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Straightening Out The Spiraling
Spam Problem Of Course You Know
that most online publications will allow subscribers to put in an ad
free or for a lesser amount than a non-subscriber. Better than
that, most of the same publishers are looking for short concise articles
on the topic that they specialize in, with fresh content. Whether
you are writing ads, articles, newsletters or just a note to Mom, you
need to keep current on what you may send and how to send it. I say keep
current, because... (read with a deep voice) The Rules Change Daily On The Net.
The term "Spam" was adopted
from the Monty Python skit in which the SPAM meat product was featured.
In this skit, a group of Vikings sang a chorus of "Spam, Spam, Spam
. . . " in an increasing crescendo, drowning out other
conversation. Hence, the analogy applied because Unsolicited Commercial
E-mail was drowning out normal communication on the Internet.
With the birth of Spam a group of
'saviors' invented Spam Filters Initiating this ridiculous, vicious
spiral downward in e-mail technology: ·
Email recipients download
filtering software or hire server-based services that filter unwanted
email from their mailboxes. ·
The Spammers
download or hire these same filtering solutions, study them, and
find out exactly how to get around them. ·
The filter providers study
how the Spammers are able to get past their filters and they come up
with a better Spam trap. ·
Repeat steps two, three,
and four. For two weeks I have been immersed in the how's and why's of Spam filters. I've crawled the Spam filter sites until my knees have callused and found volumes of words and phrases that are known to get caught in Spam Filters. Some of these phrases cost as much as 3.67 points.
If the mailman was standing next to
your mailbox, like that obnoxious MSN butterfly in the commercial,
tearing up your mail and throwing it away without you seeing it you
would probably take a shot at the guy. Spam filters are no different. It
is very easy to set up your own message rules and/or give a little tap
on the delete key! I do question their judgment in using volunteers to
set their parameters, what do these people know about legitimate online
business and our need to communicate? This is not unlike McCarthyism of
the 1940s and 50s or Hitler's book burnings, where you have a little
group of self-important people deciding what the masses may read. Okay, I'll get off of my soapbox for
the moment, but you will soon see how intrusive Spam filters are. I currently have a list of ·
524 words and phrases not
to use in the body of your e-mail, ·
57 words and phrases not
to use in the subject line, and ·
7 words and phrases not
to use in the 'To' section of your e-mail. Think about that a minute, it's
pretty scary. Filters of this
type look for patterns and
add or delete points for certain factors. This
page was particularly interesting, it's a page of criteria that
SpamAssassin uses when judging a mailing. I learned a lot and was amused
at their humor. If the score of your mailing totals a predetermined
number, the message is flagged as Spam. By looking at what adds points
(bad) and subtracts points (good), You can learn how to construct
e-mails that will do better with the filters, if not escape them
entirely. SpamAssassin's current point system is as follows: 0-5 great Legitimate email marketers are
finding that the rules of the "good ol' days" just don't apply
any more. Applying the knowledge available,
honest email publishers can easily prevent Spam filters from affecting
their email marketing efforts, and survive the filtering process. There are several strategies
that can help you avoid being black holed by the Spam filters or worst
yet being black listed. Below are the 'dos' and the 'don'ts' as of this
writing.
Do: Keep HTML Simple. According
to SpamAssassin, if your HTML message is more than 50% HTML tags, you
are fined 0.31 to 1.78 points. Keep your HTML very simple. Use Capitalization Carefully. Words
spelled using only capital letters are perceived as "YELLING".
Excess capital letters cost you .21. Watch Your Hyperlinks. Links
without an http:// prefix cost
1.28. A number of hyperlinks in a single mailing disproportionate
to the amount of text is deadly to your mailing.
This one still has me scratching my
head... What is Unknown color? Unknown to whom? As far as I'm concerned
Cyan falls right in that category. Black fonts are safe, though
specifying them in a font tag could cost you. Also, using a background
color other than white is penalized, 0.317 points. Avoid Spam Words and Phrases In
The Body Of Your E-mail. The
list to date is 524 words and phrases long, and some of these
words/phrases cost up to 3.64 points! Be Careful With Subject Lines. Spam
filters seem to be particularly interested in subject lines. There
are a 57 words and phrases that will cost from .10 to 2.64 points when
used in your email subject lines. Flaunt Being a Newsletter. Interestingly, being a bonafied newsletter lowers your Spam score if you use the right subject lines, from -.22 to -1.60. It also helps to include something about recovering a forgotten password or a registration system. Email Message Size of 20K to 40K is Best. Since so many Spam messages are very short (under 20K), SpamAssassin gives you credit for a message size between 20K and 40K (-.71). Over 40K is still okay (-.12). Use a Signature Line You're helped if your e-mail contains an e-mail signature. This can bring your score back down -.30 to -3.13, as most Spam messages don't have signature lines.
