You have a business and you want / need some more customers.

According to the UK Government

You’re only allowed to send marketing emails to individual customers if they’ve given you permission. Emails or text messages must clearly indicate: who you are, that you’re selling something, what the promotions are, and any conditions

I dislike spam as much as the next guy, but how am I to get permission from someone I’ve never met, and am trying to introduce my company to?

My (New) Method

Let’s say I have the domain: “amazingcompany.com”. Instead of sending introductory emails from “info@amazingcompany.com”, I send from the address “amazingcompany@mail.com” or “amazingcompany@gmail.com” etc.

So now, my marketing emails are separate from my non-marketing emails.

There are lots of email providers, free and paid. A quick internet search will return lots of choices.

Tips

These are my golden rules:

  • When I send an email to a company that might be in the market for my services, I keep it short, professional and to the point
  • Make sure that you aren’t actually sending spam! Do your research and ensure that the recipient is a prospect
  • Don’t overdo it. I have a list of companies that I’ve emailed and won’t email them more than annually
  • If you get an unsubscribe reply, respect it

Check your domain spam status

Luckily, none of my domains are blacklisted, but to be on the safe side, I started using this new method last year. You can check the status of your domain using MX Toolbox or another similar service.