Email marketing campaigns are very beneficial to any internet business. Through email you reach people from all over the world that fit the demographics of the information or product you are offering. There are many benefits to campaigns involving email. Here are 5 important facts that you want to pay close attention to and consider as part of your marketing strategy for your internet business.
Fact #1- Email marketing has grown in such an unprecedented rate based on the fact that people in the virtual community are always hungry for information. They subscribe to information that they are interested in and find relevant to what they are looking for during their search on the internet.
Fact #2- This type of marketing campaign can be very inexpensive. Receiving information via their email box is an easy way to get information from various sources.This may be the most cost effective marketing campaign you implement in your new internet business.
Fact #3- An effective campaign can provide a list or leads of prospective customers for your internet business. This list based on a world wide reach could be very large depending on the popularity of the product or service you are offering. This means you are not limited to a particular zip-code, state, or even country. You can reach the masses with this marketing campaign.
Fact #4- There is no spamming involved. A successful campaign uses opt-in list to send information to internet visitors who opt-in to a businesses mailing list. This gives the internet business permission to send the internet visitors information on an infrequent basis. This eliminates the much hated SPAM emails. In this way, you can freely send emails that entail promotions, brochures, new product announcements, and every aspect of your marketing campaign.
Fact #5- If you were to ask the owners of some online business about their most valuable asset, they will tell you that it is their email marketing campaign. This is because opt in lists are customers' lists that can provide higher probability sales in a more consistent and stable condition. Because with opt in lists, all you have to do is to follow up orders or sales through promotions and ad campaigns.
If you are serious about your internet business you will start marketing your internet business through emails. If you already are doing this then you know the importance of this marketing tactic and the profitability of marketing in this fashion. If you would like additional information on marketing then check out the eBook Niche Business Secrets Revealed, "Learn How to Start an Internet Niche Business for Under $100". The information in this 47 page eBook is invaluable to the new internet business owner.
An affective email marketing campaign will be the "boost" you need for your new internet business. If it is done right you will see your business grow beyond your imagination
By : Pat Turman
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Pat_Turman
Friday, November 7, 2008
Creating Wealth Through Internet Marketing Emails
Did you know you could create wealth beyond your wildest dreams through Internet Marketing e-mailing? You can, and it is simple. Everyday you write emails for various reasons. Why not use them to make you wealthy?
Internet marketing through email can become a very powerful tool for your business.
A few pointers to get you in the right direction in creating wealth through email marketing are:
• Personalize: Make the recipient feel special. Not as if they are just another person from which you are trying to make a sell. Use their name if possible.
• Steer clear from looking like or coming across as spam. Avoid using money as a motivator. Educate, do not sell. Soft sells come across more effective then aggressive sell pitches.
• Know your targeted audience and make the subject matter relevant to what they are seeking. Once again, this is where using an educational base sales approach over a strict sales pitch is more effective.
• Keep the message short. Long advertisement style emails end up in the trash. Get your message across in short pertinent sentences that are easy to read and are catchy to the eye and mind.
• Go bold: When you are trying to relay an important message go ahead and use bold text but make sure when you reread through bold text on its own it still makes sense. Practice writing up samples emails then bold text pertinent words or phrases through out that can read together on there own.
• Give options: Make email readable through either text based or HTML based.
• Steer clear from wide emails: Wide emails cause a person to lose interest reading when they have to keep scrolling the email from side to side in order to capture all of the text. Format emails to be no more then 650 pixels wide.
• Include Links: Links to base website or an online version of the email is good business practice in creating wealth Through Internet Marketing. Maybe your email is just enough to tickle the palate but the potential client wants to read more. Give them the option to find out more about your company and what you have to offer by including links.
By : Steve Nguoghia
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steve_Nguoghia
Internet marketing through email can become a very powerful tool for your business.
A few pointers to get you in the right direction in creating wealth through email marketing are:
• Personalize: Make the recipient feel special. Not as if they are just another person from which you are trying to make a sell. Use their name if possible.
• Steer clear from looking like or coming across as spam. Avoid using money as a motivator. Educate, do not sell. Soft sells come across more effective then aggressive sell pitches.
• Know your targeted audience and make the subject matter relevant to what they are seeking. Once again, this is where using an educational base sales approach over a strict sales pitch is more effective.
• Keep the message short. Long advertisement style emails end up in the trash. Get your message across in short pertinent sentences that are easy to read and are catchy to the eye and mind.
