Last week I wrote about "List Building Basics," things you can do to grow your list organically. These are ways to build a high- quality list, but not necessarily the largest list.

Marketers know that the ability to harness customer data across platforms enables them to create more meaningful messaging. But the enormity of the task leaves many at a loss of where to begin.

A few weeks ago in this column I predicted that we would soon see gauntlets thrown down in response to the AOL/Goodmail announcement of its certified e-mail program. This week the gloves started flying as both the Electronic Frontier Foundation and political action group Move.org launched PR salvos against the plan.