Mr. Robert W. Bly
DM News
SEE RELATED:
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Copywriter’s Handbook, Third Edition: A Step-By-Step Guide To Writing Copy That Sells
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In short, he knows direct marketing, even the electronic kind. But knowledge without action can lead to problems, as Mr. Bly revealed in an e-mail to the many thousands of people on his e-mail list:\
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Did you get a weird e-mail from me recently?\
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Earlier this week, some of my subscribers received an e-mail — supposedly from me — with the headline: “FREE $97 Value Report On Where To Advertise For Maximum Profit.”\
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Quite a few of your e-mailed me inquiring whether it was legitimate and really from me — or a fake.\
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It was a fake. And not from me.\
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Here’s how it happened — and why it’s highly unlikely that it will ever happen again
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The e-mail distribution software I used to use has a feature that allows anyone on the list to e-mail to the list.\
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Of course, as the list owner, I could — and did — keep that feature locked.\
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But during the week, we switched maintenance of our subscriber list to a different server.\
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In the switching process, the list accidentally became unlocked — and\
someone posted to it.\
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Of course, we have relocked it
and this should not happen again.\
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We are also switching to a different e-mail distribution software package that does not have this sharing feature — making it even more difficult for a dishonest person to tamper with us.
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Mr. Bly spoke the truth: little hinges swing — or in this case, unlock — big doors. By not locking down his e-mail list server, he got into a bit of trouble. He’s fixed it, apologized, and even offered his readers a little bonus for taking the time to reaffirm their desire to hear from him.\
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For any of us who maintain or work with electronic mailing lists, Mr. Bly’s experience holds a cautionary lession: make sure you’ve got your stuff nailed down, and double-check every time you change something in your routine. If it’s a headache for Mr. Bly, imagine the blowback a federal agency might get for a similar, albeit human, mistake.\
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My thanks to Mr. Bly for permission to share his name and the\
details of his story. I offered him the option of anonymity, and he\
was kind enough to allow his name to be used.\
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— Mark Kellner, The Washington Times