• Go bold: When you are trying to relay an important message go ahead and use bold text but make sure when you reread through bold text on its own it still makes sense. Practice writing up samples emails then bold text pertinent words or phrases through out that can read together on there own.
• Give options: Make email readable through either text based or HTML based.
• Steer clear from wide emails: Wide emails cause a person to lose interest reading when they have to keep scrolling the email from side to side in order to capture all of the text. Format emails to be no more then 650 pixels wide.
• Include Links: Links to base website or an online version of the email is good business practice in creating wealth Through Internet Marketing. Maybe your email is just enough to tickle the palate but the potential client wants to read more. Give them the option to find out more about your company and what you have to offer by including links.
By : Steve Nguoghia
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steve_Nguoghia
4 Rules to Rock Your Email Marketing
There are a lot of ingredients that go into the perfect recipe for great email marketing. Some of them, like in all great recipes, can be adjusted by a good cook. A discerning chef can adjust their dish to their own tastes or preferences. But remember that there are some items that are simply too basic to be left out or used in wrong proportions. After all, the one thing a great chocolate cake has to have is... okay, you get my point. And remember the foundation of email marketing, just do it. All the rules to do it right are important, but even if you get it wrong, email marketing is inexpensive, easy, and often creates great results-oriented campaigns.
Rule #1. The Package. The most important rule is actually the last thing you should do: proofread. The impact of a poorly copy edited email is huge, especially if it's a marketing campaign. Your words can be brilliant and your message spot on, and you will still lose your audience if you trap them in typo terror and semi-colon hell.
And even if you send your work to your dear Aunt Sally who used to work in the typing pool way back when, do it. Don't let anything leave your desk without a clean eye to look it over. Remember, spell check can't find a word that is ridiculous and misused, only one that is mis-spelled. Use a person for this task, but proofread, proofread, proofread!
Rule #2. Pump up the volume! Spend the extra time to be entertaining and interesting. Nobody wants to read an email that puts them to sleep halfway between "Dear Sir" and that line about the Ginsu Steak Knives. Put a little kick in your commentary. Be compelling, and be smart! This is definitely the time to use great language. Use all the tricks you learned in high school English! Pull out the old onomatopoeia and grab some creative alliteration. WOW your audience from the first word to the "yours truly."
Rule #3. Let's get to the point, Jack, I don't have all day!Third rule? Speed it up. In today's world of "click-on-peas-to-get-to-carrots," remember that nobody has time to read five pages of appetizers before they order their lunch. You have to share the meat of your message the minute someone opens your email. This breaks all the rules we have ever been taught about introductory paragraphs and building to a climax, etc., etc. It's a different world. What that means in email marketing is no ramp up. There just isn't time. Say it first, say it fast, and then you can get creative and shoot the breeze for a while. Remember to always circle back to your topic though to reinforce it. So, if it's the most important thing, say it first - AND say it last. The goal is always results-oriented campaigns, so reinforce the result you want as often as possible.
Rule #4. Just a link in your chain. Yes, your message is literally a link in your marketing chain. You want to be sure that it can send your reader from inbox to website in a nano-second. Link the heck out of your email every way you can. If there's a picture of your product, link it. Your signature? Link it to your bio page. Every time you mention anything that can send them to your website, go for it. Remember, websites do NOT self-generate traffic, but great emails and live links can drive, drive, drive! Just like Mario Andretti at the Indy 500.
The bottom line with email marketing is simply to get your message out there in a clear, interesting and concise manner - but use every trick in the book to make it work for you. Always keep your goal in the forefront of your mind. If your goal is to sell more T-Shirts, then be sure to have a "click to buy" button that goes directly to a shopping cart. If your goal is to engage your audience, utilize questions, as if it were a normal conversation. Hey, why not, right? And always have the added intention to create a buzz - ASK your audience to share your note with three friends. Remember, we generally all want to see one another be successful. If you ask your audience to "forward to a friend" (or two), they just may surprise you.
That's it from us for now! We hope that these four rules will help you create compelling, results-oriented campaigns! By the way, I'd really appreciate it if you'd do me a favor and "send to a friend" (or two). (Hey, why not, right?)
By : Laurie Cantus
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laurie_B._Cantus
Rule #1. The Package. The most important rule is actually the last thing you should do: proofread. The impact of a poorly copy edited email is huge, especially if it's a marketing campaign. Your words can be brilliant and your message spot on, and you will still lose your audience if you trap them in typo terror and semi-colon hell.
