“Can I have reliable email without the spam? I don’t like spam.”

In Part I of this series, we found out how email blacklists can play havoc with what for most of us is our #1 form of communication. The scariest part is that your email could be blocked, and you would never even know it.

But there are ways to find out. One of the fastest ways is to use MXToolbox. This nifty tool allows you to see what blacklists you are on, and provides links to those lists so that you can request to have your name removed. The system checks against 147 blacklists (as of this writing), aka Real-Time Blackhole Lists (RBL) and DNS Blacklist (DNSBL).

Getting Off the Blacklist

To start, go to MXToolbox and type in the domain name of your email address (i.e. yourcompany.com). DO NOT add the “www.” before this. MXToolbox brings up one or several IPs for your domain name, which will be displayed something like: 72.24.123.456

Next to each IP listed, there are two buttons: Diagnostics and Blacklists. Click the Blacklists button next to one of your IPs. On the following page the website will automatically fill in the IP you selected in a text box next to another button that says “Blacklist Check”. Click on this.

You are presented with a report from all blacklists available. With any luck the status column will have a green button next to each list, along with the “OK” message. Feel free to do the happy dance.

However, if you get a red button with the status message as “Listed”, you may have a problem. MXToolbox automatically sorts the report for you so that these are all at the top.

So now what? Each blacklist has different policies about how you can remove your IP address. Some allow you to grovel, apologize, and promise never to commit the sin of spam again, while others simply accept your IP but warn you could be back on the list in 10 minutes. Others send you through a series of cyber-hoops only to send you an automated response (via email; how ironic) telling you essentially that you cannot remove your IP from the list. This can happen if your email comes from a dynamic IP — some lists like SORBS seem to add dynamic IPs to their lists automatically.

To find out how (or if) you can remove your IP from a blacklist, click on the list name, follow the instructions, and hope for the best.

One thing that some of these blacklist companies will say is that you should do a virus check to ensure your computer isn’t sending out spam automatically. This is a good idea in any case. A virus trumps spam any day.

The “Ultimate” Solution

If you are serious about preventing your shared IP getting onto a spam list due to someone else’s questionable activities, you can always get a dedicated server or a Virtual Private Server (VPS) to host your site. (One of my clients is in the process of doing this exactly because of lost emails.) This way, you know that all email coming from your IP is yours and spam-free — unless, again, you have a spam-sending virus!

There are drawbacks to this method though. Dedicated servers and VPSs tend to cost more per month, mostly because bigger companies with higher traffic volume tend to use these. You also have to set up all the server details yourself, which means learning how to do this (highly technical) or paying a web developer or Webmaster to set it up for you. There are also “assisted” dedicated servers which take care of these details, but cost even more per month. In my opinion, you are better off paying someone to set up your server and deal with any other issues on an as-needed basis.

So that’s how you get yourself off of email blacklists. Inconvenient, yes. Impossible – only sometimes. But what fun would technology be if it worked right all the time?

~Graham

“No one expects the Spammer Inquisition!”

It seems more and more lately that emails I send or emails other people send to me are disappearing. It tends to happen with certain people more than others, and even more puzzling it does not seem to happen all the time. What’s worse is that sometimes there is a notification that the email has been blocked, but most of the time it just vanishes into the ether…

As I’m sure is the case with many writers, I rely on email as my primary form of communication with my clients. So when email disappears without a warning, it is quite unsettling. I did a bit of research and found out that there are many possible reasons, but the most likely causes are all related to email blacklisting.

Email Blacklisting: A Short History

About 10 years ago, self-appointed cyber-vigilantes started creating lists of IPs that were “known” spammers. Companies like SpamCop and The Spamhaus Project put it upon themselves to try to reduce spam by “outing” spammers and putting their IP addresses on a centralized list.

At first, being added to a spam list was essentially meaningless. But then Internet Service Providers (ISPs) started using these lists in their own spam-blocking efforts. Filtering out email from flagged IP addresses was an easy way to reduce spam for their customers. And cheap too, since they didn’t maintain the lists themselves. A lot of emails that are not spam also get caught in this filtering process, but ISPs consider this to be part of the cost of reducing spam.

