Reprint My Articles
I know that I've been gone for a while -- my mother passed away on June 6th, and I've been absolutely overwhelmed dealing with everything. I'm just about ready to return to my normal life, and that means that my blogs will be returning too. I look forward to reconnecting with my site visitors -- keep an eye out for me in late September!
Reprint My Articles
"You are welcome to reprint my articles, checklists, and blogs on a websites, in an email, or in a print newsletters (any other method of reprint requires my express written permission.)
However, please adhere to the following requirements:
- the content must not be changed or edited in any way, and must appear exactly as written (however, you can adjust the html format to match your site)
- you may only reprint the actual text of the article -- if you wish to use my original photography, you must contact me to license the images (these images are copyrighted an there is a fee attached to licensing them)
- my name, Ramona Creel, must appear as author directly under the title wherever the article is published
- the following bio/resource box must appear at the bottom of the article, exactly as written and with active working hyperlinks (if you wish to shorten it, please contact me for approval of your edits)
- for reprints posted on the web or in email newsletters, I require an active, working link back to http://www.RamonaCreel.com
- you must send me an email telling me you intend to reprint my article, indicating when and where you're going to reprint it
- you may also use my RSS feed(s) to syndicate my content directly to your site
- you may not add any of these articles to websites promoting hate, porn, or other questionable content -- I reserve the right to refuse to allow reprinting of my articles if I disagree with the website's purpose
- you may not sell any of these articles for your own profit or use these articles for email spamming -- you may also not include your own affiliate links or advertising within the body of these articles
- if you are in violation of any of these terms of use, you will be required to remove my article from your site, newsletter, etc.
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Junk Mail From Unexpected Places
Junk mail is just like a leak in your roof or termites in your walls -- you can't always tell where the problem is originating from. And without a starting point, you stand little chance of ever regaining control over your mailbox. You would think that the companies with which you do business would actually honor that promise to "protect your personal information" -- unfortunately, it just doesn't work that way. You have to proactively protect yourself by ask to "opt out" anytime you give someone your contact information (even if it's for a shipping or billing address). Use the words "please do not rent, sell, share, or trade my name" and ask that your name be put on an "in-house" list only. More importantly, don't give out your contact information unless it is absolutely necessary.
For example, you never want to send in a warranty card on a new product that you have purchased -- your warranty is still good even without the card, and they often go to list brokers rather than the manufacturer. You may be tempted to enter a lot of contests and drawings, to sign up for giveaways, "send me more info" packets, and samples -- but the only prize you will win is a ton of unwanted junk mail. Just say no! And while it's nice to get a break at the grocery store, signing up for store scanner "discount cards" adds you to more mailing lists -- just an FYI.
Also check to see if your credit card company lets other businesses send promotions to its card holders, and ask to opt out of these. You can even instruct your credit card company to quit sending you in-house mailings aside from your bill -- this will stop the new card offers, the promotional invitations to sign up for an entirely scammy credit protection plan, and those stupid "balance transfer" checks they seem so fond of. And be sure to contact current magazine and catalog subscriptions to opt out from their lists. While you're at it, ask yourself if you actually read the publication when it arrives, or if it just sits there gathering dust and cluttering up your life each month. If you answered "b," just cancel the damned subscription or get off the catalog list and be done with it!
Your Government, Hard At Work For You
Here's another one I'll bet you didn't know about -- the U.S. postal service, a governmental agency with a monopoly on the letter-sending business, sells change of address lists to marketers! When you submit a permanent change of address form through your post office, you are added to the "National Change Of Address" database. You might think that moving gives you a fresh start, but all that annoying direct mail is going to follow you to your new home. If you've submitted a change of address in the past, just ask to have your name removed from the NCOA database by sending your name, old address, and new address to NCOA Customer Support / 6060 Primacy Pkwy. #101 / Memphis, TN 38188.
However, you can avoid this issue altogether with a sneaky but effective little trick. Only permanent address changes go into the NCOA database -- so check the box for "temporary move" and set the time frame for 364 days. You will receive the same year-long mail forwarding service as a permanent change, and avoid any risk of junk mail moving with you.
Some Unorthodox Approaches
Instead of just bitching about how much junk mail you get and throwing it all in the trash, create a pile for those items you don't want to continue receiving -- then sit down once a week and contact each company to have them remove you from their mailing list. I personally prefer to call rather than write (because I can get confirmation from a live human that my request has been processed). But sometimes, it's just better to get the offending item out of your life as quickly as possible. Plus, it's also deliciously vengeful to know that you are costing those folks who annoy you with their marketing materials a little extra money.
If you receive a solicitation that includes a postage-paid return envelope, put the item back in the return envelope and include a note saying "stop sending me your junk" -- when you mail it back, the company is charged an additional postage fee, and you're essentially sending your removal request at their expense! You can also write "return to sender, remove me from your list" on any piece of first class junk mail and put back in your mailbox -- the post office is obligated to send it back to its source of origination. First-class mail isn't cheap these days, and it's unlikely you will get any more solicitations from that company. You can actually refuse any piece of junk you receive, even bulk mail, and the post office is required to deal with it. I used to take all those grocery store flyers and "dear occupant" solicitations, bundle them together with a rubber band, and put a note on it saying "refused: a gift for the postmaster" -- the USPS just loved me! If more and more people do this, eventually, the postal service might stop making it so easy for companies to send out crap advertisements that recipients don't want in the first place. At least I like to dream...
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