Bronto Blog

Imagine the following (very real) scenario:

Your boss sends you a file that includes 50,000 email addresses. You import the list into your account (merging it with the rest of your house file) and “blast away.” Within minutes your IP address is blocked at several major ISPs.

What went wrong? All 50,000 email addresses are customers who’ve purchased in the past and opted-in. Upon sign up, you included a link to your privacy policy. You even have another file that lists the date and IP address associated with each opt-in. So, what happened?

On the surface, it appears that you’ve done it all by the book. You’ve satisfied the law (read: CAN-SPAM). You’re not a spammer. Why did this happen, if these are your customers?

Upon analyzing these subscribers, you uncover the following information about the 50,000 emails in the file:

• 50% purchased over a year ago, but haven’t received an email since that first purchase.
• 25% purchased in the past 6 months, but haven’t received an email since that first purchase.
• 25% are repeat buyers (their last purchase < 1 month ago), but haven’t received an email in 6 months Read the rest of this entry »