eCommerce Tycoon

**genama** · 06-08-2005, 03:44 AM

HI ,

Just thinking .... a company sell "widgets" in order to find clients makes a query to google to find companies that can be interested in "widgets" . Finds their email on site and sends them an email .

What do you think about this ?

Now if this is done automatically , i have wrote a script for this , is this spam ?

Spam is unsolicited/unwanted mail but this email can interest receiver .

Thanks .

**dvduval** · 06-08-2005, 03:48 AM

How can you guarantee it is not spam without looking at each site and each corresponding email?

**genama** · 06-08-2005, 04:21 AM

A query to Google like : "widgets related" inurl:contact.html and then extracting only emails that are from domain you visit .

**Kyrnt** · 06-08-2005, 12:09 PM

I believe that if you find a company saying on its website that they are interested in buying widgets, that implies a request for contact from makers of widgets. However, if you automate it, there is not reasonable way that you can subjectively determine the validity of each interest. That, in my opinion, definitely constitutes SPAM.

**Anacrusis** · 06-08-2005, 12:22 PM

If they didn't opt-in to your mailing, then it is spam. One off emails would be OK but your sending in bulk to people who did not ask to get emails from you. That is spam.

**HaRRo** · 06-08-2005, 01:08 PM

Its spam, its basically called email harvesting, and if you contact them then its SPAM unless they state they want your mail or "open to any mail"

**genama** · 06-08-2005, 03:30 PM

Thanks guys .

Yes it's spam

.

Does anybody know where i can find a definition of spam , a complete and official one ?

**Kyrnt** · 06-08-2005, 04:53 PM

I personally don't know if there is an "official" one and who would be authorized to certify its "officiality." BUT, I would suspect that SPAM is something like pornography -- it is very easy to identify it when you see it.

But, here is one: http://searchmobilecomputing.techtar...213031,00.html

**Anacrusis** · 06-08-2005, 05:13 PM

Here are some good defenitions:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&l...&q=define:Spam

As Kyrnt stated, there really is no "official" definition of spam. Basicly if the reciepient didn't ask for it, they could report it as spam and you'd be in trouble. According to the CAN-SPAM act, the recipient must be double-opted in before you can send email to them.

Remember, it only takes one person to report you before your put on the spam lists.