Why You Should Think Twice Before Buying an Email List
I often receive the question, “Should I buy an email list?” While tools that allow this are available, purchasing an email list for marketing is generally discouraged for several reasons:
Legal and compliance issues. Laws in many regions, such as the CAN-SPAM Act in the U.S. and the CCPA in California, require consent for email marketing.
Low success rate. Marketing to people who have not opted into your email list is unlikely to elicit a response.
Impact on deliverability. If recipients mark your emails as spam, or if you send to addresses that bounce, it could harm your sender reputation and affect the delivery of emails to legitimate subscribers.
Risk of being banned by your email marketing software. Providers like Mailchimp and Constant Contact will freeze your account if they discover you have uploaded a purchased list.
If you are still adamant about sending ”cold emails,“ I recommend using technology (e.g., Apollo) and agencies specializing in this type of marketing. They can help you maintain compliance, protect your sender reputation, and implement strategies to increase the success rate of your emails.