If you hate spam, you might agree. Any filtering is bound to catch the odd legitimate email. But the truth is that this series of unfolding events have led to a seriously flawed system:

Guilty Until Proven Innocent – There is nobody policing the spam police, and no regulated definitions of what a spammer is. Your IP can be added to any list without warning, reason, or chance for stating your case – it’s up to you to actively look to see if you are mistakenly put on a list. Some companies have many hoops for you to jump through to get your IP address off their lists, and others won’t let you remove your IP at all. So not only are you guilty until proven innocent, in some cases there is not even a way to prove your innocence!

SpamCop even gives the knife an extra twist by making you promise you or anyone else at your IP address will never spam again before removing you from the list – as if you have any control over what other people do. (This is so ridiculous that it reminds me of an old Monty Python skit: “No one expects the Spammer Inquisition! Our chief weapon is surprise, surprise and fear… Our two weapons are fear and surprise…” Ironically, it was another Monty Python skit that gave us the term “spam”.)

Guilty By Association – Because most of us have dynamic IPs (randomly assigned IPs common among shared website servers and Internet service providers), a person who had the address before us may have been a spammer. What’s worse, some lists will contain the whole range of your service provider’s IP addresses, so it doesn’t matter what IP you are currently using.

The blacklist companies say that it is up to your ISP to prevent spamming, but the reality is that (A) there is no practical way that they could control everything their users are doing and (B) that still leaves us innocents out in the cold.

Guilty By Association Part II – If your email contains a listed IP address or domain name somewhere in the code, it could be blocked. So if your email message contains a link to a website that is on a blacklist, some filters will block the whole email. More commonly, if your email message is relayed through a flagged IP, filters down the line may trash your email – perhaps even before it reaches your own mailserver.

Improper Use of Filtering Software – If the filtering software that your Internet Service Provider (or one of the relay ISPs) has the wrong settings, it could be blocking even more legitimate email than normal. Even companies like SpamCop explicitly state that being on a blacklist is just one thing to consider before blocking an email. Yet some ISPs use this as its only flag, likely because it is faster and easier than taking the time to set up the filtering software properly.

There are likely other causes, but all that mailserver code is making my head spin. I think you get the idea.

The Cautionary Tale

In a rather famous case, e360insight, an online marketer based in Illinois, successfully sued The Spamhaus Project for $11.7 million. The suit claimed, among other things, defamation, extortion, and blackmail that caused “massive harm to its business”.

The Spamhaus Project never bothered to even show up at the proceedings. First, since it only maintains the list and does not actively block the marketer directly, the company did not feel the need to defend itself. And since the blacklist company is based in the UK, the Illinois ruling is not legally binding anyway. The Spamhaus Project will never have to pay a dime. (Read about the whole story here:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060915-7757.html

So is this a victory for spammers or for the blacklisters? Either way, I think that the rest of us lose. In my mind, I’d rather deal with the spam than know my email may not have reached my client, or vice versa…

There are things you can do in some cases to get yourself off a blacklist. Stay tuned for Part II of this topic: How to Get Yourself Off Email Blacklists.

In the meantime, let me know if you’ve had a run-in with the Spammer Inquisition!

~Graham

Tom Chandler, among others, has talked about the importance of providing “value-added” services. He noted in his blog (especially this post) that today’s copywriters need to bring something to the table besides “the ability to sling words”. Tom gives the example of his marketing background, a definite asset in this industry.

I agree whole-heartedly in the value-added concept. But what if you are a new copywriter, and don’t have the years of experience to draw upon?

Here’s one tip for adding value to your services that new and experienced copywriters can use: email your clients when you come across something you think might interest them.

I’ve always believed that part of my job as a copywriter is to keep relatively informed about my regular clients’ industries. That doesn’t mean reading every trade journal cover-to-cover, but if I notice some news or a website relating to a certain topic, I’ll check it out.

Once in a while I’ll stumble across something that is so new and/or unique that I’ll copy the link, paste it in an email with a short note, and send it off to a client who may also find it useful.

I find that even if my clients know about whatever snippet I send them, they appreciate the fact that I am thinking about them, and I am actively trying to help improve their business. (Of course they appreciate it even more if it is indeed news to them!)

