Sorry If some of this has been mentioned in other threads. I have been working this weekend on my ever growing DNE file and was thinking about how badly I needed it in the beginning. Having said that, I'll be brief. And hopefully help a beginner (noob, if you will) since I could have used a place like this/people like this years ago when I was still wet behind the ears. If some of you reading this were like me back when I started please pay attention. If you're blinders are on (like mine) and all you're looking/asking for are the 'Glengarry-primo' email files, then you need to realize you're SOL. Nobody starts off w/o mailing the garbage from the big boys, first. It sucks, but that's the way it is (most of the time), when you start out. Don't stress, use it to your advantage. If I would have done (or at least put a small effort in) the following, things would have been smoother over time. 1. Treat your bad/bounced emails like gold: KEEP THEM. Do not delete them! Build a list of mammoth proportions. They are just as valuable as a deliverables. If you trash them completely, you'll mail them again and again and not even know it. 2. Yes, data management sucks (even with the good stuff) but you MUST put an effort into it if you hope to succeed: You don't have to be a SQL DBA to manage your lists. Most of us start out using excel or even textpads in the beginning. There is no excuse for not building and maintaing any type of list structure/flow. Word on the street is there's a pretty nice Windows-based list manager program out there. Use Google to find it. And yes, it is free (if you really can't find it- PM me and I can point you in the right direction - as I do not what roundy to ban me for listing certain 3rd party 'shit' on his public forum ) 3. Though it seems like a waste of time now, building a file of garbage will be your biggest asset later: I didn't start building a list of shit until after my 3rd year in the biz. After I realized what I should have been doing all along, it clicked - and I could have kicked myself for not doing it on day 1. Treat your rejected emails like the accepted ones - spend time with them, comfort them, and one day, you'll be able to scrub the living shit out of any new list, and thank yourself for it in the end. THINK ABOUT IT! If you had a dog with no legs and always shit on the floor -BUT- he could still fucking eat any intruder that shows up at your house, would you get rid of him?
Poor dog.... Prosthetics, maybe? Cuz without those, how the fuck's he going to eat the intruder, huh? Goddammit, I gotta think of everything!
I got! The intruder slips on the dog shit and falls down right next to the dog who is super stealthy and sneaky! Doesn't make a sound...just lies there in the dark shitting on the floor....kinda like a spider web and a spider waiting for a fly! :idea:
Elaborate, I'll give you that much... Buuuut, spiders still have legs :stupid: you know, to get to the fly and all? so they could eat it... lol. Now then, let's suppose the dog could float :31: and can get to the intruder... The guy is now covered in shit! Not so appetizing for the poor lil pup :eating: In conclusion, I would invest in some prosthetics :nurse:
I have bounce lists from over five years ago. I save all of the data. I got out of mailing about five years ago, I know that was dumb. I even still have my unsubscribes from the past and scrub against those. This data is very valuable and helps a lot. Great post!!
