Cleaning up as summer ends, we came across an interesting post from Seth Godin.

An anonymous reader asked Seth what he should do about a vendor’s offer to push three million unrequested emails (aka spam) through offsite servers (so, no blacklisting worries) for just $500.

"A trusted vendor offers to spam millions with no blacklisting," Godin says. "What to tell the boss?"

A one percent response rate on three million emails nets 30,000 replies. For $500. Do the math.

"Email marketing is not about what you can get away with," Seth concludes. "Email marketing is about treating people with respect so that they will listen to what you have to say. So you can build your brand. So you can tell your story.

"A no brainer as far as I’m concerned."

• Is it a no brainer?
• Maybe spam is irrelevant to you. What is an equivalent offer in your industry?
• Have you entertained such offers? Are you?
• What are the principles by which you decide such matters? Where did they come from?
• To whom are you accountable for your choices?
• Write about (or discuss with colleagues) how you think Romans 13:7-10 speaks to this question:

Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.