Naive?

[Steve Bennett]

Sometimes you just start your day as normal. You work through the sea of overnight emails (living at the opposite end of the world to just about everywhere else is fun!) and before you know it you've learnt something new and unexpected.

It's not necessarily good, but it's useful to know. Here's today's lesson.

Many of my readers may know that I have started an online community for Australian and New Zealand business intelligence, information management, data warehousing, performance management and analytics experts. It's called the Business Intelligence CORTEX. Data is my thing and I want to be in contact with other data enthusiasts - and so the CORTEX was born.

There are many existing international organisations (such as the TDWI, etc.) but for me at the end of the world (did I say that already?) these groups didn't (and don't) focus on the local issues and organisations like the CORTEX does.

What I didn't expect was to be offered for sale the complete membership lists of these international organisations. If you go to NextMark and other places like it, not only can you buy the TDWI membership list, but also those of:

• Intelligent Enterprise
• Data Warehousing / Business Intelligence Management
• CIO Magazine SQL Server Magazine
• Information Management
• Oracle Magazine
• BI This Week E-Newsletter
• and many others.

I was surprised. Naive, right? For some strange reason I thought that my little corner of the world would be too 'long tail' for the online marketers to worry about. I guess not.

Take a look at the TDWI list here to see what our details are worth.

I happily register with sites online if they have content that catches my eye. Usually I will leave the opt-out/in options at their defaults. For example, downloading a TDWI paper includes a form collecting your information with the statement: "Your e-mail address is used to communicate with you about the above requested information and related TDWI products and services."

The key words are "related TDWI products and services." To me, that means 'not open to anyone with a couple of cents who wants to buy my details'.

I was wrong.

Time for my first coffee of the day and to sit for 5 minutes to contemplate the blue of the Pacific Ocean before I face the rest of the day.

Have a good one yourself.

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