jb3o+@andrew.cmu.edu (Jon Allen Boone) (01/23/91)
cameron@argosy.UUCP (Cameron Spitzer) writes: > 1. *CALL* the DMA's Mail Preference Service at their secret, unlisted > number (212)768-7277 and ask to be listed in their Suppression File. > Stay on the phone while the computer operator types your address in. > If you leave a message they may just discard it. > Call them a month later and ask if you're listed. I called just now - the operator told me that she couldn't enter my information over the phone - she told me to either write in requesting this or she could send me a form. I asked for the form; I hope that it gets a better response than the letters did. -=> iain <=- "a sysadmin kinda guy"
zap@savage.UUCP (Zap Savage) (01/24/91)
In article <856@argosy.UUCP> cameron@argosy.UUCP (Cameron Spitzer) writes:
%8. When they ask for my name and address at Radio Shack, I tell them
%firmly but politely, "For the purpose of your data base, my name is Joe
%Tandy and my address is GPO, Fort Worth, Texas." Radio Shack is one of
%the few large junk mailers who can't be bothered to maintain a suppression
%file.
I've been told one great thing about Tandy but I can't confirm it. Can anyone?
Tandy/Radio Shack does NOT sell its mailing list and from what I've heard they
have the largest in the States.
%(c) 1991, Cameron Spitzer, San Jose, California
%cameron@maspar.com or uunet!decwrl!argosy!cameron
Great article, Cameron! Thank you!
Zap
--
Zap Savage, Savage Research, Inc.
"There's a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore like a fool."
-Steven Wright
"It'll never fly, Orville."
-Wilbur Wrighttmkk@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Scott Coleman) (01/28/91)
In article <156215@felix.UUCP> asylvain@felix.UUCP (Alvin "the Chipmunk" Sylvain) writes: > >> 1. Most junk mailers think they're doing a public service. > >Don't be so all-fired-up certain they're *not* doing a public service. [...] > >Let's face facts, nobody goes to the library to research what deoderant >to buy, so the decision is largely based on what advertising has had the >most effective. That may be the basis for *your* decision. Personally, I use such sources as the net and Consumer Reports to find out about products. As far as I'm concerned, junk mailers are performing a public DISservice by helping to fill our world with garbage. >So, while I applaud your efforts, and I'm concerned at how much crap >goes on at public expense, I must remind you that *advertising is not >evil*! It is a perfectly valid method of informing the public of one's >goods and services. You've made quite a leap here. The poster was complaining about JUNK MAIL, not about advertising in general. I don't care if people advertise; I just wish they would do so in a way which doesn't directly contribute to our pollution problem (i.e. when I "throw away" or disregard a TV commercial, I don't have to pay the trash man to haul it away, and it takes up no space at the town dump. A case could be made that commercials cause noise pollution, ;-) but I won't be the one to make it here...) JUNK MAIL SUX!! -- Scott Coleman tmkk@uiuc.edu "Unisys has demonstrated the power of two. That's their stock price today." - Scott McNealy on the history of mergers in the computer industry.
cmw1725@tamsun.tamu.edu (Christopher Walton) (01/28/91)
ONE MANS JUNK IS ANOTHER MANS TREASURE! Don't get personal opinions in the way of having an open mind about BOTH the GOOD AND BAD, that these things can do. This applies in any and all facets of life. HAVE an opinion, it is your RESPONSIBILITY, but don't hamper other peoples as well in trying to keep your own. Who knows, one day you might change your mind. (Isn't life great) I personally LIKE *SOME* of the junk mail I have gotten over the years, and have gotten a few good deals in that way. On the other hand, most of it IS junk, but doesn't this relationship apply to all of life and not just glossy paper with a postage paid stamp on it. (THINK ABOUT IT) I am sure most people have gotten some kind of use out of some of the JM they have recieved. (PLEASE NO FLAMES, I am just expressing some of my thoughts, good or bad) Christopher Walton cmw1725@tamsun.tamu.edu n074ev@tamuts.tamu.edu
russotto@eng.umd.edu (Matthew T. Russotto) (01/28/91)
In article <1991Jan27.195054.1878@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> tmkk@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Scott Coleman) writes: > >That may be the basis for *your* decision. Personally, I use such sources >as the net and Consumer Reports to find out about products. As far as I'm >concerned, junk mailers are performing a public DISservice by helping to >fill our world with garbage. Hey, without junk mail, what would fill the inside back cover of Consumer Reports? (the Selling It column) -- Matthew T. Russotto russotto@eng.umd.edu russotto@wam.umd.edu .sig under construction, like the rest of this campus.
cyberoid@milton.u.washington.edu (Robert Jacobson) (01/28/91)
Anyone who's worked in the advertising field (as I have) knows that the purpose of advertising is to enforce purchasing decisions already made. Advertising is pretty weak at persuading people to make new buying decisions, great at making people feel glad about the ones they've already made. Junk mail works best with people who enjoy receiving junk mail and who have responded to it in the past. It has little benefit for those who resist its blandishments. My feeling is, if you want it, you should be able to affirmatively request it; and if you don't, it shouldn't get sent. Bob Jacobson
mayo@wrl.dec.com (Bob Mayo) (01/29/91)
In article <156215@felix.UUCP> asylvain@felix.UUCP (Alvin "the Chipmunk" Sylvain) writes: >Don't be so all-fired-up certain they're *not* doing a public service. >When you have a family of four to feed (as I do), you appreciate learn- >ing about bargains and getting coupons. Don't forget the guy in Washington State that takes pride in being able to heat his house for the winter solely by burning junk mail. Not exactly pollution free, because it screws up the catalytic converter on wood stoves, but a neat story anyways.
