FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• WHY USE A LIST BROKER? WOULDN'T I JUST GO DIRECT TO THE COMPANY?
  Sure! But it makes no difference to price or service - in fact, you'll probably get a quote quicker through us. And we know what lists are suitable for your campaign. We don't charge any markup on lists that we source for you. The list owners pay us a commission. And we're not beholden to any list owner so we're free to recommend the best list for your promotion.
  
  
• WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RENTING AND PURCHASING A LIST?
  Renting is a one-off use only. This means you cannot use that same list again in, say, 6 months time to do another campaign. The list owner seeds the data with a "spy" so they can catch you if you use it illegally. Of course, any customers you pick up from the first campaign and add to your OWN database is fine...they are then your customers.
  
  Purchase is more expensive to buy, but it's yours to keep and use forever. This is perfect for populating your own CRM program or database.
  
  
• WHAT SORT OF RESPONSE RATES CAN I EXPECT FROM MY MARKETING CAMPAIGN?
  This is hard to tell you, as your campaign is completely different from anybody else's. It depends on the offer, timing, etc etc. You really need to do an initial campaign, then any follow up campaigns have something to benchmark against.
  
  Industry averages are:
  - Direct Mail: 0.5-2%
  - Telemarketing: 1-2%
  - Email: 1-5% (but many membership-based lists, which we prefer to use, can get anything from 10 to 50%)
  - Fax: 1-2%
  
  
  
• WHAT THE HECK DOES "OPT IN" AND "PERMISSION MARKETING" MEAN?
  Opt-in and permission marketing mean the same thing and really apply to email and SMS (mobile) marketing. Under Australian law, you must have the person's permission to send them email or an SMS (text message). If you DO have the person's permission either via your website or phone call, then this is called an "opt in" database because the person has given you permission to send them stuff via email or SMS.
  
  If you don't get their permission, this is called spamming (more on this below). The email and SMS lists that we use for your consumer campaigns all have the recipients' permission...they have opted in to receive marketing messages. We don't spam anybody.
  
  Those emails you get for viagra pills and weight loss potions and dodgy Nigerian businessmen? They are all spams! We can't imagine anyone giving permission to receive those!
  
  
• I'M CONFUSED ABOUT WHAT'S SPAM AND WHAT'S NOT
  So are many people! Spam is unsolicited emails or SMS (text messages). If we run an email or SMS marketing campaign for you, it's not spamming because the people on the list have voluntarily signed up and agreed to receive messages. But if you send out a bunch of emails and text messages to people who have not given their permission, then you are breaking the law. However, if you have an existing relationship with that person (they're a client on your database), then you are not breaking the law.
  
  A good example is, if you emailed us for a quote, and then a month later we emailed you some FURTHER information about another service of ours that we thought you'd like, that would not be considered spam, as there's an existing relationship. But we wouldn't automatically start emailing you our newsletter each month...we'd ask you first. That's a good approach for you to take too - ask.
  
  For more info on Australia's anti-spam laws click here .
  
  Please note that faxes, telemarketing to businesses, or mail is not spam, therefore not illegal in Australia. But most companies will happily remove you if you ask. It's in nobody's interest to annoy you.
  
  

HOME