Ilka was was trying to set up her email list with one of the most popular email list services available. She got this from them today:
“Dear Ilka:
“I am sorry to have to advise you that your account…does not meet the guidelines outlined in our Prohibited Content policy.
“Because of unsolicited commercial email and the high number of abuse complaints stemming from your industry, we are no longer able to take on any new work from home, multi-level marketing or get rich quick related customers.
“This decision is…in response to industry outcry.
“The marketplace associated with sending email has changed dramatically, and as a result, we have had to adapt our tolerances to meet the current business environment. While we appreciate your consideration, we cannot afford the possible risk and exposure associated with your account. High abuse complaints result in getting our servers blocked by ISPs.
“As a result, we will no longer be able to provide our
services to you…”
The marketplace has changed, indeed. Consumers become much more skeptical, and companies that provide business services have become much less tolerant of MLM abuse.
What are “abusive practices” in the eyes of others?
- Emailing people too often to just sell sell sell.
- Calling people (back) too often (nagging, hounding, badgering).
- Making get-rich-quick promises and claims.
- Taking advantage of friendships to sell.
Is it time to re-invent our industry?……Ideas, anyone?
My first reaction upon reading this was “OUCH”.
Then I thought of all the emails I get from “Get Rich Quick” schemes, “Earn Money From Home’ programs, not to mention drugs, loans, etc., and I can understand the stand the server has taken.
As painful as it is those few who have abused it have given us all a black eye.
And as convenient as auto responders are, etc., maybe we have to invent something new.
We cannot say “I’m tired of SPAM” and then complain about the stand this list server has taken.
So, I guess in some ways it is back to the drawing board for the rest of us.
Your entries are SO timely, Kim. I just got off the phone from a prospect who had just left another company because of the way they are running their business. Very old school network marketing.
It is definately time to re-invent our industry, not just with the distributors, but the company themselves.
I was glad to see this posted. This happen to me with the company I use for my web service. They will not let me use the contact system they have because of the company I work with. It made me mad but at the same time I can understand their view.
> Ideas, anyone?
Well, you could shut down. MLM is a parasite, a scam preying on the stupid.
Wow this is a real eye opener isn’t it. Of course we all know this is going on and none of us here in NMC support this kind of behavior.
In some ways this could be a good thing. Will this stop all the spam email we are getting?
Maybe this is one of the few ethical companies out there in regards to email accounts?
I applaud what they are doing but yes, it is going to hurt us/the network marketing industry.
Maybe there is a “shift” happening in the blogosphere….
I have a serice I use to send a monthly email newsletter to my customers. That’s it. I send them one email a month and it is based on their permission to be on the list and there is an unsubscribe statement in every newsletter I send.
I educate in my newsletter and I might highlight one product based on the ingredients that I have talked about in my newsletter.
It’s called permission based marketing. So if we are using permission based marketing, then in theory “abusive practices” would not be happening.
Regards,
Erin
Permission-based marketing, whether an e-mail list or phone or other, is perfectly legitimate. I have mailing lists on health and longevity to over 300 people, clipping current research and controversies, sometimes amusing, sometimes with a product angle from my company, sometimes not. If done politely, with permission, any time they can ask to be OFF the list, it is fine. However, e-mail providers and programs (Outlook) flag any mass mailings. I will be moving to auto-responder technology, whereby a professional website handles the mailings for me.
Bob Howe
NuSkin-Pharmanex
Hmmmmm…. It’s a tad hypocritical when these e-mail companies make so much money out of us. And since when are we to be thrown in with the “get rich quick” schemes? It seems to me they’re banning the wrong people.
It’s all got so complicated. I bought some leads that were “double opt-in”. I barely know what that means being the wrong side of 50 and still writing letters with a fountain pen. I then tried to import them into an autoresponder system – way too geeky for me – and it required that they opt in again. It’s madness. So these people have declared that they want information about a home based business and answered all the right questions and now I’m not allowed to tell them about it.
It almost makes me want to tell my friends and family instead!
When I first joined my company, I was experimenting with the autoresponders. There weren’t supposed to be any names in the system that hadn’t requested more information. I tried to send myself one of the emails, and found out that it was blacklisted by my email provider. To say I was shocked and disappointed was an understatement. I started learning about the industry, lead generation and email in general. One person fills out an “I’m interested” form, which is collected and sold over and over again to many different people. By the time the 4th or 10th or 53rd person calls who bought their name, they have had it. Then, their name gets loaded into cheaper and cheaper lead systems until their mailbox is so full of unsolicted email they ignore everything and start over somewhere else.
