Monday, October 5, 2009

Best Practices When Replying To Online Offers

I'm assuming that since you're reading this, you have replied to some sort of online offer at some point in your life. Requesting samples, printing coupons, online surveys, online shopping, gaming, etc. Do any of these sound like you? If so, here are a few suggestions to keeping your email box neat and tidy and keeping spam to a minimum in your personal email box.

First off, set up a new free email account. I would suggest a different domain than your current personal email account. Gmail, Hotmail and Yahoo are a few ideas. Use your name and the email account purpose in the name. For example: suzysavesmoney @ domain.com or gamerbob@ domain.com. Keep it short and easy to remember.

Once your new account is set up, start a few file folders. For example a reader of this blog might want folders that say:

Coupons/Freebies
Shopping
Surveys
Panels
Emails to Read (for MyPoints, InboxDollars and RewardPort)

Keep it simple at first, you can always fine tune it later as the emails start coming in. Once emails come in, depending on how much time you have, respond or file for later. Here are some options for responding:

Move to spam
Unsubscribe & delete
Print offer & delete
Reply/Participate in offer & delete

Be sure to clean out your folders every month or so. For example, I might file all my BzzAgent e-mails, but delete them once the campaign is over. Once offers start hitting your personal email box, be sure to update your personal info with the sender. You'll want those offers to go to the new mail box. This method works really well for me. Once I have a few minutes (say at nap time), most of my make/save money offers are in one spot. It also keeps emails in my personal email box to a minimum so I'm not missing an important email from the school or accidentally deleting something from a friend.

I'd love to hear some ideas that work for you! Email me at wyliemom@live.com. Like this post? Subscribe here.


2 comments:

Keith Wilcox said...

That is an excellent piece of advice. I never reply to those sorts of offers because I hate to get spammed.

Your description of replying and submitting for free samples and other offers reminded me of how I used to get free food in college. Write into a bunch of companies complaining about their products and they'd send free samples. I'd pick used containers and boxes out of the trash cans in front of the dorms and use those as proof of purchase. I had a whole closet full of little snacks and stuff I got for free. Anyway, that was sort of irrelevant. sorry :-)

Angie said...

I reply to EVERY free offer coming and going, and get very little junk mail and spam. :)

Funny story about college....I'm just mad I didn't know about this little snack supply back then. :)

Ed Hardy

About Me

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DFW, Texas
I'm a married, stay-at-home mom to two kiddos in grade school. I love to save money as much as I like to make it! Coupons, thrift stores? Lead the way! But wait....there's more! I have a BBA from University of Oklahoma and I was a banker and an accountant before I became a domestic goddess!

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