How do I get on these mailing lists?

My forays into fence-building and plastic shed assembly notwithstanding, I can't say I would think of my home improvement efforts as "construction". But evidently someone out there must, if I am to judge by the magazine subscription offer that arrived in the mail yesterday.

Yes, I have received a "Contractor Discount Offer" for a 1-year subscription to the Journal of Light Construction, at the "lowest preferred contractor rate" of just $14.99, representing 75% off the cover price. This offer is only for "qualified readers in the construction trades", mind you, which begs the question of how in heck I got on this particular mailing list.

Now, I have purchased a number of books from Taunton Press in the past, some of which relate to remodeling, but that hardly seems reason enough for the Journal of Light Construction to seize on me as a likely "preferred contractor". I mean, I don't even subscribe to Taunton's Fine Homebuilding magazine, and I've probably bought more books from them on woodworking and landscaping than remodeling. And while I've spent enough over the last six years at the big-box home improvement stores that it feels like I should get a contractor discount there, I doubt that they sell customer information to the Journal of Light Construction. That leaves my subscriptions to Family Handyman and This Old House. Maybe one of them sold a mailing list with my name on it.

I shall probably never know how I came to their attention. The only question is, should I take them up on the offer? According to the subscription form, I have to check off a couple of boxes to indicate my primary occupation and job title, presumably so they can gauge whether I am in fact worthy of preferred contractor status. Well, I could legitimately check "Subcontractor" as my primary occupation (though it's not quite the type of subcontracting they're thinking of), but job title might be the sticking point: I'd have to check "Other" and write in Technical Writer. That'd probably puzzle them. I wonder if they'd still honor the offer?

The sample table of contents page they thoughtfully included with the offer promises such fascinating tidbits as "Custom Door Trim on an MDF Budget", building a hidden stair hatch, a Q&A department with answers to questions about mudsills and out-of-level foundations, and product information about the Milwaukee M12 Hackzall. That last intrigues me. A "Hackzall" sounds like an eminently useful tool, don't you think?

Still, I probably should turn down the offer. I get too many magazines now (I think the count is around nine at the moment; it fluctuates as I get irritated with the relentless renewal offers and let subscriptions lapse out of sheer spite), so I think I'll leave well enough alone.