Yes, Absolutely we need something new. We need a system or a way for people who are really interested in finding out (not jumping in) what they need to know about work at home options. WE need a way to sort out the serious from the curious from the job seekers.
I quit buying leads because of this exactly. I know there are lots of people out there who do well with them, but I wasn’t one of them. When the best in the industry get only 5-10 out of 100, or are able to persuade/manipulate more into trying a business they are unsuited for, it is a black eye for all of us. I believe anonymous hit it on the head for what many people outside the industry believe. As long as we continue to believe a breathing person is qualified to be in our business, this is what will happen.
We need to be a lot choosier about who we solicit. Lead generation companies need to stop overselling names and we all need to take a deep breathe and realize not everyone should be in the home business/MLM/self employment industry, just because they’re interested. I have a commercial business for sale for $125,000. Just the price deters the unqualified, but not a 49.00/99.00 membership option. If you want a guaranteed $100,000 revenue stream, you can buy this business. I can guarantee your success if you follow exactly what I have done, and you’re willing to move here where the business is AND you’re willing to work the same hours and give the same services. The 49.00 option only pays your gate fee and invites too many unqualified applicants. Maybe we should raise the bar and make the entrance fee steeper? Make every potential business partner attend mandatory training or whatever would separate the serious from the casual? We need to make it harder, not easier. Nothing gained too easily is ever really valued.
Cynthia Newcomb
A couple of thoughts…
I saw a quote recently which made some sense. It said, “If you learn to network properly, you won’t have to advertise.” Maybe you own’t have to email people you don’t know too well either.
Also, if you can wrap your mind around Web 2.0, you learn that the idea is “community” rather than “advertising” that works best. People come to you once they get to know you and then get interested in your stuff. I know Kim is very aware about how this type of marketing works.
Meanwhile, email lists are suffering. Is it time to change our online habits?
greg cryns
WahmSearchEngine.com
A while back I got an email from my company letting me know that Comcast was not forwarding email from my company website email address to my Comcast email address – so I changed that to my gmail address – but who knows how many customers I might have lost.
Then a few weeks ago, yahoo censored several political email messages at my yahoo email account – sending through only the sender and subject lines – the messages were blank. [Of course the junk with yahoo return addresses still came thru to my bulk folder.] So now most of that is switched to my gmail address.
I used the different addresses for my own filing purposes but now most of it comes to my gmail account.
When will it end? It won’t. It’s all political. It will get worse because the ISPs want to control all our mail until we pay them extra to send our email – like the post office – but it’s not like the ISP services we now have are free ☺
We need to be aware of what we are doing – and try to lead the way. We also need to educate people to stop buying from the spammers. All that junk that winds up in our junk or bulk files would go away if no one bought their junk…It’s also a bad idea to respond and ask to be removed – that just gets you on more lists.
And the people who do not use the bcc function on their emails are part of the problem too – as they put all those email addresses out there for the spiders to collect.
And never ever send on any email that tells you to send it to everyone you know….
It’s a problem we need to discuss and address – so thank you for posting this…
Lynn
grow older better
Email is so 1.0 thinking! 😉
With the advent of Web 2.0, email blasting (yep I’m guilty) is quickly becoming a thing of the past. However, autoresponders still play an important role in the new Web 2.0 business model.
However, through the use of Web 2.0 services, (social networking) we are able to target more accurately and build large networks of people with the same interests and goals.
I know we’ll never be able to get rid of the SPAMMERs and that’s too bad.
But through the use of Web 2.0 services we’ll be able to Network in a manner never before seen in this industry.
I predict that Web 2.0 will force us to change the way we operate in this industry.
Just my 2 cents!
Charles
aka StayHomeDad
I never send an email without calling the lead first. I ask if they would like information about a network marketing company that is growing quickly. If they hate networking they say no. If they have a company they say no. If they are a tire kicker they say yes. If they would truly like to check it out they say yes.
I send the email. I follow up. If we are a match I enroll them.
How to separate yourself from the spammers? USE THE PHONE!
There is no golden road to MLM riches. You can’t email your way there so what happened to Ilka is no big deal, although she probably won’t agree! I say this not because I’m mean, but because I wonder where the list she had came from, just like the ISP is wondering.
All we can really do is decide who we are, what we are inspired to market and why. Then if you wanna use the Internet, put up a website, start a blog and *put yourself out there.* You will attract all of the right people at just the right time. Kim knows this, teaches this and even then some people don’t *get* it. Curious…
As for the spammers, they aren’t Network Marketers and never will be. Take pride in what you do, because you do it for the right reasons, and no one will be able to shake you no matter what they call you, or try to stop you from doing. If she has a real opt-in list of people waiting to hear from her and her reputation is on the line, she’ll find a way to use it. If it’s something else, she won’t go to the trouble.