And even if you send your work to your dear Aunt Sally who used to work in the typing pool way back when, do it. Don't let anything leave your desk without a clean eye to look it over. Remember, spell check can't find a word that is ridiculous and misused, only one that is mis-spelled. Use a person for this task, but proofread, proofread, proofread!
Rule #2. Pump up the volume! Spend the extra time to be entertaining and interesting. Nobody wants to read an email that puts them to sleep halfway between "Dear Sir" and that line about the Ginsu Steak Knives. Put a little kick in your commentary. Be compelling, and be smart! This is definitely the time to use great language. Use all the tricks you learned in high school English! Pull out the old onomatopoeia and grab some creative alliteration. WOW your audience from the first word to the "yours truly."
Rule #3. Let's get to the point, Jack, I don't have all day!Third rule? Speed it up. In today's world of "click-on-peas-to-get-to-carrots," remember that nobody has time to read five pages of appetizers before they order their lunch. You have to share the meat of your message the minute someone opens your email. This breaks all the rules we have ever been taught about introductory paragraphs and building to a climax, etc., etc. It's a different world. What that means in email marketing is no ramp up. There just isn't time. Say it first, say it fast, and then you can get creative and shoot the breeze for a while. Remember to always circle back to your topic though to reinforce it. So, if it's the most important thing, say it first - AND say it last. The goal is always results-oriented campaigns, so reinforce the result you want as often as possible.
Rule #4. Just a link in your chain. Yes, your message is literally a link in your marketing chain. You want to be sure that it can send your reader from inbox to website in a nano-second. Link the heck out of your email every way you can. If there's a picture of your product, link it. Your signature? Link it to your bio page. Every time you mention anything that can send them to your website, go for it. Remember, websites do NOT self-generate traffic, but great emails and live links can drive, drive, drive! Just like Mario Andretti at the Indy 500.
The bottom line with email marketing is simply to get your message out there in a clear, interesting and concise manner - but use every trick in the book to make it work for you. Always keep your goal in the forefront of your mind. If your goal is to sell more T-Shirts, then be sure to have a "click to buy" button that goes directly to a shopping cart. If your goal is to engage your audience, utilize questions, as if it were a normal conversation. Hey, why not, right? And always have the added intention to create a buzz - ASK your audience to share your note with three friends. Remember, we generally all want to see one another be successful. If you ask your audience to "forward to a friend" (or two), they just may surprise you.
That's it from us for now! We hope that these four rules will help you create compelling, results-oriented campaigns! By the way, I'd really appreciate it if you'd do me a favor and "send to a friend" (or two). (Hey, why not, right?)
By : Laurie Cantus
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laurie_B._Cantus
Thursday, November 6, 2008
How to Get the Best Results From Your Email Marketing Campaigns
Starting an email marketing campaign is one of the best decisions that a CEO, retailer, wholesaler, and owner of a business can make. Email marketing is a very fast, cheap and easy way to get your product and services to your clients, customers and potential customers.
I doesn't matter what business you are into. There is always an audience that needs your products and services; and the easiest way to get to them is via the email. You can reach an astonishing number of individuals in a very short period.
Because of its popularity, email marketing strategies and methods have been divided into the following categories. While this is by no means conclusive, it will at least give you an idea of the various methods available on the internet.
There are three of them namely: Marketing to an Opt-in list, Newsletter Marketing, and Bulk email marketing. Of all these three, marketing to an opt-in list produces the highest results followed by the Newsletter or ezine marketing. Forget about bulk email marketing campaigns. They are not worth all the stress. More than 55% of them are deleted on reception without even being read.
Have you ever visited websites that have the information you desire only to be asked to leave your email address so you can have access to the information? I am sure you would have encountered this several times on the internet. If the sites are reputable, they often send you a confirmation link that you have to click in your box before you can get to the download page or the download link.
Whenever you do that, you get on the information or service provider's opt-in list. These particular clients are the best you can send your offer to. Why? Because they have already showed an interest in what services and products you have to offer and as a result, are willing and more open towards hearing from you and ultimately buying from you. The opt-in list is a collection of email addresses collected by an individual or company as a result of the signified interest of such individuals.
The major mistake many new marketers make is to solicit to their lists immediately after signing them up. Unfortunately, even mature "old hands" who have the played the game for long still do this. While it may work for a few people, the majority just get a few orders. The quickest way to getting your clients to pick up your product is by helping them create an intense need within themselves. Make them feel like they can't live without you. Ok maybe that's going too far, but you get the point. Court your customers like you would a very beautiful woman. Make them dependent on you. Create in them, the thirst for more information from you. When you get to this level, they look out for your email and it becomes easy to sell to them.
