MyGreenParachute.com - Good Example of How Not to Use E-Blasts and E-Mail Subscription Lists - Good Concept Gets Lost in Annoying E-Mails

James - I am usually pretty careful about the sites that I check out and use.  I don't pay for referrals and I don't advertise heavily.  However, their concept or idea made some sense to me so I wanted to see how it worked.  Plus, it was recommended by someone that I regularly read and respect their advice on ActiveRain. 

I did a brief search on ActiveRain and saw a number of posts or links to the site.  So far so good - right?  Well, wrong.  The site started sending automated e-mails almost immediately. 1 or 2 welcominging me - fine.  But then it started - 5 p.m., 6 p.m., 7 p.m, 8 p.m., etc. on and on.  Unsubscribe... not likely.  Call their customer service number - recording.  Finally, I just blocked it. 

So here is my mea culpa - yes I confess that I was intrigued by an easy low-cost referral system.  However, I plan to use this experience as a future post on the effective use of e-blasts and e-mail subscriptions.

Lynn - I have no idea about the quality of their product.  I didn't get that far.  Their e-mails every hour on the hour turned me off.  They did finally send me an e-mail saying that the e-mails were done and that they would delete the account.

Betina - Absolutely agree.  I get welcome and other periodic e-mails.  But - 1 e-mail every hours (sometimes 2) is just stupid - especially when it is the same e-mail over and over and over.

Carolyn:  I obviously have a very different view of what happened.  First, it occurred over a 3 day period.  Second, the unsubscribe feature didn't work on the website.  Third, I received no response to the original e-mail sent.  I would agree that the issue was promptly resolved after my call to you (which was after the website and e-mail options failed to work).  I did receive an e-mail after my telephone call.  However, a customer shouldn't have to unsubscribe, e-mail and call to take care of an issue.

Carolyn - Threatening your customers or potential customers isn't the best approach.  My post describing the experience that I had with your website and e-blasts is factually accurate.  Your comments which were inflammatory and which further advertised your site were deleted.  I don't permit links on comments - especially when they don't add value to the discussion.

Regina:  I deleted your comment for the same reason that I deleted Ms. Singles.  I write posts for Realtors in Missouri.  My blog shares my personal experiences with particular companies.  Other members of AR are free to share their experiences on their blogs.  I didn't "flame" the company as you suggested in your post.  I indicated that I found the concept to be brilliant but that the e-mails to be annoying.  I left open the possibility that I would review the site/system at a later date and I accurately described the company's response.  Activerain is a good place to share good and bad experiences with companies because it saves people time when doing research on software, websites, etc.  Your request for me to pull down my post strikes me as censorship.  I know you have a relationship with this company, derive income from the company's system, and enjoy your relationship with the company.  However, my experience was different from your experience.