The *system* we need is called being real, and anyone can do it today, without spending another dime. If you want a head start, spend a few and use Network Marketing Central. (nope I’m not on the payroll, lol!)
Be well,
Tracy
Thank you Kim, for posting this! This seems to be a very hot topic. I love all the comments. Thanks everyone for taking part in this!
I used this email service for the same reasons Erin is using it…to educate and update my teammembers. I never used it to send email to people I didn’t know even my customers, because yes, although there’s a “Subribtion reminder” and “unsubscribe link” in every email, sometimes people just don’t remember that they opted in.
I agree with Peggy from Porcupine, maybe it’s time to invent something new. But then again, how long is it going to take until the spammers and those who abuse those
systems will make this “new thing” absolete?…and we’re off to try something new yet again. I don’t think we will ever invent something that only the “good guys” will have access to.
I also totally agree with Cynthia. We need to be much more selective in whom we invite to work with us in this industry. A lot of people out there have a very negative impression of MLM and Network Marketing. Yes, there are bad companies, and yes, there are bad reps…but then again, you will find that in the “real” business world as well. Just take a look at what happened with Enron.
Also, a lot of people who join our industry don’t seem to understand that this is a REAL business just like anything else. Like Cynthia is mentioning they join for $49 and “give it a try”. Like Joda says, “there is no try”. Would they have to pay a couple of $1,000 to get started, they would put out a real effort in making it work instead of quitting after a month if they haven’t made thousands of dollars yet. The ones who join for pittens and then sit back and wait for the “happy truck” are usually the ones bashing the industry.
And yes, new reps need to be educated on the industry, how it works, what to say ect. Companies should have company sponsored training for new people. This would not only be beneficial for new reps but also protect the company itself from false claims being made about products, ect.
I was on your call earlier today, Kim, just never fast enough to make a comment ;o) You hit on something that has been playing in my mind ever since…I can’t remember your exact words but it was to the effect that there is a core of ethical marketers that can turn this negavitive image of MLM and Network Marketing around.
Kim, it is actually YOU who made the first step in that direction when you created NMC. The people who are connected to NMC are the kind of network marketers who can make the difference and turn MLM and Network Marketing into the good thing it really is already at it’s core. Thank you for your efforts and for your support! I’ll proudly follow your lead.
Best wishes,
Ilka ;o)
I wanted to share my 2 cents as soon as I saw this with regard to the question: “Is it time to reinvent our industry? . . . Ideas, anyone?”, but I had a full day on Friday . . .
From 8AM until 3PM, I was the guest speaker at a local high’s school Career Week event.
When I initially inquired about being a speaker several weeks ago, this was my way of ‘experimenting’. I was thrilled when one of the business teachers was interested, but then that turned to slight panic when she and 2 other teachers decided to combine their classes and reserved the Media Center (library) for me to do my presentation before their classes — ALL day long! 🙂
For months I’ve been thinking that there’s got to be a way to get the word out about what our industry is all about without actually trying to sell anything or recruit anybody, at least not overly. So I came up with the idea to just ‘tell my story’ within the context of encouraging students to have a “Plan B,” by looking into the Home Based Business industry, specifically Network Marketing. After explaining what the industry is really all about, based upon my 4 years of observation and experience (steep learning curve), I tied it all together by explaining the tax advantages as I understood them based upon an Affiliate program I belong to. I closed with suggesting that they take home a sheet of paper I had prepared with the website links to some of the businesses I’m involved with and share it with their parents.
For all my stressing about what to say to approximately 400 students throughout the day, without looking at the copious notes I’d prepared for the past 2 weeks, I must say, I THINK I made an impression, and a pretty good one too. In fact, one student told me as I was leaving the school that he listened 4 times (worked in the library, I guess) and said I was the best speaker they had had all week!
Not only did the teachers appreciate the information (I had already figured that even if the students didn’t quite understand, the teachers certainly would), I had several students thank me, shake my hand, and received applause from earlier classes. And yesterday, a parent called me to ask a question about one of the websites.
So here’s an idea for those who have NEVER actually done a business presentation (like me, because I didn’t ‘rank high enough’ in the organization to get that chance) . . . TRY IT!
Look around you, there are high school students EVERYWHERE who are preparing for their future, and WE who have already experienced what life holds for a person once they leave school, have some very valuable information that we need to be passing on.
Give them some other options to simply take a look at, especially since you know the schools aren’t. Remember, I never mentioned the company names or products that I promote and market. I just told MY story and encouraged them to take home a sheet of paper so they and their parents could take a look.
Who knows where this may lead?