I am subscriber to quite a few opt-in lists, ezines and newsletters. More often than not, I tend to ignore emails that do only one thing: Obvious selling. Recent estimates have shown that people would easily buy from service providers who offer nuggets of valuable information than from those who just sell. Over time, the emails who just sell are unsubscribed from while those that offer information get more subscribers. So, when you decide to set up your own email marketing campaign, have this at the back of your mind: Customers buy only from people they think are providing valuable information.
By: Aurelius Tjin
I doesn't matter what business you are into. There is always an audience that needs your products and services; and the easiest way to get to them is via the email. You can reach an astonishing number of individuals in a very short period.
Because of its popularity, email marketing strategies and methods have been divided into the following categories. While this is by no means conclusive, it will at least give you an idea of the various methods available on the internet.
There are three of them namely: Marketing to an Opt-in list, Newsletter Marketing, and Bulk email marketing. Of all these three, marketing to an opt-in list produces the highest results followed by the Newsletter or ezine marketing. Forget about bulk email marketing campaigns. They are not worth all the stress. More than 55% of them are deleted on reception without even being read.
Have you ever visited websites that have the information you desire only to be asked to leave your email address so you can have access to the information? I am sure you would have encountered this several times on the internet. If the sites are reputable, they often send you a confirmation link that you have to click in your box before you can get to the download page or the download link.
Whenever you do that, you get on the information or service provider's opt-in list. These particular clients are the best you can send your offer to. Why? Because they have already showed an interest in what services and products you have to offer and as a result, are willing and more open towards hearing from you and ultimately buying from you. The opt-in list is a collection of email addresses collected by an individual or company as a result of the signified interest of such individuals.
The major mistake many new marketers make is to solicit to their lists immediately after signing them up. Unfortunately, even mature "old hands" who have the played the game for long still do this. While it may work for a few people, the majority just get a few orders. The quickest way to getting your clients to pick up your product is by helping them create an intense need within themselves. Make them feel like they can't live without you. Ok maybe that's going too far, but you get the point. Court your customers like you would a very beautiful woman. Make them dependent on you. Create in them, the thirst for more information from you. When you get to this level, they look out for your email and it becomes easy to sell to them.
I am subscriber to quite a few opt-in lists, ezines and newsletters. More often than not, I tend to ignore emails that do only one thing: Obvious selling. Recent estimates have shown that people would easily buy from service providers who offer nuggets of valuable information than from those who just sell. Over time, the emails who just sell are unsubscribed from while those that offer information get more subscribers. So, when you decide to set up your own email marketing campaign, have this at the back of your mind: Customers buy only from people they think are providing valuable information.
By: Aurelius Tjin
Creating A Great Autoresponder Letter Series
Your autoresponder letter series, if written correctly can make you serious money on the Internet.
Studies have proven that most consumers buy only after repeated exposure to a product. This repeated exposure helps you to gain their trust enough to buy from you.
Having an autoresponder system is the hassle-free, automated way to put your product in front of interested buyers enough times to move them from consideration to purchase.
Have information on every page of your site of how a visitor can optin for futher information, join your ezine or newsletter or any incentive you can think of to get them to sign up to your autoresponder series.
Following are some informative tips on creating autoresponder messages that sell your product for you. You'll learn what to say, how to say it, how to format it, and how to avoid having your messages sent straight to the SPAM folder unread.
Heres a breakdown of what your messages should contain.
1. Subject line. The subject line is the first thing people will see when they receive your message. It must be compelling enough to keep them from deleting the message unread. Do your research good on this. Learn everything you can on how to write good headlines. But also don't use hype. Since the person receiving this message has requested it, then it is logical to keep the subject on topic to what they requested to receive in the first place. i.e. Here is the information you requested on _____...
2. The opening sentence. Keep this true to your subject. Expand on it without hype or pressure. Don't mention the sale price, or tell them they must buy your product. Keep it promise based. i.e. tell them what they will learn or gain via the information or service you are going to provide.
For example say your subject was: Thank you ~Name~, here is the information your requested on earning a living at home.
Your opening sentence might be something like this: You are about to learn the very same strategies I use to make a full time living from my home.
