Do you have a website? If so, you’re probably collecting email addresses. And if you’re not, you’re probably thinking about it.

Permission email marketing is one of the most pervasive marketing strategies on the web today. So much so, that lawmakers have seen fit to step in and attempt to regulate what is still a bit of a “wild west” situation.

Here are three very common errors that most everybody makes at some stage or other. Falling down on any one of these can lose you customers, get your domain in trouble, and even land you in court.

1) Permission means: Ask first!

Lots of folks miss the “permission” part of “permission email marketing”.

It’s so easy to assume that your product or service is SO good, that of course everyone wants to be on your list.

Doesn’t matter how good your business is, if you did not get permission, you can’t mail them. It’s as simple as that.

2) Sorry, but this is spam, like it or not.

Someone give you their email. They expect you might try to sell to them at some point, but they are OK with that. They want to know what your angle is, what you have to offer that’s different from other writers in your niche.

But instead, you bombard them with sales plugs five times a week! They asked to be enlightened and educated; you treated them like sales trash instead.

That’s spam, too, but by another name. Sorry.

3) Yep, this ALSO is spam

Failing to delete your “non-opens” is another email marketing no-no.

What you must realize is that many people sign up to your list because they want the freebie you are offering. It may be a free report, a free tool or some bit of software. Whatever it was, that’s what they wanted. And who can blame them- you were offering it for free!

If people are simply not opening your mails, it’s because they’re not really interested. Honor their preference and delete them from your autoresponder.

Permission email marketing is about, uh… permission. You need it to mail people to begin with, you need it to keep mailing them, and you need to quit mailing when that permission has, for all intents and purposes, been withdrawn. Failure to allow for people’s real wishes and preferences is the road to email marketing disaster.

Head on over to Internet Marketing Tools for more on permission email marketing.