Added Bonus!

And if you call right now, I’ll throw in this free added gift! You’ll receive a ton less spam to your email account if you use a web form than a “mailto” link. What? I know, you don’t believe me, but it’s true!

I’ll take off my Ron Popeil spray-on hair now – but it is true and it’s the second reason to keep email addresses off your site. Spammers get email addresses in a few ways, but the easiest is to scan websites for email addresses. If they see a “mailto” link or even just an email address, they copy it and then sell it to other spammers. Soon, you’ll be drowning in offers for misspelled pills that make you R0cX h4Rd!!!

The form stops this by removing your email address from the web page. It is hidden in a secondary page that sends out the email, but can’t be seen by anyone, even if they guess the URL (web address). This way, your real listeners won’t get lost in the sea of spam that is your inbox. I never posted my personal email address on a website and managed to stay spam-free for over three years before they finally got me.

Email is too slow!

Only in the 21st Century would people complain about messages traveling around the world in seconds being too slow – but during a show segment, they can be too slow. Try signing up for a Yahoo Messenger Account. They have chat rooms you can create to encourage chat with listeners during spot breaks, or you can get instant responses to what you’re doing. Make sure you get an OK from management before you try that one though.

If you’re really ready to take your site to the next level, you can build chat into the site, so listeners won’t have to sign up to talk with you. However, this topic deserves its own column. Let’s set that one aside for a rainy day.

Email is still the best way for listeners to contact the station on their schedule. Just make sure you respond to every email. Even a one-line thank you can make the difference between a sometime listener and a newly converted die-hard P1. Radio is all about connecting with the audience, and what better way to connect one on one than to write a personalized response, even if it’s brief.

As always, AllAccess has my “The Net Untangled Tip of the Day” each weekday and a column on Website Wednesdays. Next week, we’ll take a look at easy steps to keep your site fresh. So check back and together we’ll get our websites focused on keeping radio strong in this world of increasing competition.

Do you agree with me? Am I an idiot? If you have comments or any questions about radio websites – either general questions relating to the industry or the web or even specific (HTML, PHP, .NET, Javascript, etc.) questions, send me an email. (Notice the link is not my email address?) I’ll answer your question quickly and maybe even use it for a future column.