Before you hit that spam button...

Some people, I just don't understand.

Every now and then I receive a message from my mailing list manager, AWeber, which goes something like this:

"AOL, Hotmail, Earthlink, Outblaze, Road Runner and Excite.com members have the ability to push a button identifying messages as "spam" that they wish to no longer receive. The table titled, "Complaints", gives a summary of the number of people that have identified messages from your lists as unwanted."

AWeber then go on to say that " If the number of complaints generated from your lists gets too high, ISPs may block your messages."

Now, the number of these "complaints" is quite low compared to the total number of messages delivered. But I really have a tough time understanding why anyone would do this in the first place. To be on my mailing list and receive a message from me you have to:

1. Fill out a form and enter your name and email address (the form clearly states that you will receive advice on DIY website building, search engine positioning, affiliate marketing and tips for beginners."
2. Click on a link in an email which AWeber send to CONFIRM you want to be on the list

When AWeber sends a message to my list, every message contains a link to unsubscribe, as is required by law.

So why is it that some people, when they receive a message from me, addressed to them personally (AWeber can merge names and email addresses) because they are on a list which they subscribed to and CONFIRMED they wished to be on, click on a "this is spam" button with their ISP, thus potentially preventing other subscribers with the same ISP from receiving messages THEY specifically requested to receive, instead of simply unsubscribing?

Then there are those who take it one step further. Here's a recent example;

Lauren C (her Hotmail address actually had her full name), after clicking on the "this is spam" button in Hotmail when she received the link to part 2 of my course, which she "double opted-in" to receive, sent me a reply which read:

"get lost I have a better thing now"

Fine. Thanks a lot Lauren. What ever happened to plain old good manners? If you're not interested in what I have to say, that's fine. But is it really necessary to label me as a spammer with your ISP, which I am not, and then abuse me for sending you something you specifically asked to receive, rather than click on a simple unsubscribe link?

Some people, I just don't understand.

Keywords: mailing list manager automatic responder aweber managing spam complaints steve pronger hotmail