Tell the email sending platforms: don't let your clients spam me!
Scott Brighton, CEO, Bonterra Tech
(Note: Bonterra Tech is a for-profit company that owns CyberGrants®, EveryAction™, Network for Good®, Social Solutions®, NGP VAN™, ActionKit™ and Mobilize™ - companies that send the plurality, if not the vast majority, of Democratic and progressive fundraising emails these days.)
The proliferation of political fundraising spam deluging your inbox is only possible because candidates and campaigns are selling, buying and swapping your email address -- without your permission.
In theory, companies like EveryAction™, NGP VAN™, and ActionKit™ all have policies that prohibit their clients from uploading lists of emails that have not opted in to communications from that sender. In reality, though, enforcement of those policies seems spotty at best.
It's long past time to take back our inboxes and stop the firehose of spam. Bonterra Tech, as a company that owns the platforms used to send a lot of this un-permissioned emails, has a special role to play in cracking down on the unethical actors who are turning our inboxes into dumpster fires. So please sign the petition today.
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To:
Scott Brighton, CEO, Bonterra Tech
From:
[Your Name]
The proliferation of un-permissioned fundraising emails has gotten completely out of hand - and is making my inbox look like a dumpster fire.
This is happening because candidates, organizations and committees are selling, buying and swapping my email address WITHOUT my consent. Many of these unethical actors are doing so on your platforms such as EveryAction™, NGP VAN™, and ActionKit™.
So I call on you to crack down on your clients who are sending emails that I did not consent to, and:
a. strictly enforce your policies, require proof of an affirmative opt-in for all addresses in any bulk uploads, and prevent your products from being used to send emails to individuals who did not consent to receive emails from that sender; and
b. provide us, as consumers and donors, a clear way to report violators of these policies, AS WELL AS a global opt-out, across all the companies you own, to stop the deluge of un-permissioned email.
Your company has a profound responsibility to play a leadership role in pushing the digital fundraising industry in more ethical and sustainable directions. Further, as a company whose customers are heavily reliant on the continued viability of email fundraising, I believe that playing such a leadership role is in your long-term financial interests.