How about selling leads you don't use

Company wants to buy email contacts of people requesting quotes

[silverbytes]

Received an email from a company who wants to but the emails you recive asking for your services. They call that "buying leads". I suppouse they sell those to their costumers (your competitors) in same niche.
The idea is not bad: instead paying banner impressions or ads clicks they go beyond that, they buy the people that ALSO emailed you asking your services.

My questions:

1) Is that abo#*$!ely clean and valid and will not cause you any problem with search engines or is it a violation or black hat technique like selling links?

My point of view is that shouldn't have anything to do with search engines because is not PR related.

2) Did anybody sell leads with success?

3) Would you buy prospects or leads?

I think this scenario: you have a site that receives email from people intersted in your product or service but you are not fully dedicated to that. Or you have more work than you can actually do. Selling leads would be a way to monetize the interest.

[LifeinAsia]

1) This is all happening on the back end, so I don't see that it has anything at all to do with search engines.

2) Never tried.

3) Probably not... It most likely wouldn't work in our niche.

The problem I see is that the people e-mailed YOU. That established a quasi-business relationship between you and that person, with the person effectively giving you permission to e-mail back to that person. That person is NOT giving a 3rd party permission to contact him based on that e-mail (unless you specifically say on your web site that e-mails sent to that e-mail address may be released to a 3rd party).

Now, if you replied to the original person saying you can not help, but would like to forward the e-mail to a partner who could assist, and received permission from that, that's a different story.

[edited by: LifeinAsia at 6:47 pm (utc) on June 1, 2009]

[BradleyT]

It's a multi-billion dollar industry on the web. It's completely fine to buy/sell leads (the company I work for buys leads). The companies we buy from often have PR7 - PR9 sites.

[silverbytes]

he problem I see is that the people e-mailed YOU. That established a quasi-business relationship between you and that person, with the person effectively giving you permission to e-mail back to that person. That person is NOT giving a 3rd party permission to contact him based on that e-mail (unless you specifically say on your web site that e-mails sent to that e-mail address may be released to a 3rd party)

They say they do. Once you forward your original email to them, the buyers contact the company or person that contacted you asking for permision to post their project. If that's ok to them, then post the project to make intersted companies bid for the lead. If that happens, they pay you something back.

Bradley T: BTW I don't know any company doing that but the one contacted me...

[JS_Harris]

Get your privacy policy in order. If it says you won't reveal information and you're caught selling their information you might be liable.

Personally, if I contacted someone directly and they sold my email information (which leads to new spam in my in box) I wouldn't be back, ever.

[piatkow]

A lot depends on where you are. Under European privacy laws I wouldn't think about this without first taking legal advice.

[silverbytes]

I guess so. Ok, let's change it a little: any ways to monetize your demand when you are not intersted in taking new jobs?

[idfer]

I confess i'm not much into this whole monetizing thing but could this be done with a referral/affiliate setup? So if someone contacts you and you don't want the job, send a reply saying "sorry i can't help you, but if you go to www.example.com/sellalead?referer=me they will be able to help you."

[silverbytes]

Good idea idfer. I'll research a lillte bit about it, guess wouldn't be impossible to find one that works.

[MrHard]

Ask the people for their OK first, then sell their info. It's only fair.

[silverbytes]

That's what idfer said exactly and I think is good idea. If they are not interested they will not click the link, and I wouldn't be "selling" any info to anybody.