Instructions to Compile a Mailing List
If you need to reach people with information or a warning but have no organized mailing list, compile a mailing list. Create a database or spreadsheet with places to track designations such as marital status, first and last name as well as middle name or initial, address, city, state and contact information. This would include telephone numbers and email addresses. Knowing what information you need is an important step in compiling a usable mailing list.
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Instructions
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Compile the names of family and friends. Add the names and addresses and other pertinent information regarding anyone with whom you are in regular contact on an informal basis to your spreadsheet. This may include your parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles. This may include in-laws as well as friends. If you have a list of individuals and families to whom you regularly write, add those names. A Christmas card list makes a good starting point for compiling your mailing list.
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Include business with whom you regularly do business. If a person is a friend but also runs or works for a company, consider adding that company's information to your mailing list. Add specific names within the company, not just the company's mailing address. Check both print and online phone books for basic mailing information. A piece of mail, whether sent via regular or email, will be deleted unless targeted to a specific individual who would be interested in your information or who has the authority to act, such as when offering a product to help the company function more proficiently.
If you have authored a book and are sending out a press release, don't just find a list of newspapers, radio or television stations. Check those media in print or online to discover the particular editor who covers the area targeted by your book. This might be the entertainment, sports or news editor. In your compilation of mailing addresses, include a place to note the focus or specialization of the person or business.
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Add contacts from your email list. Email lists have a way of growing as you discover old friends, make new ones and add other email contacts. Often you may not know any other information other than the name and email of the person on the other end of the email. Politely ask if you can add the person to the mailing list you are compiling. Be clear about your reason for doing so. Assure the person you will not use the information to inundate him with unwanted information. If the person prefers not to provide more information other than what you already have, respect those wishes and do not put him on a mailing list for targeted promotions.
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Glean names for your mailing list from your social networking friends. Many social networks go far beyond immediate friends to friends of friends and those who have asked to join your friend circle. Remember these social network "friends" as you compile your mailing list. Again, ask, be up front about why you desire the information and always respect another's privacy. Keep track of when a person or business shows interest, asks for more information or purchases a product or service.
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Rent a mailing list. If you wish to target a particular business, profession or interest area, you can rent a list already prepared and targeted for that particular audience or customer.
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Tips & Warnings
Don't send spam. If you compile a list to promote a product or service, be aware of sending unwanted emails that might be tagged as spam. Any promotion needs to be to those people you've already contacted. Always include your full name, address, contact information and a clear way for the other person to opt in or out of any future promotional contacts or newsletter subscriptions.
References
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