Beware Of The Silent Ezine Killer!

Beware Of The Silent Ezine Killer!
© 2002 Jason Potash

Ezines are everywhere.

They're free and readily available. And the fact is, most of your ezine subscribers also subscribe to dozens of other ezines.

The sad part is, sometimes "free" comes at a price. Some unscrupulous ezine publishers make a habit of selling your contact info to anyone holding a dollar
bill.

You've Got SPAM!

I'm sure you've been there. Once you subscribe, subscribe, subscribe ... you'll inevitably get some SPAM - unsolicited e-mails.

So, how can SPAM "kill" your ezine you ask?

While SPAM itself can't kill your ezine, SPAM filters can. In a BIG way! Here's how ...

If you're not familiar with the term, SPAM filters (sometimes called junk filters) are used to block out or filter SPAM. They are included with most e-mail client software like Microsoft Outlook and Eudora and even free e-mail services such as Yahoo Mail and Hotmail.

SPAM can also be caught by online services such as Spam Motel or Spam Cop.

How do SPAM filters work?

SPAM filters contain a set of predefined keywords and trigger words. Sure, there are some obvious ones such as, "sex", "for free!" or "extra income". But, there are also some words that you might not expect.

For starters, here are some of the default SPAM triggers found in Outlook:

>From is blank
Subject contains "advertisement"
Body contains "money back "
Body contains "cards accepted"
Body contains "removal instructions"
Body contains "extra income"
Subject contains "!" AND Subject contains "$"
Subject contains "!" AND Subject contains "free"
Body contains ",000" AND Body contains "!!" AND Body
contains "$"
Body contains "for free?"
Body contains "for free!"
Body contains "Guarantee" AND (Body contains
"satisfaction" OR Body contains "absolute")
Body contains "more info " AND Body contains "visit "
AND Body contains "$"
Body contains "SPECIAL PROMOTION"
Body contains "one-time mail"
Subject contains "$$"
Body contains "$$$"
Body contains "order today"
Body contains "order now!"
Body contains "money-back guarantee"
Body contains "100% satisfied"
To contains "friend@"
To contains "public@"
To contains "success@"
>From contains "sales@"
>From contains "success."
>From contains "success@"
>From contains "mail@"
>From contains "@public"
>From contains "@savvy"
>From contains "profits@"
>From contains "hello@"
Body contains " mlm"
Body contains "@mlm"
Body contains "///////////////"
Body contains "check or money order"

To name but a few!

You might think that your ezine doesn't contain any of the above words or phrases. Well, think again.

Most ezine publishers have to pay the bills some how. This is usually done through selling advertisements and links to affiliate programs.

Ezine ads and affiliate links are FULL of filter trigger words.

Once your ezine triggers a SPAM filter, it will be trashed into a "junk" folder. At this point, your only chance of survival is if your reader manually checks through each e-mail before deleting their junk folder.

What are the chances of this happening? Slim.

So, how can you avoid this deadly, silent killer? Here are a few tips to keep your ezine in the clear:

1. Research

Install some of the popular e-mail clients (i.e. Outlook, Eudora, etc.) and perform some tests. Activate the e-mail filter option and obtain a better
understanding of how they work.

2. Testing

Run a split test. For example, use the words "100% money back guarantee" and "every penny back if your not 100% thrilled" in two different mailings. Track the results of each.

As ezine publishers and online marketers we invest countless hours of time in publishing our work. Don't sabotage your hard work and results by turning a blind eye to SPAM filters.