Tourism Internet Marketing U

Targeting Appropriate Discussion Mailing Lists

There are four types of mailing lists:

• Publicly accessible mail lists
• Direct mail lists
• Private mail lists
• Bulk mail lists

There are thousands of publicly accessible lists online and a number of sites that provide lists of these mailing lists. Two of the most popular and comprehensive are:

• Topica at http://lists.topica.com (Figure 13.1)
• Tile.net at http://tile.net/lists

There are also companies online that specialize in providing targeted lists for a fee, much like purchasing a direct mail list in the offline world. One company that provides this type of list is Post Master Direct Response at www.postmasterdirect.com. This company rents e-mail lists of people who have requested information on a particular topic. These direct mail lists are discussed fully in Chapter 15.

Another option is to develop your own private mailing list. This concept is discussed in Chapter 14.

Still another option is to purchase bulk e-mail lists - not. We’ve all received e-mails that say, “Reach 5 million with our mailing list available for $29.95.” After all, one of the major benefits of the Internet is reaching large numbers of people quickly - right? Wrong! Do not use these. This is an unacceptable practice because it involves spam. Bulk e-mail lists are generally sold without the permission of the addresses, much like junk mailing lists. The recipients did not ask to be put on a mailing list and often do not appreciate being sent unsolicited e-mail. Another drawback is that usually these lists are not targeted. By using bulk e-mail lists, you run the risk of not reaching any of your target market. You also risk annoying those addressees who under other circumstances might have been interested in what you were trying to sell.

Fore more information on this subject, consider my book, 101 Ways to Promote Your Tourism Business Web Site, now in its second edition!

-Written by Susan Sweeney