According to Pollard, each spam report counts as a black mark against the sender. A small business sends to what it perceives as an opt-in list, but if one in 1,000 recipients cry "spam" the business's provider may refuse to deliver the rest of the messages until the business shows proof that everyone on the list opted in.

This is possible, but it hurts the people who can afford it least. A legitimate business needs to channel its energy toward delivering product and servicing customers.

So how do we determine what is legitimate? You can report the obvious scams and smut without feeling guilt about driving someone out of business. One determining factor is that the law requires marketers to provide an unsubscribe link and a physical address rather than a post-office box. Pollard said that most marketers manage to follow only the first rule.

Pollard's company advises and supports companies involved in e-mail marketing, so its first concern isn't necessarily consumer comfort.

Still, its advice to clients about the best e-mail marketing practices can be used as a barometer for consumers. If a sales pitch follows these guidelines, such as providing a direct e-mail return link and a phone number, perhaps it has earned your business.

"E-mail is the Web's most personal communications stream," he said. "If customers think there is someone on the other side, it builds a relationship with the company. It builds the company's credibility, and makes customers feel that it is safe to buy."

In the meantime, we need to recognize that clicking "report spam" resembles casting your vote on Election Day. Neither act makes an immediate sound, but in both cases someone is listening on the other end.

On the other hand, if a message looks like spam and doesn't follow any of Email Labs' good marketing practices, perhaps it deserves a "no" vote.

For a complete explanation of e-mail's best practices go to www.emaillabs.com/articles/email_articles/email_best_practices_audit.html.

If you have questions or suggestions for Charles Bermant, you can contact him by e-mail at cbermant@seattletimes.com. Type Inbox in the subject field. More columns at www.seattletimes.com/columnists.