I Love Spam

By Dave Cole
Posted Wednesday, December 8, 2004

Spam is considered any unsolicited and often un-wanted e-mail. The term seems to have originated from a Monty Python sketch set in a cafe that serves nothing but the canned, processed meat, called Spam.

In the skit there is a table of Vikings singing, spam, spam, spam, spam, lovely spam. While the skit does arouse laughter, the receiving of spam e-mail usually does not do the same for our demeanor.

It is the rare inbox which hasn't been visited by some sort of un-wanted message containing anything from get-rich-quick schemes to Cyber-Porn.

Most email browsers or accounts allow a person to use blocking or filtering mechanisms which send junk mail directly to the trash bin.

Professional spammers use sophisticated software that actually spiders the Internet gleaning e-mail addresses from Web sites.

If you have ever filled out an online survey, your e-mail address has most likely ended up on a for sale list of targeted
buyers.

While most spam and postal junk mail is annoying, it can have some benefits. Running an online business requires us at times to be effective ad writers. Immediately deleting all this junk mail means you are throwing way an opportunity to learn ad strategies.

Next time spam shows up, why not take a few minutes to read through these ads and see how they are written. See if the headline or body attracts your attention, or what is effective about the ad and what turns you off.

I actually love it when those card decks come in the postal mail. Flipping through the cards, I'll put those that have attractive headlines in one pile, trash the ones that aren't appealing, then go back later and really read the one's in the first pile.

I'm always on the lookout for new ideas on what works in ad writing, new tactics ad writers employ, and seeing what is working and not working for them.

Successful online marketers are constantly studying not only their own ads, but what others are doing. So instead of getting upset the next time you receive your daily dose of spam, why not look at it as an opportunity to help you become a better marketer?

If you would like your name removed from many of the bulk mailing lists, this Web site will be a blessing. Simply give them your e-mail address and they will scan their bulk mailing lists and remove you. It is a unique concept they have. You can read more about what they do at their Web site.

(http://removeyou.com)

About the Author
Dave Cole
Editor/Publisher
Prosperity: The Choice Is Yours
Read other articles by Dave: (http://choosetoprosper.com)