Carefully Word Your Unsubscribe System It seems moronic that legitimate opt-in e-mailers are penalized for having unsubscription information - that the law requires them to have. Alas, since so many Spammers have scam systems in place to harvest opt-out e-mail addresses, it appears to the filters a Spam indicator. From what I could find, the following penalties apply:
The law states that you must include ways to unsubscribe, but now you must be very creative in your phrasing - and yet clear. Make sure that the list management program or service that you are using to unsubscribe people doesn't have "unsubscribe" or "remove" in the URL. Comb Your Lists. Occasionally, devious people will add e-mail addresses to your list just to cause you trouble with the anti-Spam vigilantes. Scan your e-mail database for all e-mail addresses that start with abuse@, postmaster@, or nospam@ and delete them. Ask Subscribers to Put Your Address in their "White List" or Address Book. E-mail client programs such as AOL 8.0 have changed their system to allow users to sort their mail into folders. When people subscribe to your publication, ask them specifically to place you in their address book (AOL), "safe list", or "white List". That way your e-mail will come directly into their inbox. This is one way to ensure that your mailing is received. Provide Whitelisting Instructions Your Subscribers. Just copy and paste the following letter and change the information in CAPITAL LETTERS to your information. Of course, reword the text to your personal style. This one was sent to me for a publication that I subscribed to.
Monitor Blacklists and Test Accounts. ISPs and Spam filter systems often check blacklists of accused/alleged Spammers to help them reject e-mails. If your listserver's IP address or domain ... or yours, gets on a Spam black list because of complaints, it will prevent a number of your e-mails from getting to their recipients.
These Spam lists are all subjective and very seldom do they effect the e-mail in your inbox regarding the growth and management of your genitalia. These lists only serve to keep legitimate business people from reaching opt-in subscribers; because some knuckle head got button-pushing-happy and didn't realize, or remember, that he subscribed to something AND didn't have the sense just to unsubscribe. Yes, I know that is a run on sentence.... deal with it. Okay, I feel better. Where were we... Adopt A Double Opt-in Policy, Or at least track your subscribers. The list server that I use, keeps track of whether a person has subscribed using a form or e-mail and all of the particulars required by law. In addition, I have been investigated by a company that certifies that my business is scam free and will legally go after those who cry Spam in the night. Cover your behind, you don't have to be wrong to end up in the defendant chair. Use a Spam Checking Software before you send. There are services you can use to test the Spam rating of your newsletters and e-mail offerings before sending them out. This service is free, but be sure to deduct the first score from your rating for having mailed it from your desk top. The SpamAssassin rule set is put together by volunteer Spam-haters. The problem is, if you're accidentally sending them your legitimate email because either someone else signed one of them up or you purchased a questionable list, your legitimate email is going to end up getting put in the "Spam" pile and used to make new rules to catch Spam. The more that this happens, the more legitimate email looks like Spam. You need to have two goals: 1. Do not look like Spam. 2. Don't Spam. Don't: Don't Use E-Mail Software or Listservers Used by Spammers. There are desktop e-mail list server programs, as well as online services, have developed a bad reputation for sending Spam. You can see a current list of those accused at the bottom of this page. SpamAssassin looks for evidence of programs on its bad list, and adds points to your Spam score if it detects them. The desktop e-mailing software used most often by spammers, as it has be identified as such by SpamAssassin, is penalized from 3.0 to 2.0, in descending order:
Other identifiable bulk mailers are penalized about 1.00 points. Refrain from using header lines that indicate the brand of mailer. It is better to send e-mail from an unknown e-mail program than one which can be identified as used by Spammers. Don't use free web hosting services that are commonly used by Spammers. Don't use JavaScript in the email message (21 to .30 points)Don't use HTML comments "which obfuscate text" (2.08 points) (that means to make so confused or opaque as to be difficult to understand). Don't use an HTML form in your e-mail message. An "obfuscated action attribute" in an HTML form costs 1.00 point. Don't link to URLs using IP address numbers instead of a domain name (3.1). (This one is a burr in my saddle.) Don't use fonts larger than +2 or size 3 (normal) in your font tags (0.34 points). It is presumed that it is still safe to use HTML headers (H1, H2, H3) in the font tags to increase font size. Don't Mention Spam Law Compliance. Spammers claim that they observe all the Spam laws. SpamAssassin will assess you from .91 to 3.47 points for this. If you mention House Bill 4176 you'll be fined 2.02 points. H.R. 3113 will cost you 2.93. Don't Manipulate Trigger Words in your message, for example:
This only makes it easy for Spam checkers to identify your mail as Spam--that's what S.p.a.m.m.e.r.s do... Your mail just got black holed. Don't ever send more then 250 emails concurrently to
AOL. 251 and after will be black holed.
Don't over use punctuation. Example: !!! If your ads and articles are not compliant, they won't be published. Plain and simple.
To keep current on everything that effects the efficient running or your
home base and your business just send a blank e-mail here.
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