asylvain@felix.UUCP (Alvin "the Chipmunk" Sylvain) (01/30/91)
In article <1991Jan27.183118.3335@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU> spm2d@newton.acc.Virginia.EDU (Steven P. Miale) writes: > In article <156215@felix.UUCP> asylvain@felix.UUCP (Alvin "the Chipmunk" Sylvain) writes: > >Don't be so all-fired-up certain they're *not* doing a public service. > >When you have a family of four to feed (as I do), you appreciate learn- > >ing about bargains and getting coupons. The rest just goes into the > >trash (eh, recycling bin!). My biggest complaint is that it's the same > >damn set of coupons every week. If you don't happen to like Pizza Hut, > >too bad. But once in a while, you'll get Pollo Loco coupons (which our > >family *does* like), or other values, which is worth an occasional sort. > > Pollo Loco? "Crazy Chicken"? Oh, sounds delicious... :-) It is! Have you tried it? Instead of frying the bird, they char-broil it. There is a whole host of imitators now! > Actually, ARA runs a mexican fast food place at the University called > "El pollo grande" (the big chicken)... Probably an imitator. Like they say, "the sincerest form of flattery ..." > >The average American sees and ignores more than 2000 advertising mes- > >sages every day. You oughta be used to it by now. > > But just because we're used to something doesn't mean we have to take > it. "You oughta be used to tax increases by now, so don't complain" Slightly different ... you can *not* ignore a tax increase! Trust me, I've tried! > >Let's face facts, nobody goes to the library to research what deoderant > >to buy, so the decision is largely based on what advertising has had the > >most effective. *It is true* that without advertising, you simply > >*would not know* about the very existance of the products you buy and > >use. The companies that produce those products would go out of busi- > >ness. Then you (or me, or others like us) would be out of work. > > Yeah! If food manufacturers and grocery stores didn't advertise, > we wouldn't buy any food! (Hey, wait a minute...) You're ignoring a fundamental problem, even with grocery stores. Grocery stores litter the landscape like McDonald's'es. How is one going to get you to drive an extra ten minutes to come to *their* store if they don't tell you they exist? Why should they pay tens of kilo-bucks to advertise on TV to the entire area, when for a mere centa-buck or two they can target just the neigh- borhood? Then add a few money-saving coupons as extra incentive, and viola! Customers show up! > Word about products is accomplished through word of mouth and > "Consumer Reports". Actually, advertisers have a lot of respect for both of these methods. Word-of-Mouth is naturally considered superior, since it's an objective opinion from a trusted friend, relative, or neighbor. But you'll go out of business waiting for Word-of-Mouth to get started! Word-of-Mouth, albeit the most sought after and reliable, happens to be the *slowest* form of advertising in existance! So you put up some billboards, send out some flyers, print up some coupons, and get some people to come in and *try the product*. Then, if your product is good, these experimenters can get the ol' Word-of-Mouth Ball rolling. As for "Consumer Reports," I can only say that they fall into the cate- gory of "Caveot Emptor", like everything else. I have experienced, and have talked to people who have experienced, that very frequently if you are *intimately familiar with the products* that you *disagree* with what they say about them. If you can't trust them on things you know about, how can you trust them for things you *don't* know about? (Altho, I would trust most of their auto surveys. This information is not based on their employees' possibly biased or un-informed opinions, but rather on surveys from their readers.) My point stands. One reason most of us can live the life of luxury that we enjoy is because companies who create products use advertising to get people to buy them. This creates jobs, which puts money into the hands of people, who can then go out and buy more products! -- asylvain@felix.UUCP (Alvin "the Chipmunk" Sylvain) =========== Opinions are Mine, Typos belong to /usr/ucb/vi =========== "We're sorry, but the reality you have dialed is no longer in service. Please check the value of pi, or see your SysOp for assistance." =============== Factual Errors belong to /usr/local/rn =============== UUCP: uunet!{hplabs,fiuggi,dhw68k,pyramid}!felix!asylvain ARPA: {same choices}!felix!asylvain@uunet.uu.net
david.kaye@f111.n125.z1.FIDONET.ORG (david kaye) (02/15/91)
I value my time, and rather than spend time making phone calls or writing letters to junk mailers, I simply do this:
1) I keep a black marker and a rubber stamp near the mailbox
2) I draw a diagonal line across my address on the junk piece
3) I stamp "RETURN TO SENDER, Mail Service Discontinued" above
the address.
I'd say this has cut down about 80% of the junk mail. I just drop it into the mailbox (which is on my way to work), and I'm done with it. I
used to do this once a day, but now I find I can do it once or twice a week, there's that little now.
BTW, the Postal Service is not obligated to deliver 3rd class mail as I recall. About 10 yrs ago they actually destroyed several million pieces because they said they'd never be able to catch up if they delivered it. I believe this happened just after a strike if memory serves me.
--
david kaye - via FidoNet node 1:125/777
UUCP: ...!uunet!hoptoad!fidogate!111!david.kaye
INTERNET: david.kaye@f111.n125.z1.FIDONET.ORG