Auto-responders automatically send out a sequence of e-mails to a list of people at a scheduled time without you needing to be there to push the ‘send’ button.

Auto-responders can also do broadcast messages to groups of people. Use broadcast messages for e-mails containing time-sensitive messages and end-dates that do not fit into any e-mail sequence.

Kinds of auto-responders

There are four kinds of auto-responders. The most common auto-responder is the “out of the office” auto-responder in your e-mail. These only work when the person activates them and creates a small generic message in them.

The second kind of auto-responder is software-based and installed on your personal computer. For the most part, they do everything other auto responders do, only the software is on your computer. One drawback for this type of auto-responder is accessibility. For instance, this software is loaded on your desktop computer. You go out of town to a seminar. While at the seminar, you decide to send a message out to your list. You can’t because the software is loaded on your computer back in the office.

The third kind of auto-responder is an auto-responder service. Most charge monthly fees and the service companies keep tight control of your information. One drawback is all the auto-responders will have the same IP (internet protocol) address.

Here is an example. You follow all the rules and are very respectful of the people on your list. Some clown at the same service buys an e-mail list and sends out 500,000 e-mails (considered spam) and the spam filters catch them. Which, they will. The spam filters will ban that IP address. Now, you want to send a message to your e-mail list. Your messages will probably not get to your customers because they have the same IP address as the clown that just spammed 500,000 people.

The fourth kind of auto-responder is a server-side auto-responder, which is loaded on a server at your hosting account. You are the only one who uses this auto-responder and has the same IP address as your website, provided the same hosting company hosts them both. This way you have total control of your e-mail campaigns without the worry of some jerk sending out spam and having your IP address blacklisted.

How do auto-responders work?

When using auto-responders to collect names, they are nothing more than e-mail addresses. When a customer sends an e-mail to your e-mail, it comes back to an auto-responder where a previously prepared message is set to go out.

Upon receiving the return e-mail, the auto-responder automatically sends out your message. In addition, because the customer sent you an e-mail, you now have their e-mail address in your auto-responder mail list.

An example of this is report@yourdomainname.com. Using an auto-responder this way, all you are able to collect is an e-mail address.

When you use an auto-responder in a form to collect information, you collect everything the form collects. You collect names, addresses, phone numbers, and anything else you require, providing the auto-responder supports it.

Although, it is good to start out by collecting only a primary e-mail address and first name.

Make certain you ask for a primary e-mail address. This increases your chances of receiving an e-mail address that is actually looked at all the time instead of a rarely seen junk e-mail address.

All the information that your auto-responder collects is saved in a database on your server. Make certain you backing up your list weekly. This is your list and you are ultimately responsible for it. What happens if, for some unforeseen reason, the auto-responder crashes and your lists destroyed? If you have not taken the time to back them up, the chances of your lists being gone forever is very good.

I know some of you are thinking, “Well, my web hosting company does all that for me.” What happens if they didn’t, the back ups are lost, or they go out of business? It is your business. Take back control and make your own backups.

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Copyright 2006 Larry Lang All Rights Reserved. Lang Enterprises Inc.
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