Email Signatures

Perhaps one of the most important methods to promote your web site is including some advertising in each and every email you send and all newsgroup postings that you make.  DO NOT spam the newsgroups by sending useless messages.  Instead, make useful postings which include your signature. People will be interested enough to visit your site as long as you appear to be an intelligent, knowledgeable person.

This is generally done by defining an email signature in your email client. It's pretty simple to cause Outlook 2000, for example, to send a couple of additional lines for each and every email that you send. It's equally simple to do the same thing with Outlook Express.

Your email signature might read:

Visit my web site at http://www.internet-tips.net/ 

Anything which helps to promote your site or service is fine (excluding profanity and the like).  You should keep the signature to just a few lines - no more than 6.  Also, it's a good idea not to include any pictures and to stick with straight text (not HTML).  This way everyone can see your ad, which is the whole point.

One additional word of caution about email (and newsgroup) signatures: some words will trigger spam filters. This can be especially annoying on newsgroup postings. I had a 900 number in my signature which caused an automated spam checker for newsgroups to send my posts straight to my ISP! The postings were on topic and definitely not spam, but they were treated as such. Naturally, this could also cause good email spam filters to also block your emails.

Before you create your email signature, it's a good idea to sit down for a minute and determine what your objective is.

• If you want to advertise your web site, it's a good idea to include a small ad and a hyperlink.
• If you are a salesperson, it may be wise to include your phone number and extension.
• Some people like to include a favorite quote.

Some cautions include:

• Do not include your pay-to-surf, moneymaking or affiliate links in your email signature. Not only is it considered tacky, but these things can trigger spam filters and get your emails automatically deleted. It's better to include these items on your website and put a link to that site in your email signature.
• Do not include profanity or harsh language.
• 900 numbers can also trigger spam filters.

Be sure to use standard formatting in the signature.

• Avoid any special fonts or colors
• Do not include graphics
• Do not use HTML
• Keep the width to 65 characters or less
• Do not exceed 6 lines