I know, that title right there may sound a little misleading. But it isn't. I have nothing against email autoresponders -- I've used them myself. For donkey years. But then in the end, I canceled them all. Why? Because they didn't work for me anymore. I'm sure they do for some Gurus (bow) -- and maybe you, but let's face it, have you checked the amount of SPAM hitting your inbox lately? Or aren't you getting spammed? Lucky for you if you're not. No offense, but every download, every info product, wants you to opt-in to their list - first. Have you noticed that? Or is it just me? This article will look at a growing marketing trend that if applied with tact, can well be your ideal alternative to email marketing.



So, with all of that stacked up against you (and by all means it isn't your fault), what is the likelihood of your mail being actually opened and read by everybody on your list? You go figure! I'll tell you this, I don't read anybody's mail (I'm referring to the opt-in type mail as mentioned above). I read what I like to call REAL mail from REAL people -- friends, business partners, associates, clients etc, and NOT mail from people trying to sell me something every day of the week. I know I'm not alone here, so I won't even bother to defend myself. This is what MOST people on lists do. My inbox has over 1,000 emails at any given time. If I read all of that gunk I wouldn't be in business because I wouldn't have any time left to do anything else. So where does that leave us ... the internet marketer struggling to make a buck online via building a list to pitch products and services to?

We all know what a pest autoresponder mail that arrives in your inbox can be. It gets pretty overwhelming at times, especially considering the amount of products that are out there. Almost all websites giving away an e-book or information for free will ask you for your personal information (i.e. your name and email). And that's just for them to part with a product or information for free. In other words, you've got to give to get. Or so the saying goes. In the end, there's a heck of a lot of lists you find yourself subscribed to, some with good content, and some with the obvious ... useless content. I'm not here to knock list-building itself as a lead-generation strategy, I just wanted to bounce off an idea that is working for a lot of online marketers and that is getting more and more effective by the day; and that doesn't involve emailing anybody anything. Building a list without an autoresponder is perfectly viable when you use Twitter to build your list and to get the word out. It is addictive, and that in itself somewhat guarantees readership far more than email can at this point in time. Well, given the circumstances. So, to grow your business in a volatile marketplace where email is getting more and more difficult for recipients to cope with, be sure to try out Twitter. But make sure you don't SPAM their system, Twitter will boot you out so fast.

In Summary: I think you already know where I'm going with this. There's gotta be another way, right? And there is. Twitter, the new social networking phenomena, is quietly building online marketers the lists they want in whatever niche they're in, but the difference with Twitter is that your followers (opt-in list) actually read your Tweets (messages). I've picked up some great information on Twitter, and I'm building relationships with some really nice people on Twitter. Whoever invented this social network is a genius. I'm launching a novel on March 25th 2009 ... exclusively on Twitter. So you can imagine. The potential to thrive on the Internet is well within your grasp if you Tweet! Forget autoresponders, they're obsolete! Or so it seems.