Our technology age has certainly changed the way we do business and communicate. I'm absolutely lost without my computer and e-mail. It's probably part of the McDonald's generation. Instant gratification at work.
More and more I'm depending on e-mail for communication with clients as well. Imagine my dismay when real estate agents within my network, one from Columbus, Ohio, and one from Kentucky informed me that e-mails they sent to me were bouncing back to them! I was appalled. What if this is happening when clients are trying to contact me? In the same time span several e-mails sent to my brother (same address auto-fills for him each time I write) bounced back to me. An e-mail from a mortgage company to me also bounced. What was going on?
Well, once again I found myself on the phone with my internet service provider: Comcast. Comcast has changed their e-mail policies. E-mails that come from "dynamic IPs (internet service provider)" are no longer accepted by Comcast. Huh? Once again technology has slapped me up the side of the head. What is a "dynamic IP"? Never heard of it. Not yet satisfied, I questioned on. A dynamic IP is one that changes every so often. The IP has a number assigned to it and when that number is programmed to change because of security reasons or to prevent tracking the origin of spam, it is called "dynamic". Comcast is blocking dynamic IPs to prevent customers from receiving SPAM. I lodge a complaint. Please, let me choose which e-mail is spam! Don't just randomly choose some IPs to block! The mortgage company that was blocked is certainly not a spammer and neither are the two REALTORS that couldn't get through to me. My protest fell on deaf ears. The solution according to Comcast is to get the SENDERS of the e-mail to call their IPs and have them work a way around the dynamic IPs. Yea, right. 
The mystery of the e-mail to my brother bouncing is even worse. It goes through without my signature line! Go figure.
March 30, 2006 - Comcast and ISP's
Bonnie, I hear you and feel for you. I think that all of us who have a service business strongly dependent on e-mail can relate. My only suggestion is to do a little research to find out who area companies are using for their ISP. You may find that they are not using Comcast but rather an ISP that is geared for businesses rather than the home user. I, for one, doubt I'd ever switch to Comcast for my ISP. I use them for cable, which goes out for a few minutes to a few hours several times a year and I can't afford that. Plus, with the threat of hurricanes here in Florida, the telephone company is far more likely to be a priority than the cable company when it comes to getting us back up.
Posted by: Leanne Paynter | December 31, 2006 at 11:06 PM
March 30, 2006 - Joy of Spam Filter
Yes, the joy of spam filters. The disgusting takeover of the world's email system by spammers has lead to some big problems with legitimate email delivery, just as you've experienced. The system is broken and needs to be repaired. In the mean time, I suggest that you get a domain host that does no spam blocking, like our friends at IC.
Posted by: Greg DiSisto | December 31, 2006 at 11:04 PM