SPAM Verification - Do You Bother?

Getting pretty annoyed with it now but I know it's ultimately for the greater good.

Our system sends out auto-confirmation e-mails. We also answer lots of customer queries by e-mail. More and more these outgoing mails bounce with a message like:

Clicking the link requires image verification and all that long-winded shite. When sending large volume mail, it's just annoying really, having to do all this. In my opinion, it's just like sending a parcel. The customer has to make sure their house/inbox is accessible if they want to receive something. Not our problem if they build barriers.

your experience/opinion please... Do you get this a lot (and increasingly also) and what do you think of it. And what do you do? Do you go through the whole nonsense click here click there just so the customer can have his bog standard not-so-interesting mail?

I mean, if it was a friend you e-mail a hundred times a month, then yes, investing 2 minutes one-off wasn't so bad...

 

We get lots of customers complaining they they never got our emails due to issues like this. When I see them, I do click to verify but I think the vast majority go unclicked.

I think these services give the customers the opportunity to add email addresses to their safe lists. Perhaps messages on your site stating that they need to add your addresses to their safe lists in order to receive your mail might be in order?

And if you can spend a bit of time, find out how to actually do this. The message you listed above looks destinctively Earthlink. If you can find out how to actually add to safe lists and then put it step by step some where on your site (along with the major validation email services) you could make it as easy as possible for the visitors to do it.

I have find that the more detailed you are, the more time you spend to start with, ends up saving you a massive amount of time in the future.

 

Yeah good idea. It should say at our FAQ or T's & C's that we're not responsible to make sure e-mails get delivered, especially in cases like this. And indeed, ask them to add our enquiries address to any possible safe lists first.

Yes Earthlink is one of them but there's a few more of those as well. Choice One by Digiportal Software is this one. They ask for Name, Short Message and the image verification number. Takes too much time IMO.

Will add some message about it indeed, thanks for the suggestion.

 

Hmmm honestly, how many people actually read the FAQ or T & C before signing up or buying something? Very few I would think. I would think that it would be best to put the "Add This Email" message where ever they enter information that could potentially cause email to be sent to them either immediately or in the future

 

Could do at the e-mail form input on the check-out I suppose. But don't want that to get too cluttered. At least if it's in the T's & C's then they can't complain about it.

I guess that because it's on the increase, this will probably catch on more and more. It must be pretty thorough since I can't see a bulk spammer verify each address. If it's on the increase indeed, best to be pro-active I guess and perhaps put a little mouse-over image or popup link Use SPAM Verification? or something similar to tell them to add to safe list.

 

If they are signing up to a service or buying a product then it's in the consumers own interests to read the companies T&C so include it in their and it is their responsibility if email does'nt get to them.

I have a small signature which basically says 'by clicking on the join button you are agreeing to our companies T&Cs please take time to read them' I'm sure only a few will, but if something happens, and it's covered, then it's their problem IMO.