NFIB

Winning the Spam War
06/ 03/ 2003

by Jackie Ross

Check your e-mail right now, and almost half of the messages are likely to be unsolicited offers, according to anti-spam software-maker Brightmail Inc.

They're often easy to spot - e-mails with subject lines such as, "U won't BELIEVE this!" Yet some spam messages are more covert, tricking you into opening e-mails titled, "Attn: Per your request."

Beyond patience levels and inbox capacities, junk e-mail eats into a business' bottom line. U.S. organizations will spend more than $10 billion in the fight against spam this year alone, according to Ferris Research Inc. Without expensive software filters and inhouse I.T. departments, small businesses find it especially difficult and costly to manage the unsolicited mail.

Matthew W. Certo, president and CEO of Winter Park, Fla.-based Websolvers Inc., (http://www.Websolvers.com) says his Web-hosting company helps clients manage spam on a daily basis. A small business itself, Websolvers also battles a barrage of junk e-mail. "I only see the problem growing," Certo says.

How do you stop it? A ceasefire may be impossible, but there are steps you can take to arm yourself in the spam war.

1. Don't open the e-mails or reply.

By opening spam and replying - even with "unsubscribe" - you validate your e-mail address and often unwittingly add it to spammers' master list.

2. Give out your e-mail address sparingly.

Only register on Web sites if it's absolutely necessary, and leave your e-mail address off of credit card applications, retail-store discount cards and other forms. "I established an alternate e-mail account for Web sites so that I don't receive messages to my business account," says Certo.

3. Use a spam filter.

Filters work within your e-mail program or as separate software solutions by blacklisting spammers' e-mail addresses and preventing their messages from getting through. Or they zap messages containing specific keywords (most often, the four-letter variety).

The downside? First, filters sometimes misidentify e-mail addresses, sending personal correspondence straight into the trash bin. Certo recalls one client who lost $2,500 in business because a filter targeted and deleted legitimate e-mail. Second, the filters can be costly and difficult to manage. It may take longer to install and manage the software than to just ignore the e-mail messages.

4. Live with it.

Believe it or not, sometimes the best course of action is to do nothing. "I allocate a certain amount of time to deleting spam every day," Certo says.

The pesky junk e-mails seem to find a way around every trap, and they're increasing exponentially. "I just don't think there's a do-all solution," Certo says. "Everyone is fighting this battle."

But before you rue the day you opened an e-mail account, consider that spam is a small price to pay for the increased productivity e-mail offers. The ability to correspond with customers, exchange critical information, and send documents easily and instantly arguably outweighs the frustration and cost of unsolicited e-mail.

For more on tech issues, visit the "Internet and E-commerce" section of http://www.NFIB.com/ToolsAndTips.

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This article originally appeared in the June/July 2003 issue of MyBusiness magazine.

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