Bulk mail is off-policy

[Bill]

I will finally start a thread since this may be the last time I'll be able to tell this part of my story.

I was Dir. Promo at AOLA for over ten years, most of the 70's and a bit into the 80's. During that time I sent tens of millions of bulk mail to poor Scientologists -- not all at once, of course

Some time in the early 80's I was re-reading various "Dissem" and "Promo" policy letters and ran into one: I believe it was titled "BULK MAIL". And it said:

The only bulk mail allowed by the org is the monthly magazine. No other bulk mail is allowed.

(I paraphrase but that's almost exactly what it said, word for word)

Needless to say I was a bit upset. Here I had been flooding poor Scientologists with bulk mail crap for over a decade -- and it was forbidden -- by Hubbard!

Given that the international mimeo archives were right across the street from AOLA, I spend the next two days poring through every policy I could find to uncover the policy letter where Hubbard said "Never mind! Send crap out all the time!"

And he didn't.

So I went back on post and informed my boss, with a copy of the policy letter, that I would no longer send out any bulk mail other than the "Advance!" magazine and (stretching it a bit) the "Clear News" newsletter.

Needless to say, no one in the exec level was pleased. I got into a bit of trouble. But, I had the policy letter so they were in a real bind. The HCO stat "Bulk mail out" crashed, Flag wanted to know why and they told them...

No one could do anything to get me to send out bulk mail again.

The Flag Rep came to me and said "Don't you know the policy letter of keeping the old process in place when implementing a new process?" and I said, "That's the first time I've heard of keeping off-policy procedures in place when implementing on-policy activities". He shut up.

Shortly thereafter, I had to route out due to family concerns -- i.e. I wanted to raise my kids myself, not leave it up to the "Child Care Org" and "Cadet Org".

They expedited my exit.

PS: I think I screwed up the life of the person who replaced me. I told her of the policy. I think she was RPF'd -- but I know she got in trouble after I left. Sorry about that.

PPS: I like to think I was somewhat responsible in the reduction of bulk crap that got sent out after that.

 

[Dulloldfart]

I was FBO at that time and well aware of that policy too, although AOSHUK didn't violate it that heavily. We had the Auditor mag also, so at least we had other stuff than Advance! mag. I feel a bit mean asking this question, but didn't you get hatted for the post early on? That PL must surely have been in the Dir Promo hat pack.

Paul

 

[He-man]

I have a vague memory that this PL was the main reason we had to write "personalized" letters to public from the div 2 folders. I must have spent at least a couple of hours every week doing that.

So it was you...

 

[Dulloldfart]

I have a vague memory that this PL was the main reason we had to write "personalized" letters to public from the div 2 folders. I must have spent at least a couple of hours every week doing that.

Separate policies. The Letters Out stat and the Bulk Mail Out stat are different, and LO should not get included in BMO. That doesn't mean it never was, of course. (I was also a fully-hatted Letter Reg for 3 years).

Paul

 

[Bill]

I was FBO at that time and well aware of that policy too, although AOSHUK didn't violate it that heavily. We had the Auditor mag also, so at least we had other stuff than Advance! mag. I feel a bit mean asking this question, but didn't you get hatted for the post early on? That PL must surely have been in the Dir Promo hat pack.

Paul

Yeah, no. I was "quicky hatted" by people who "knew" that our job in Promo was lots and lots of bulk mail out. They neglected to reference the "BULK MAIL" policy letter AND I'm positive it was NOT in any Dissem hat pack.

That's why it was such a shock to find it years later.

 

[Dotey OT]

You see, this is the story that I needed today. I had to deal with someone unruly, I I got my dander up. When I read this I had to give out a big WOO HOO!! Yet another silly damn admin tech based story. And I'm glad that it all came out well for you.

THIS SHOULD BE IN HUGE GREEN ON WHITE LETTERS: THE CHOICH DON"T KNOW SHIT ABOUT RUNNING A BUSINESS!!!!

But it's again god damn spooky that this thing continues to keep going on.

 

[Enthetan]

I recall another policy about Central Files only being for people who had, at some point, bought a SERVICE. A course, or auditing, but SOMETHING. But the org C.F. was predominantly composed of ancient addresses of people who had bought a book years ago, never to be heard from again.

 

[guanoloco]

There's a similar story to promo out.

We used to take gobs and gobs of promo and put it everywhere...car windshields, etc.

It was a huge waste and factually turned people off. It pissed people off.

Years later I read series on how it was supposed to have been done with surveys and such. If those policies were followed it might be affective and at least not negative.

But like so much in the church everything is done for internal purposes meaning it's done to please seniors and not to please any consumers.

Stat push.

That's Scientology.

 

[La La Lou Lou]

Stat push, stat push stat push.

Don't worry about the off policy-ness of Bulk Mail Out stats.

The Addresses the off policy mail was being sent to were out of date any way. London Org had a 'membership' of many thousand members in the 1970s, many of whom had been stat push sold a pamphlet in the 1960s and had returned to their country of origin after finishing their degree, or who gave false addresses to start with.

Management didn't really want all the addunks taken out because it would make it look like the Org had lost membership numbers in huge volumes. Letters out were scribbled sentences sent out to people who bought 'non dare call it conspiracy' or 'miracles for breakfast', had never replied to a single letter and sometimes had returned post in their file. Backlogs were good. Stats were false as standard.

My favourite letter out, which surprisingly did get a response, was ''Dear Mr.... are you a tit or bum man, yours sincerely etc. I didn't write it! his was an on policy letter, the guy followed the LRH policy letter on how to write letters, it was the question that came to his mind when he read through the man's CF folder.

The volume of returned post was overwhelming, Return to sender, address unknown, no such number etc etc. As far as I an work out this has not changed much, and people get bulk mail from other continents as well as their own even if they only did a day on the HAS course thirty years ago. Then the mailing list would be sent to Saint Hill and the same would happen there.

Let them waste their money sending unwanted mail out, it keeps people away, especially the people that have to throw the crap away.

Fun days.
LLLL

 

[Type4_PTS]

My favourite letter out, which surprisingly did get a response, was ''Dear Mr.... are you a tit or bum man, yours sincerely etc. I didn't write it! his was an on policy letter, the guy followed the LRH policy letter on how to write letters, it was the question that came to his mind when he read through the man's CF folder.

Did the man answer that question?