Is Your Email Campaign Eco-Friendly?

No one likes spam, and here’s one more reason why: It’s bad for the environment.

According to the security technology company McAfee and its “The Carbon Footprint of Email Spam Report,” it takes 33 billion kilowatt-hours of energy to send, process, and filter these unwanted emails each year. How much energy is that? Well, think about it this way: that’s the same amount of electricity it takes to power 2.4 million U.S. homes, and it creates the same greenhouse gas emissions as 3.1 million cars using two billion gallons of gasoline.

Most people assume the sending and reading of email is environmentally friendly because it’s paperless. But it seems everything has an impact on the environment these days, and sending unwanted emails can really add up.

When I hear information like this, it reminds me of just how important it is to have your customers’ permission before you email them so you don’t get branded a spammer. Of course, the definition of spam is in the eye of the recipient; it only takes a quick click for someone to deem an unwanted email ‘spam.’ So while you may not set out to be a spammer, a recipient might deem you one anyway.

Think about the people you communicate with. What do they want to hear from you, and how often? Make sure you’re delivering what customers want and you’re not overwhelming them with your messages.

And if you’re sending emails to people who haven’t asked to hear from you, you risk alienating them before they’ve even decided to become customers.

So keep this in mind the next time you think about expanding your email newsletter campaign. The environment will thank you.