem with it. There are some sellers out there that I have bought from that tell me that they will be adding me to their list in the their payment notification email. If I do not want to be added, then I am given the option to reply with "DO NOT ADD" in the subject heading. It is really not that big of a deal and I have gotten good deals from these sellers from the emails that I received.
I do not feel that this is spamming if you are given the option.
As for the post saying that you did not ask to be added and what gives the seller the right to do so? If you look, every retail business that you buy from gathers and creates customer lists. From these lists, they send you direct mail with sales ads and specials deals. Is there a problem with that?
I think people blow this spam thing way out of the water.
posted on January 24, 2001 04:58:42 PM
My take on the eBay policies is that though you can’t market to people to drive transactions outside of eBay, you ARE able to market to people to drive transactions on eBay.
Clearly you can’t email bidders unless you get their permission (i.e. opt-in). however, i haven't seen anything on eBay which says that you can't do this to buyers. I would say that sending an email to a buyer is ok as long as you make it clear they can “unsubscribe” and not get any future mailings from you.
Bryan, as far as your question is concerned about how to build your customer database and do permission based marketing, i suggest you check out www.mybiz.com. it is a cool CRM tool which automatically compiles email/contact info for you from your auctions and gives you a personalized "toolbar" that allows bidders to join your mailing list directly through your auctions. it also lets you send out targetted emails and newsletters to your contacts. To speak to Abacaxi's point, each recipient will receive it as though it was written only to him/her -- they won't see a whole list of people in a CC box.
posted on January 24, 2001 07:48:12 PM
I always ask when sending the EOA. I say if you want to be informed when new shipments come in, I will send you an email.
But most customers, don't even read that far down on the EOA..just like the auctions..they don't look at the whole thing. So I put the disclaimer on my email to them also.
posted on January 24, 2001 08:27:06 PM
You can set up an email list on eGroups, Topica, or BigStep. You should make it opt in not opt out, though there is ALWAYS debate about that. Put messages in all your emails to your customers that you have a list they can join if they are interested in hearing about other items you have for sale. If you keep real good records of their interests you can use the BigStep newsletter to send different newsletters to different groups, or you can set this up in Outlook Express or Netcape mail (or almost any email program). Using an outside system like BigStep, removes the burden from your ISP and your computer system. Yisgood had several great ideas.
On another note - How come when we send email to our bidders it is SPAM, and when ebaY changes all our no SPAM settings to YES it is Marketing???
-Rosalinda
TAGnotes - daily email synopsis about the Online Auction Industry http://www.topica.com/lists/tagnotes
posted on January 24, 2001 09:09:45 PM
I've had sellers add me to their mailing lists without my permission. It is annoying. Also. I think that if Ebay got complaints you may have some trouble. They clearly state that all informtion received about another user is for ebay use only.
