Sorry, Kinda

Geez, I just re-read my last three entries and it seems like I’m the president of the, "I Hate Email" club.

For the record, that’s not true:  I’m the president of the, "Email is Horribly Broken" and "There’s Got to be a Better Way" clubs.

Communication networks have to be authenticated (available now via alert networks).

Opt-in and opt-out have to be totally controlled by the customer/reader (available now via RSS and alert networks).

Else, it’s the Wild, Wild West (the SPAM disaster we have today).

 

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Completely Missing the Point

David Daniels from Jupiter comments on "RSS’s Effect on E-Mail Marketing"… and suggests that RSS feeds can fill up with annoying "bogus clutter" just like email… and completely misses the point about RSS:  

     If you don’t like what’s coming from a vendor’s RSS feed, turn it off.

It’s impossible to do this with email.  (We all know one of the electronic truism of the 21st century:  "Once your email address works its way onto lists, you’re screwed.")

But with RSS, it really, truly is just as simple as "turning it off."

That’s it.  Done.  Finis.  Nothing more from that vendor.

With RSS, the reader is in control of what messages they get by turning on or off an RSS feed.

With email, the person that has your email address is in control and can abuse you any time they like.

David, see the difference?

 

So Much Bigger Than RSS

Napster (the illegal variant) was a customer revolution.  People wanted — demanded — a better way to get music. 

Through fits & starts, the recording industry has changed forever.

RSS isn’t about RSS… it’s about another customer revolution:  People despise SPAM.  People want — demand — to be in control of the electronic information they receive…

… i.e., NOT at the whim of anyone with a keyboard and a product to peddle.

Whether it’s RSS or other 100% opt-in-customer-controlled mechanisms, the way companies communicate with customers will soon be changed forever, too. 

That is, if they want their communication to be effective.

Not the first to point this out. 

Won’t be the last.

Email Lists are Toast

‘Tis true — at least for the "not opt-in" variety — whether anyone wants to admit it or not.

Simple line of thinking:

People despise SPAM (it’s the only thing republicans and democrats agree on! <smile>).

SPAM is about doubling every year.

The gov’t is now involved. Political careers are at stake.

CAN-SPAM II will look a lot like the mistakenly replaced Californian SPAM legislation requiring 100% opt-in.

Active lists will dwindle and compliance costs will go through the roof.

Ergo, email will be regulated to death.

Plan accordingly.

 

DMA’s Super Secret Meeting

Got invited to a super exclusive DMA event in Florida… very high-powered crowd, top 100 CEO’s in the direct marketing space no less.

Got to present about RSS, blogging, and alerts.

Twist my arm or what? <smile>

So here’s the funny thing: I expected the crowd to be somewhat stodgy… somewhat, well, stuck in legacyland.

I also expected them to be shocked when I insulted one of their prized assets: "Email lists are history."

(See upcoming post re: this.)

But the joke was on me. It was a pretty hip crowd!

I even got an unexpected good showing of hands when I mentined "podcasting." (One guy was even carrying!)

They were like sponges, absorbing everything, interested at both the 30,000 foot and 3 foot levels.

Stay tuned for more consumer friendly direct marketing programs in the upcoming years… after all, these folks only care about what works and what doesn’t.

 

“Back To Your Regularly Scheduled Program…”

Hard to get back into the swing of things.  But, alas, we don’t really have a choice.

Thank you to all for keeping a good thought about George in your heart from time to time.

More posts soon.

 

Unspeakable Question

Everyone mourns differently, heals differently. 

Ultimately we’re all left with that common, unspeakable question:  "Is that it?  Here one day, gone the next?"

But then — deep in our hearts — we find the answer. 

Our loved ones are always with us — inspiring us, influencing us, teaching, comforting, even amusing us — for the rest of our forever.

At George’s memorial, we symbolically planted a cherry tree in our yard.  Our two year old daughter will grow up with "Uncle George’s tree."  My wife specially selected it because of its sturdy trunk and radiantly beautiful blossoms. 

We hope — with all of our hearts — that it becomes a safe and warm spot for her in her life just as George was for us.