I think when newer folks look at deliverability issues, they tend to look more at the immediate resolution for those issues because those are more easily resolved. The real problems aren’t short-term. Up to 40% of purchasing decisions are influenced now by online marketing and a significant portion of that is through email. Providers of email incur heavy expenses in anti-spam filtering, postmaster support, feedback loops, mail servers, etc.

The long-term cost ramifications to all parties is not immediately apparent, but huge. Best practices revolving around user engagement can be hard to explain but they address many of these core concerns.

Even though there are some of us in email delivery with less than 2 years experience we look up to those that have been around the block for guidance and insight. Some of us are not afraid to put in the time to learn everything we can about the email world and are not afraid to admit when we don’t know something. The knowledge that people like Al Iverson, Anne Mitchell and yourself share through your blogs and through email is invaluable and greatly appreciated.

I will admit that there are people out there that don’t have the same view that I do and that’s their prerogative, but I for one appreciate the “Old Guard” of the email world.