Adding Your Network Connections to your newsletter list is a ‘no no’
As many of you know I’m a member of LinkedIn.com, along with several other forums. Lately there seems to be a trend for people, particularly from LinkedIn, to start sending their entire connection list their newsletter. I do not believe this to be a good practice, apart from it not being in line with their user agreement.
Imagine you have a connection count in excess of 1,000 people and every single one of them added you to their newsletter list. What would happen to the number of emails you receive every day?
I know that people think it’s ‘only once a month’ but when you times that by 1,000, 2,000 or more each month, it gets beyond a joke.
When people agree to connect with you via a networking forum I believe they should still be asked, or given the opportunity to subscribe of their own accord.
I did email my connections list and let them know about various things I was doing at the beginning of this year but it was a once-off email - even then I got people asking to unsubscribe even though I explained they weren’t on any list in the email.
We all get inundated with more email than we ask for so be fair and kind to your networking connections and don’t add them to lists they didn’t ask to be on. Connecting via a networking forum was specifically for networking purposes. If you participate in discussions and give people the opportunity to get to know you, then over time they may well subscribe to your lists and even do business with you. Developing a good signature block for participation in these forums will go a long way towards attracting interested people to your lists.
I believe the building of relationships is an important part of networking and putting people on lists before they even know you is not a good practice and will put people off for the most part, rather than endear them to you.
Kathie - you make an excellent point. I have joined a number (probably about 100) of social and networking sites - if I started getting newsletters from all my connections it would break my in-box!
I keep my e-mail addys private and if I found out a site was showing it against my wishes I’d be one unhappy little camper!
We get enough spam as it is.
Only those who sign up or subscribe should ever get a newsletter.