Definition
The promotion of products or services via email.
Information
Email is a very versatile medium. Formats range from simple text to
HTML & rich media. Content can be one-size-fits-all or highly
customized. Frequency can consist of fixed, frequent intervals or
sporadic intervals, with transmissions occurring only when something
newsworthy comes along. Sophistication (and cost) can be very low or
very high.
Along with the power of email comes the abuse of email, commonly known as spam. Is spam
email considered marketing? Technically, the answer is probably yes, but it is certainly
not responsible email marketing. While some users fail to distinguish between
permission marketing and email spam, spam is actually a major threat to legitimate email
marketers, as a glut of messages could make the entire email medium less effective.