THE STRONG WOMAN: Cyber Marketing Stalkers, Your New BFF
The Strong Woman
“Cyber Marketing Stalkers. Your new BFF”
By Claire Cooper Black
Most of us in the rural parts of America do our Christmas shopping online. Heck we do a lot of shopping online. I was never much for malls when I lived in the big cities. I would go, but my mood would change the second I pulled into the parking lot looking for a semi decent parking space. In Texas, in August that means looking for the lone tree in the parking lot.
I enjoy shopping online at my pace with no human interaction. Human Interaction is highly overrated at times. (I’m joking here folks … maybe.) The drawback to shopping online is the one-sided relationship that develops. It’s like that person you once said something nice to in passing and now they think you are their best friend. It’s very similar to being stalked. Cyber marketing stalkers. When you hear more from a marketing email than you do your friends and family … it’s stalking.
Four years ago, at the request of our State Representative, Trent Ashby, I went to Austin to speak in front of the Texas House Judicial Commission about getting a Texas law changed. We were successful, the law was changed and became an improved law in 2013. While I was there, I spent two nights at a local hotel close to the Capitol. After this trip to Austin, I acquired a new best friend. That hotel chain. I receive emails weekly from this hotel chain. Still. It’s been four years ago. I haven’t checked into one of their hotels since. Yet they are still stalking me weekly with emails. I have unsubscribed, blocked and cursed, but the emails keep coming and have found their way into my other email accounts. How did that happen?
Same thing with a retailer whom I bought a shirt from two years ago. I bought one shirt. And now they email me almost daily. Guys, I’m just not that into you. I bought one shirt and nothing since. That should tell you something.
Remember when emails were from your friends and family? Remember when emails were from business associates? Ahhh, the good old days. Now my emails consist mostly of unwanted marketing emails. Sure, you can try to unsubscribe, but they just ignore you. They are thinking that you have just made a mistake and that you really still like them and want to hear from them. So, they continue to stalk you day after day after day.
You don’t get that with a mall. At a mall you can unknowingly pick up a human stalker or worse.
I’ll stay with the online cyber marketing stalkers. They are bothersome but harmless.
Wait. What’s my computer d………………………………………………………………………………….