Sometimes these quick emails have even generated work for me. That may be because the new information prompts a new direction in marketing, or simply because they had been meaning to contact me anyway about a project, and just hadn’t gotten around to it.

But that’s not the point, not in the short term anyway. Besides the fact that it is just a thoughtful thing to do, it helps build good will and a strong, long-term working relationship. And it is a value-added service that anyone can provide. 

~Graham

There have been many discussions about the failings of Microsoft Word’s spell and grammar checking abilities — or lack thereof. But is this deficiency actually affecting the way we write?

I can tell you first hand that the answer is yes. There have been several occasions that I have seen that little squiggly line under a word or phrase, right-clicked it to see the “problem”, and realized Word was wrong.

But I changed it anyway.

Why? Because I knew if that my client saw that same squiggly line they would (A) change it to Word’s recommendation (I’ve seen that happen before) or (B) think I was incompetent.

I’ve come to a place in my writing career where I don’t think that there is just one way to write something, so changing it is not that big a deal in a practical sense. But there is a certain resentment I feel in doing it. Making concessions in our writing is part of the job. Somehow it’s different though when you start making concessions to a flawed piece of software.

Does Microsoft Word change your writing? If so, is that a good thing or bad?

~Graham

I just found out that Arthur C. Clarke passed away at his home in Sri Lanka.

Although he may not have inspired me to become a writer (I think I probably would have anyway), he certainly inspired me to become a better one. Like many I’m sure, I ate up all those early sci-fi stories. 2001: A Space Odyssey is still one of my favourite movies.

What amazes me most about Clarke is how right he was in predicting the future. He wrote about satellites circling the globe long before Sputnik. And his idea for a space elevator is now being considered as a viable plan for shipping crews and supplies into orbit.

It’s a shame he won’t be around to see it.

~Graham

First, Happy St. Paddy’s Day everyone! This image brings back memories — I used to pull pints south of London back in the salad days, and putting that shamrock on top as you are topping off a Guinness really takes a certain touch!

Today’s post I address the ubiquitous and annoying “To Whom It May Concern”. In short, I hate using it. But what do you do if you are submitting a proposal to a company, and you don’t know the name of the person who will be reading it?

In the old days, you’d simply look up the company name and find out who was in charge of HR. Today, more and more companies (especially those looking for freelance writers) explicitly state “No Phone Calls”, so this isn’t an option.

So what are the options? There is “Dear Sir/Madam” (horribly outdated and almost as impersonal), “Dear Reader” (what, are you submitting a novel?), or just simply “Hello” (seemingly friendly, but I suspect too under-confident and perhaps even unprofessional).

Here’s the one I’ve decided I like best: “Dear CompanyName”. This is, in effect, personifying the company, but that’s okay I think. Whoever wrote the ad obviously only wanted to name the company and not anybody in it for a reason. So why not just answer back to “the company”?

I still don’t like this as much as finding out the correct person’s name, but it’s the least offensive of the bunch.

Let me know what you think — is there one I missed? Drop me a comment or email me!

Onward and upward,

~Graham

There was a time when my mind was the most efficient day timer/address book/alarm clock there ever was. I could book a phone meeting with you for next Friday at 10:30am, and you’d be guaranteed that I’d be dialing the phone at 10:29.

Today, not so much. They say aging is natural, but it sure doesn’t feel natural to me…

I tried various computer gadgets that would hold my thoughts: to-do list programs, notepad files, alarm clocks, online day timers… The biggest problem with these was easing them into my workflow. I didn’t want to have to search through all my notes to find that one thing I wrote down three weeks ago. It was a frustrating and time-wasting exercise.

Then from somewhere I was struck with a decidedly low-tech idea: the sticky note.

But what a perfect solution! You can jot down notes, rip them off the pad, and stick them directly to the monitor so they can’t get lost. I also use them to write out each day’s to-do list, and give them a satisfying strike-through on each task I accomplish. At the end of the day I just transfer those remaining tasks to tomorrow’s note.

