Email Marketing Tools

At Bruce Clay, Australia - Pty. Ltd. we are in the process of developing our own email marketing tools and will let you know as soon as they become available. In the meantime, we are referring you to the resources below, which can assist you in planning your email marketing campaigns.

1. CAN-SPAM Act of 2003

One area you must be familiar with is the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, as this legislation governs email marketing. It is important to know the distinction between "transactional" and "commercial" email, applying the new regulations governing these messages.

While a transactional email confirms a commercial transaction initiated by a recipient, it can also provide warranty, security or recall information for a product purchased or used by the recipient, as well as a notice of change in terms, status or account information regarding the ongoing purchase or use by the recipient of a product or service offered by the sender. Transactional emails can also provide information related to employment relationships, or about a benefit plan of which the recipient is a member.

A commercial email is an electronic email message that contains an advertisement or promotes a product or service.

Key terms such as initiator (the one who originates, transmits or procures the origination or transmission of a message), sender (an initiator whose product, service or website is advertised or promoted by the message), and affirmative consent (when the recipient expresses consent to receive a message either in response to a clear and conspicuous request for such consent, or at the recipient's own initiative) are defined as they apply within the new law.

You can get a free copy of "Understanding the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003" at the link below. This includes the full text of the law and explanatory commentary.

http://www.customerparadigm.com/index/43/Can_Spam_Act_Free_Summary.php

2. Online Resource Center for Email Marketers

You can download email marketing white papers under the categories of: delivery assurance, customer acquisition, email performance and email compliance at the link below. A sampling of topics includes:

• Beyond Authentication: Keys to Email Delivery Success
• Bonded Sender Increases Email Deliverability by more than 20%
• Email Blocking and Filtering Report, First Half 2005
• How to Get the Most Out of Third Party Email List Rental
• 6 Steps to Better Acquisition Email Campaigns
• Checklist: 5 Easy Ways To Grow Your Email List
• Six Ways Data Intelligence Will Transform Your Email Marketing Program
• Beyond Clicks, Opens & Bounces: Metrics that reveal the path to optimal email performance
• 7 Techniques to Improve E-mail List Integrity
• Lost Relationships: The Collateral Damage of E-mail Address Changes
• Email Authentication: Actions you need to take today
• Avoiding the Spam Filter Trap

http://www.returnpath.biz/download/?id=33

3. TrimMail Free Online Spam Fighting Tools

This resource offers a number of free online spam fighting tools for email marketers under the categories of SMTP Tools, Domain Name Service and Other IP Tools, Internet Surveys and Miscellaneous Email Management Tools.

http://www.trimmail.com/news/tools/#Open%20Relay%20Test

SMTP Tools	Function
Open Relay Test	Prevents spammers from locating an accessible third-party mail relay server
DNS Blacklists Check	Check to see if someone has black listed your server
External Sender Test	Check current mail server/firewall configuration for 100% compliant SMTP
Domain Name Service And Other IP Tools
Zone Check	Checks authoritative nameserver, secondary nameservers & email delivery
DNS Sleuth	Detects most common errors in DNS zones; points you to solutions
DIG It	Ensures DNS servers are properly configured
Internet Query Tools	Tracks down suspicious domains
IP Address Calculators	Subnet Mask, Network/Node, IP Address Converter and more
Subnet Cheat Sheet	Subnet Mask, Guide to Sub-Class C Blocks, CIDR Notation
Traceroute Off-Site	Tells how many routers between you/the universe? How fast? How accessible?
Whois and Reverse IP	Search by IP address, domain name, partial name
Internet Surveys
Open Relay Advisory	Checks open relay status of your SMTP mail server
Security Vulnerability Database	Current software vulnerability advisories
Global Virus Watch	Up-to-the-minute virus outbreak reports
Internet Health Report	Checks Internet traffic between major broadband trunks
Internet Traffic Report	Checks flow of data around the universe, score of 100 is best
Firewall Port Scan Watch	Who is knocking on your firewall door? Track exploit and virus trends worldwide
DNS Daily Changes	Daily number of .com, .net, .org, .info, .biz, .us, .ws domains transferred
Miscellaneous Email Management Tools
Regular Expression Test	Checks regular expressions before inflicting them on your inbox
Find Business or Residence	Tracks down business or residential address by city/state or phone
FBI Internet Fraud Complaint Center	File Internet-based complaints with the FBI
FTC Spam Complaint Form	Unsolicited Commercial E-mail Complaint Form, or forward spam to uce@ftc.gov
Social Security Fraud Form	Tells Social Security your number was stolen