Self-destructing email is proving beneficial to lawyers who need to protect privacy, but there's talk that email direct marketers could benefit from the technology.

Lawyers are using Echoworx Corp.'s "secure send" option to remove time-sensitive emails from a recipient's inbox and to confirm that the right person opens a letter, DMNews reports (via MediaBuyerPlanner). Some marketers apparently think it could prove useful for EDM campaigns, too.

For example, a message for 15 percent off within the next week could disappear at the sale's end, when the content is no longer relevant. Rather than having an inbox full of messages from one retailer, consumers would see only the latest one, giving the impression that the retailer isn't bombarding them.

Some disagree, however. Most email marketers want to engage a broad audience, encouraging the sharing of emails, whereas destructible email would run counter to such objectives, according to Luc Vezina, director of strategy and product management at email services firm GOT Corp.