A Reality Check for Permission Marketing

Permission marketers need to remember that a consumer opt-in once isn’t exactly a lifetime commitment, says a recent article on ClickZ.

Nick Usborne, a direct response copywriter at forkinthehead.com, writes that “if you go on a date and get permission to come by his or her home the next evening, have you just received permission to go to that person’s home every evening for the next five years? No, you haven’t.”

Permission marketing is all the rage right now, the article goes on to identify many criticisms.

“In fact, it’s so cool almost everyone is practicing it. Trouble is, a lot of people appear to have forgotten how permission works. Or at least, how it works at its best.” “Here is an attitude that appears to be prevailing out there right now: ‘Hey, we got Nick’s permission once, so now we can email him as much as we like.’ I don’t think so. In real life, permission granted isn’t a contract; it’s a state of mind. The customer’s state of mind.”

And that can change rapidly.

When it does, your targeted message may be just another annoying spam. Agree or disagree, but it’s food for thought. Complete text is here.