E-mail overload dilutes message

The public is fast learning how to dodge and ignore the hail of political e-mail, quickly diminishing the impact of what’s been a reliable and low-cost campaign tool. Open rates for marketing-related e-mails are now at historic lows — more than 80 percent go unread — a trend that is scary to campaign operatives who rely on it as their primary mode of communications with potential donors, voters and volunteers. “People aren’t opening candidates’ emails as much because campaigns have abused the tool so many times,” said former Barack Obama 2008 external online director Scott Goodstein of the online campaign firm Revolution Messaging. “Nobody should be shocked that their email response has deteriorated.”