MLM Talk

[profitclinic]

G'day gang

Genealogy lists are a hot topic amongst network marketers from time to time, and people are often confused about how to best use them.

What IS a genealogy leads list?

Genealogy leads are lists of distributors with a particular network marketing company or downline organisation that has gone out of business.

A lot of network marketers buy these lists because they think that these people are suddenly left with no network marketing businesses to work with.

This may be true, but the fact is that most of them will have been inactive anyway, and the few who were active may be so annoyed because of the experience they they're in no hurry to get involved with another MLM outfit.

So they're usually poor quality lists and you can spend a lot of time, effort and money getting nothing but rejection and hostility form them.

Here's the REAL problem with them, and it's a BIG one that can cost you dearly:

While these people opted into the list as part of their membership of that expired company or downline organisation, they did NOT opt in to receive unsolicited information from YOU or the scores of other network marketers who've bought these lists from the unscrupulous urgers who are selling them!

They've actually been betrayed TWICE: once when the company went belly-up, then again when it broke most privacy laws and sold their distributors' personal information to third parties.

What can happen to me if I use genealogy lists?

If you send unsolicited commercial messages to these lists, you are SPAMMING them. You could lose your Internet access, and you could face prosecution under any applicable laws where you live.

In Australia, you face fines of up to $1,100,000 per message, per day (that's 1.1 MILLION dollars) under the tough anti-spam Act that has seen professional spammers in Australia wiped out almost overnight. (The first convicted spammer was hit by fines of $4.5 million. He's now out of business.)

The other thing that can happen if you make this mistake is that you could face legal action for any damage to the reputation or sales that your action causes your service providers — especially autoresponder service.

You could also face legal action from other members of the autoresponder service for damage to their businesses as well.

It's not worth the risk, quite frankly.

Is there any way to make legal use of genealogy leads?

Yes, there is. And it's the same with ANY bought lists of leads.

Step 1: Send the list members an email explaining how you acquired their names and email addresses, tell them that you have an attractive offer for them, and ask them to subscribe to YOUR mailing list if they'd like to receive it. (You can sell them on subscribing to your list, but DO NOT try to sell them on your offer in this first message.)

Step 2: Send the people who subscribe to your list, through a double-opt-in process, the details of your offer.

This is the ONLY way you can legally and ethically use those genealogy leads.

Always put yourself in the prospect's shoes if you're unsure of whether you should mail them or not. Did they actually ask you to contact them with your offer?

If you want to avoid the risk of being reported as a spammer, always insert that preliminary step as a courtesy.

The worst most of them will do is say "no" to you. Some will say "yes". And a LOT more will say "yes" because of your courtesy in handling the situation ethically.

Hope this helps.


John Counsel
CEO, The Profit Clinic
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[Audrey]

John,

Do you support using these names? The whole first part of this article seems to say don't spam these folks. Then I got to this:

Is there any way to make legal use of genealogy leads?

[profitclinic]

Audrey,

I suggest reading what I actually wrote... not what you thought I wrote.

Sending someone a polite request asking if you can send them information about your opportunity is NOT considered spam.

Nor is it spam, in fact. It's established best practice in proper email etiquette.

They can say yes, no or they can ignore you. But it's THEIR choice, not you imposing your opportunity pitch on them.

It's simple good manners.

Of course, some mindless morons will do this and then take no answer at all as a "yes". There will always be people who just don't get it, and who muddy the water for everyone else.


John Counsel
CEO, The Profit Clinic
_________________
Want no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is insider insights and info about Network Marketing in the REAL world?
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[Linda]

Just for the education of all, here's the Definition of Spam from
http://www.spamhaus.org/definition.html

[profitclinic]

Here are the definitions used by CAUBE.org.au, Australia's Coalition Against Unsolicited Bulk Email, of which I'm a foundation member.

[Audrey]

So by both definitions sending someone "hey can I send you info?" wihen they never asked for that email is indeed spam.

John, I did read your post. Your response actually confirms I understood you 100% correctly. You just don't call it spam and I do.
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Audrey
http://www.my.tupperware.com/audreyoka
http://www.recipe-barn.com

[Linda]

Audrey,

I totally agree with you on this. There is just no way to dress up using email like this and call it OK.

Spam definitions aside, there are privacy issues as well. The people who signed up for these businesses have a reasonable right to privacy for their personal information. They did not give their permission to release their email and contact information to others as sales leads just because the company has gone out of business and wants to cash in by selling the lists.

Personally, I have had people contact me this way and my reaction is always negative.

This is just not a practice that I would recommend to anyone. As I have said many times before, collecting your own leads is always the best way to go.

Linda Locke
Editor, MLMWoman
http://www.mlmwoman.com

[profitclinic]

And by that definition, taken to its logical conclusion, kids' birthday party invitations, wedding invitations and Christmas card mailings could all be considered spam.

No consent. None requested. Distributed in bulk.

It's not WHAT we do that makes a thing acceptable or unacceptable, legal or illegal, ethical or unethical in most cases. It's WHY and HOW we do it.

This extends from simple greetings to killing.

Courts interpret WHAT people do according to their motives and means (why and how) before passing judgement.

We can get a little precious about issues that are more emotional than rational, sometimes. I think the good book makes reference to something about "strain at a gnat and swallow a camel".

I don't advocate spamming or doing anything without permission or consent. But if an inexperienced network marketer has made the mistake of buying genealogy leads (which was what the article was actually about, if you recall), then a small, limited series of mailings to those leads (not all to one person — one enquiry to each person), asking if they'd be interested in considering an offer, is neither an illegal, unethical or unacceptable way to try to gain some kind of return for their outlay.

You wouldn't make the same mistake twice if you had any sense, but I receive — and reply to — polite enquiries like that several times a week.

John

PS: Audrey, read the CAUBE definitions a little more closely. This actually complies with what's permissible.
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[Linda]

All

One point that has not been made in this discussion is that it really doesn't matter what you or I or anyone else on this board thinks is spam, but what the receiver of the email thinks is spam. If they think it's spam and they report you as a spammer, then bad things can happen. They don't care what the legal definition is, they just think you've spammed them and some of them get very upset about it.

Network marketers who use the method described in the original post on this thread are still taking a risk because all companies have anti-spam rules for their distributors. And if too many people report you as a spammer (whether you think you are or not), then the company may terminate you as a distributor.

It's important that everyone understands what the real risks are.

Linda Locke
Editor, MLMWoman
http://www.mlmwoman.com

[profitclinic]

Good point, Linda

John
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