What I really like though is that these can be layered. I have notes on a set of reports I’ll be writing soon, notes with website hex colours (mine and my clients’), phone numbers and meeting times, and of course today’s tasks. And everything is literally at my fingertips – no searching through digital files for the information.

There are limitations, of course. I wouldn’t want to block out a novel with sticky notes (though I’ve heard of people doing that). But when it comes to finding an efficient way to get organized, the sticky note can’t be beat.

Have any of your own organizational tips? Leave a comment and let me know!

In the meantime, I’m crossing off “write today’s blog entry” off my own notes…

Onward and upward,

~Graham

This morning I brought my car to the shop for some unscheduled maintenance (the worst kind) and found myself with a few hours to fill. Of course I should have thought to bring some work along, but didn’t, so I walked a few blocks to a comfortable little coffee shop for some light reading and heavy java.

When I got there, I saw the sandwich board advertising ham and cheese bagel melts, and realized I was hungry. The girl behind the counter looked a bit confused when I asked for a melt, but cheerfully rung my order in. Minutes later she brought it to my table and announced (again, cheerfully) that this was the first bagel melt she had ever made. I felt that blush of guinea pig-ness wash over me, but it looked good so I picked up my knife and fork to dig in.

And it was good, let me tell you. Shaved black forest ham, melted cheddar and mozzarella, whole-wheat bagel, and a sharp and tangy honey mustard on the side for dipping. Just what I needed to pick up my spirits. I resolved then and there to treat myself to one again some day.

Now that story (all true, by the way) took 198 words to tell, but did it work? Would you try that ham and cheese bagel melt?

Most of us are ultimately trying to sell something when our clients hire us to do some writing. Whether it is soft sell or hard sell, our words are there to guide people to one conclusion: buy the product or service. Tell a good story, and you are more likely to close that sale.

Why? I’ll give you three good reasons.

Word-of-mouth sells better than advertising. A billboard can tell you that this sandwich tastes good, and you might believe it. Your best friend tells you that this sandwich tastes good, and you will probably try it. The difference is a matter of trust. You know that the billboard is trying to sell you, whereas the friend is trying to help you. In lieu of that friend, the story can build that trust and make the reader feel secure that this choice is the best choice.

Telling a story shows the decision-making process. At first, maybe the reader doesn’t know why a ham and cheese melt is important to him or her. It might sound good, but so does ice cream, or a taco, or a foot massage. Lead the reader through the decision process – hard day so far, wanted to find a bit of warmth and comfort while waiting for hours, feeling a bit hungry… and the answer was ham and cheese melt. Now the logic sounds a bit silly when you lay the plot out like that. But it works when done right.

Features vs. Benefits. Ah yes, it always comes down to this. When you hear “ham, melted cheese, bagel” you may or may not react to the features. You are more likely to react to the benefits of “taking a break, finding a warm coffee shop to relax in, getting something good to eat”. The bagel melt suddenly becomes more of a lifestyle choice than a menu choice, and you are able to make a stronger connection with the reader.

Now you may not have 198 words to tell a story, but there is always room to weave your magic. (Hemingway is famous for his six-word story: “For sale: baby shoes. Never worn.”) Inject some creativity into your sales copy, and engage the reader’s imagination with a bit of a yarn, and you’ll likely get better results.

Onward and upward,

~Graham

Yes, “Hello World” is the default WordPress post title. But what powerful words they are! Brings back memories of “playing” with the computer back in the PET and Tandy Color Computer days, imagining a time when people would actually use them in every day work.

Flash-forward 25-odd years, and I find it hard to imagine life without them. Computers and the Internet have certainly changed the way I make a living out of writing, but then that’s probably true of all professional writers.

So now I finally take that next step, embracing blogging as part of my long computer journey as much as my long writing journey. I hope to pass along some of the things I’ve learned over the years, and maybe stir up a few discussions along the way.

Like the subtitle implies, I plan for all of my posts to fall into one of three categories: freelance, writing, and/or life. Yes, that should cover all the bases. But as with most things in life (not to mention freelance and writing for that matter…), time will tell.

I also plan to keep this interactive, so please step up and comment! If you don’t want to voice to be heard in front of everyone, feel free to email me instead.

So here we go, onward and upward!

~Graham