According to some, email marketing is dead because of beefed up spam filters. Others say that interruption marketing - where you’re life is interrupted by some marketing pitch has reached the end of its effectiveness. Email marketing is definitely a part of interruption marketing.

But what’s the truth? Have we reached a point where we should dump our email lists and find other channels to market through? Or is email marketing still as viable as it always has been?

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You already know my experiences at SOBCon08 - at least those I could get down in a reasonable amount of time.

But aren’t you curious what others have been saying about it?

Well, I’ve done my best to compile all the posts I could find about the event. While extensive, this is likely not a complete listing. So if you have a post you’d like to add, please do so in the comment box and I’ll add it to the post below.

Did I read them all…no. But I did read most of them and commented on those I had something to add too. What always intrigues me most is that people often report more about their time getting to know someone then then they do the event content. Is there a little business secret tied up there? What do you think?

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SOBCon08 - Biz School for Bloggers… A report, part 2

Amazing that it took a whole blog post to cover the first day of SOBCon08, but it did. Friday was great. The boat ride stellar. And the conversation even better.

Seeing Lorelle first thing Saturday morning started the day off right. Got a chance to speak with Easton Ellsworth a bit, catching up on family and the like. Truth is I talk to Easton almost weekly. I did get to have breakfast with David Dalka and Phil Gerbyshak. We mostly talked shop - not blogging shop, but business shop - niche marketing and expert positioning. In other words, what problems do you solve for whom.

Business School was the theme of SOBCon08. The idea was born from watching lots of bloggers getting traffic and tons of comments, but making no money. This year’s SOBCon was going to bring business people and bloggers together so that business owners could learn about communities and using social media while bloggers could learn solid business practices.

Anita Bruzzese of 45Things kicked off the morning. She gave a great talk about managing your online reputation. Her advice: Remember “whatever you write has your name on it and you must be willing to stand behind it.” Her talk sparked a great conversation afterward that I was really getting in to. If only more time.

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What does it take to be successful in business?

I’m guessing you can begin listing a dozen things right off the top of your head. I know I can - clear vision, business plan, marketing plan, metrics, proper positioning in a highly refined niche market, branding, marketing message, growth strategies, solid business structure, etc. The list just goes on and on.

But one thing is missing from my list - and maybe yours. Rocky Balboa knows what it is. It’s what made him successful as a boxer - and yes, I know he’s a fictional character. That one thing…perseverance - steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.

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I was thinking this morning about what makes a great relationship.

According to James from Audio Mecca, it’s necessary to accept “that the other fellow is not a moron.”

I keep saying again and again that conversation leads to relationship and relationship leads to business. No matter whether we’re talking about clients and customers, referrals and affiliates, partnerships or friends - it all begins with building relationships.

That’s why I find James’ comment so interesting. It’s true! We need to believe that the people we get into conversations with, and ultimately building relationships with, are not idiots. Don’t they have a point? Aren’t their comments, perceptions and ideas important in some way?

If they’re not, why are we in the conversation with them in the first place?

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You know I love word of mouth marketing. I find it to be one of the purest, simplest and most rewarding ways of getting my business known.

But did you know that word of mouth marketing can be illegal?

According to Andy Sernovitz there’s a new bill (pdf) being introduced in the U.K. which will make some marketing practices illegal. The bill is meant to stop false and misleading marketing practices. Of course, word of mouth marketing could easily fit into that category if marketers were deceptive about their campaigns.

So what makes word of mouth marketing illegal?

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A couple of years ago John was laid off from his job working in the assembly plant for Ford Motor company. He’d been there 15 years and came to work on a Tuesday to find out he was being laid off.

John had worked at some sort of job since he was nine. He had a paper route, then three. When he was eleven he started mowing lawns for neighbors. That quickly grew to raking leaves and shoveling snow.

John never much liked school and so as many of his friends went off to college after graduation, John landed a job with Ford assembling dashboard parts on the assembly line. Good work - and great pay - for a eighteen year-old.

Now, at thirty-four John found himself out of work. John hadn’t married yet - though he was dating the woman who would become his wife. And living a simple life in a modest house he managed to sock away a nice little nest egg.

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