Understanding Bulk Email


This article describes the requirements and options for sending bulk email at Virginia Tech.

Contents

Explanation

What Is Bulk Email?

Bulk email at Virginia Tech is defined as sending the same email message to 100 or more people.

If you are planning to send bulk email (or employing a 3rd party to send bulk email), you must follow the requirements outlined in this article to help protect the Virginia Tech email service. If your method fails to meet these requirements, this may result in your messages being discarded, your email service being temporarily disabled, or your Virginia Tech internet connection being blocked to prevent further damage to the email service for others until you address any identified issues.

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How Can I Send Bulk Email?

There are several university-approved solutions for bulk email. Using these solutions will ensure that your message is received by the intended audience and follows the requirements listed below. 

Name Description Provider Pros Cons Additional Information
Virginia Tech Daily Broadcasts a daily email to employees and students  Communications and Marketing Reaches the entire university community by default Limited space available for message content Submit a Campus Notice
Adobe Campaign A full featured customer relationship management (CRM) service with many options, including bulk email, address management, automatic archiving, tracking, and access control Business App & Integration Services Fully featured service with many options Steep learning curve to use Email Campaign (Adobe Campaign) (vt.edu)
Enterprise Directory (ED Groups) Create and manage groups from members present within Enterprise Directory. Google Groups can be created and populated from ED groups. Middleware Managment of the ED group automatically updates the associated Google Group Limited to people within Enterprise Directory Enterprise Directory (ED) groups
Google Groups Create and manage groups with both Virginia Tech and non-Virginia Tech members. Can be used for both bulk email and membership management with other Google features. Collaborative Computing Solutions Handles both Virginia Tech and non-Virginia Tech addresses Difficult to add lots of members Google Groups

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How to Avoid Problems

If you are sending bulk email using a different method than the solutions outlined above, then you must ensure your solution meets all the requirements outlined below.

These requirements are designed to ensure the success of your bulk email communications. Improper bulk sending of email is a violation of acceptable use at the university and may result in your messages being discarded, your email service being temporarily disabled, or your Virginia Tech internet connection being blocked to prevent further damage to the email service for others.

If you do not understand these requirements or if your software does not seem to offer a way to address them, please contact the Division of IT before proceeding (via 4Help).

Other Common Bulk Email Problems to Avoid

You can help Virginia Tech and yourself by taking the following precautions:

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Related Links & Additional Resources

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