Legalities of mass e-mailing

Pooh · Jul 23, 2006

Hi,

I have a vbulletin forum with 28,000 users... which means 28,000 e-mails.

I have an azoogleads account. I want to send out an email to all the users with an offer i believe would have an awesome CTR.

Am I allowed to use this email database if I have ownership of it (which I do)?

Or what's the deal with this. What are the laws and what would you recommend me doing to do this?

Thanks!

Kyle

whitebark · Jul 23, 2006

You must be careful not to deluge your readers with ads or they will cancel their registration, not ever come back, or block your emails... Face it, people don't want to read ads at the best of times.

As for what you can do with your database, I don't know what your opt-in agreement says when they register, but if it says that the mailing may contain ads etc, and they still opt in, then you are in the clear. It's best to allow forum subscribers to choose at time of registration whether they want mail sent to them or not.

Some countries laws may differ, so what I say might not hold true for you.

March2005 · Jul 24, 2006

Sending out 28,000 e-mails sounds like a risky and difficult idea for most individuals to try. Maybe consider something like sending out 100 and see what the response is.

I think it would depend on the forum. For example, I would be fine with getting e-mails from DnForum.com

http://www.spamlaws.com/

renec · Jul 24, 2006

If they agreed to receiving emails from the admin when they signed up, then I don't see any problems with sending them a promotional email.

Can you include some news about the forum with the email or would it be a pure ad?

Maybe consider something like sending out 100 and see what the response is.

Great idea, makes a lot of sense to gauge the reaction first!

Steen · Jul 24, 2006

Your best bet is to ask your ad network if they are OK with it. The last thing you want is to mass mail 28,000 opt ins who are not used to receiving mail from you and then get your account cancelled.

labrocca · Jul 24, 2006

First send an email stating that starting in 1 week you will be sending out a newsletter on a regular basis. Anyone wishing to opt-out should do so now.