Retailers find happy medium for e-mail promos

If there’s one thing online retailers are very leery of, it is inundating their customers with e-mail. Retailers addressing the issue of e-mail marketing at the Jupiter Media Metrix Retailing Forum Monday all said they have gone to great lengths to determine the appropriate amount of e-mail for their customers. Practices vary greatly depending on the type of retailer and type of customer. Nordstrom.com and Fredericks.com send customers an e-mail message once a week, Office Depot sends every other week, Estee Lauder once a month. Fredericks.com is establishing a frequent-shopper list and those customers will get e-mail offers once a month tailored to their buying patterns, Gary Landry, president of Fredericks.com, told the forum.