TargitMail.com, a subsidiary of Portsmouth, NH-based GTMI LLC, has released eTOM (electronic targeted opt-in messaging), a 14 million e-mail address file. The database is culled from Internet service provider (ISP) subscribers that have opted in to receive targeted messages.
Through deals with more than 40 ISPs, TargitMail offers the opportunity to subscribers to participate in its program. Consumers initially answer general demographic and lifestyle questions, as well as operating system capabilities and primary languages spoken.
By agreeing to participate, consumers make gaining access to their e-mail boxes contingent on answering ancillary questions, which are used to round out their profiles. Consumers have the option of indicating that a given question is irrelevant, or that they do not wish to answer.
In addition to augmenting the database, the “answer-question-for-access” mechanism serves as a check against inactive e-mail accounts. Accounts that do not generate any answers within 30 days are eliminated from the file. According to GTMI vice president of marketing Jim Campbell, the question-a-day format is less threatening to consumers than being hit with a 30-question survey at the outset of the process.
The actual names and addresses never leave the premises. Instead, marketers provide their messages, along with desired characteristics, to TargitMail. TargitMail then gives the marketer a count of individuals that meet the criteria. Furthermore, acknowledging sensitivity to privacy issues, TargitMail does not allow names and addresses to be used in queries.
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