Our publisher's view on why eDMs are evil

Warning: the below is a personal opinion from our Publisher.

Client-sponsored publisher-based eDMs don't work. They invade people's inboxes. They get labelled as spam. Plus, in our experience, they're more expensive and less effective than integrated editorial options.

Why I believe eDMs are the devil's work

Other publishers who compete with TechDay offer eDMs and we get requests for them from advertisers almost every day. It seems the idea resonates with big overseas vendors, in part because an eDM can be run consistently in many countries.

But Kiwis (and probably other nationalities) hate them. It's seen as an invasion of one's inbox.

I believe being involved with eDMs can seriously, negatively affect your (or your client's) brand. Think about your own reaction - do you like unsolicited advertising eDMs?

New Zealand's law is really clear on spam, and it's way tougher than Australia or the United States.

The Department of Internal Affairs names and shames companies that get complaints, and it's very hard to convince the DIA team members that readers want uninvited advertising by email out of the blue. TechDay has received spam complaints before, although luckily not in recent years, and it's not a fun experience.

Do yourself a favour and focus on editorial integration. It's way better bang for buck and readers love it.

At TechDay, an eDM would cost three times as much as a sponsored story (some call it native advertising or even advertorial), and sponsored stories end up with as many as 10 times the clicks with no risk of embarrassment.

We barely ever sell eDMs anymore. They're nasty things. After all, who really likes unsolicited advertising invading their inbox?

In this age of a constant flood of content, I believe you should be on the side of providing something valuable and not unsolicited junk.

Contact me if you want to discuss or debate the issue.