Can the New Spam Laws Increase Sales by 250%?

Can the New Spam Laws Increase Sales by 250%?

SYDNEY, Sept. 6 /Medianet International-AsiaNet /--

New spam laws came into effect in New Zealand on September 5, 2007, reclassifying as illegal that which was previously only called a nuisance. The `Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act’ will outlaw commercial messages sent via a variety of electronic message types, not simply email.

The implication for businesses that previously rented or bought email lists, will be to turn to opt-in email lists, such as those provided by SmileCity (Consumer: www.smilecity.co.nz; Corporate: www.permissioncorp.com), one of the largest permission-based marketing companies in New Zealand.

SmileCity is a good example of an online loyalty programme that provides rewards to their members in return for their permission to send them marketing emails. The privacy of these members is strictly guarded, and personal details are never provided to the advertiser. This form of marketing is allowed under the new spam law.

The introduction of similar laws in Australia in April 2004 saw a significant increase in the number of businesses turning to permission email.

Jeff Glazer, Marketing and Sales Director of EmailCash Australia and SmileCity New Zealand states: ``We are pleased that this Act has now been introduced into NZ. Of course, not every business will use legitimate means to distribute their marketing messages, but those that wish to protect their reputation will.

When similar laws were introduced in Australia in 2004, EmailCash really took off. Sales increased by 250% within two years, mainly due to the increased need for permission email. We anticipate a similar trend in NZ.

Most encouraging was that our advertisers reported increased traffic to their sites and higher sales conversions. This could only be a result of such permission-based campaigns. Our members are given rewards for reading emails and willingly receive our marketing messages.’’

Glazer continued to say, ``This is a win-win for both consumers and businesses.

Consumers benefit because they know these emails are safe and that the advertisers are legitimate. The emails match their interests, and they earn some rewards for their attention.

Businesses benefit because they comply with the new spam laws and, of course, since the emails are targeted in terms of interests and profiles, this usually has a positive impact on sales conversion.’’

For more information regarding the new spam laws effective September 5, 2007, please visit http://www.spam.govt.nz/.

SOURCE: EmailCash Marketing

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