Schewanick Computer Services

Before you send an email to your leads, just think about all the garbage you get in your Inbox each day. Is your email going to add to that garbage or is it bringing something of value? Are you cultivating your contacts or are you just filling up their Inbox with junk they'll delete before reading? The answers to those questions will determine your success in this business, so proceed with caution!

As of January 7, 2004, these are the Anti-Spam Guidelines you MUST follow to stay legal:

(1) The new CAN-SPAM Act requires that all commercial emails sent must include a "valid physical postal address of the sender." I interpret that to mean P.O. boxes are acceptable. Any messages you send MUST include YOUR OWN postal address. No exceptions!

I recommend that you include your address at the end of your email, where you sign your name. For example:

Sincerely,

Joe Smith 123 Elm Street, Anytown, California 90200

(2) The new CAN-SPAM Act prohibits the sending of a commercial email where the subject heading of the message "would be likely to mislead a recipient, acting reasonably under the circumstances, about a material fact regarding the contents or subject matter of the message."

In English, this means you cannot, for example, send an email with the subject line of "Your Account Info" when your message is clearly an advertisement for a business opportunity.

(3) The content of your emails should not include anything that is illegal or in any way related to adult content. If your email is adult-material related, by law it must be clearly identified in the subject line.

(4) You should not covertly add subscribers to your mailing list (without their permission).

(5) You should not include any 'spam disclaimer' in your email that is not in compliance with this Spam policy.

In addition to an Unsubscribe link, you should include any one of the following disclaimers. You may change a word or two to fit the correct circumstances:

"In the last few weeks, you expressed interest in receiving information from one of our partner websites by supplying your name, email, contact information, and IP address. If you are no longer interested, please use the permanent removal link below."

"To comply with the CAN-SPAM Act, I have offered my contact information below, included a working permanent removal link, and can provide your opt-in details upon request."

"You are currently receiving a series of letters from me. To be removed please use the permanent unsubscribe link below."

"You recently received training materials from me and have chosen to remain on my mailing list. Should you wish to be removed at any time, please use the permanent unsubscribe link below."

"You recently received my Email Marketing Course and have chosen to remain on my mailing list. Should you wish to be removed at any time, please use the permanent removal link below."

"I hope you are enjoying my Email Marketing Course! I'm sending you this email in hopes that we can continue our business relationship."

"I hope you enjoyed my Email Marketing Course! Here is something else you may be interested in as well."

If you include anything that looks like the following paragraph, you will probably be reported for spamming:

"Under Bill S1618 TITLE III, passed by the 105th US Congress, this message cannot be considered SPAM as long as there is a way to be removed, paragraph (a) (c) of S. 1618."

Why is this so important? If you've read the CAN-SPAM Act, you will see that companies and individuals are liable for up to $2,000,000.00 (two million dollars) in damages for violating ANY part of the CAN-SPAM Act.

For more information on the CAN-SPAM Act, visit:

http://www.spamlaws.com

http://www.isipp.com

SPECIAL NOTE: To comply with the CAN-SPAM Act and to increase email deliverability, some leading autoresponder services now have an option for you to enter a postal address within the autoresponder settings. This postal address will then automatically appear in the footer of your emails... ensuring your messages are CAN-SPAM compliant.

If your autoresponder service has yet to implement this feature, just make sure you include your postal address within the "Unsubscribe or Signature Message" settings to ensure you are abiding by the new law.

I wish you safe and successful emailing!

About the author:

Derek Jones is the owner of Mirage Home Business Systems, a service that's geared to helping people start a profitable Home-Based Business online. For more details on starting a Work at Home Internet Business and to join our Free Home Business Tips Newsletter, visit: http://www.HomeBusinessCreation.com