Two-thirds of respondents to a recent survey by the Direct Marketing Association reported a boost in sales in 2001 as a result of e-mail advertising and promotions. These campaigns involve blasting tens of thousands of messages to e-mail addresses, many of which are returned as undeliverable.

Managing large databases of e-mail addresses has become a more challenging process. Some companies are losing as much as 32% of their e-mail records each year due to old or invalid addresses, according to Gary Van Roekel, vice president of marketing for Melissa Data.

E-mail change-of-address service (ECOA) can help companies maintain and maximize the value of their e-mail databases. The ECOA service is similar to the U.S Postal Service's NCOA (national change-of-address) service. It enables companies to update their e-mail lists based on e-mail address changes submitted through FreshAddress.com, a Web site where consumers can indicate their current, new, old and preferred e-mail addresses. Melissa Data recently teamed up with FreshAddress to market ECOA services, enabling companies to purge invalid e-mail addresses prior to their marketing campaigns for efficient delivery.