3. Introductory paragraph. Explain in a concise paragraph exactly what your product will do for the buyer. Tell them how your product or service will help them to also make a full time living from their home. Avoid using ALL CAPS or excessive punctuation!!! This looks amateurish and, in the majority of cases, get your message deleted.
4. Subheadings and further information. Write bullet point type headlines with either bold letters or one step better put lines above and below them to set them apart. Then expand on these headings in a paragraph or two underneath them.
==============================
THIS WILL BE YOUR SUB HEADLINE
==============================
With more information below it...
5. A call to action. After you have finished your sub headlines and the corresponding information. Use a pre- closing paragraph to tell the reader exactly what you want them to do. "Click Here" to download this information instantly! or Click the link below, fill out the form to have this ~~Product~~ delivered to you immediately. Where possible point out the uniqueness of your product. Is it priced lower then competitors? Is it the only one of its kind? Or also if it is a limited time offer. Anything that will give the buyer more incentive to take the above action. Keeping it honest of course. Don't make something up just to get better results.
6. Closing Paragraph. Thank them again and also sum up what will be in the next message. "Watch your email the next few days for a great thank you gift I have set a side for you for taking the time to look at my product.", "I will have a free chapter, from my "make a living at home" ebook, for you in a few days.", etc.
7. DISCLAIMER. This is a short paragraph to remind people they are receiving your message because they asked to be on your list. It will keep them from clicking the SPAM button if they decide they aren't interested in your product, and keep your autoresponder and web site off Internet blacklists.
8. Unsubscribe link. This is critical to a successful autoresponder campaign. You must give subscribers the option to discontinue receiving messages from you, or you will be labeled as SPAM. Most autoresponder services will provide you with an automatic unsubscribe list for all your autoresponder series. All you have to do is make sure to include the link in your message.
One of the most powerful ways to get more traffic to your site can be your autoresponder series. Your well-crafted messages will send people in droves to your site to check out what you have to say. Just make sure you give them a good reason to go there, and great reasons to keep coming back, and you will build a rock-solid autoresponder campaign that keeps your profits rolling in.
A quick tip on how to format the messages... with today's advances in email, HTML is a good option if your autoresponder system allows it. One step better is to use one that has both plain text and HTML options so that when a person has HTML turned off for their email software, they will receive the text version only. For the letters to look uniform and to avoid the auto wrapping many autoresponder systems will use when adding your letters, I highly recommend not making the lines of your letters longer than 50 characters in length.
Kick start your campaign by offering a free report or e-book via a lead capture page with your autoresponder sign up form attached to the autoresponder letters you create. It will keep a non-stop flow of people receiving your letters and coming to your site to buy your products.
By : Debbie Ducker
Studies have proven that most consumers buy only after repeated exposure to a product. This repeated exposure helps you to gain their trust enough to buy from you.
Having an autoresponder system is the hassle-free, automated way to put your product in front of interested buyers enough times to move them from consideration to purchase.
Have information on every page of your site of how a visitor can optin for futher information, join your ezine or newsletter or any incentive you can think of to get them to sign up to your autoresponder series.
Following are some informative tips on creating autoresponder messages that sell your product for you. You'll learn what to say, how to say it, how to format it, and how to avoid having your messages sent straight to the SPAM folder unread.
Heres a breakdown of what your messages should contain.
1. Subject line. The subject line is the first thing people will see when they receive your message. It must be compelling enough to keep them from deleting the message unread. Do your research good on this. Learn everything you can on how to write good headlines. But also don't use hype. Since the person receiving this message has requested it, then it is logical to keep the subject on topic to what they requested to receive in the first place. i.e. Here is the information you requested on _____...
2. The opening sentence. Keep this true to your subject. Expand on it without hype or pressure. Don't mention the sale price, or tell them they must buy your product. Keep it promise based. i.e. tell them what they will learn or gain via the information or service you are going to provide.
For example say your subject was: Thank you ~Name~, here is the information your requested on earning a living at home.
Your opening sentence might be something like this: You are about to learn the very same strategies I use to make a full time living from my home.
3. Introductory paragraph. Explain in a concise paragraph exactly what your product will do for the buyer. Tell them how your product or service will help them to also make a full time living from their home. Avoid using ALL CAPS or excessive punctuation!!! This looks amateurish and, in the majority of cases, get your message deleted.
4. Subheadings and further information. Write bullet point type headlines with either bold letters or one step better put lines above and below them to set them apart. Then expand on these headings in a paragraph or two underneath them.
==============================
THIS WILL BE YOUR SUB HEADLINE
==============================
With more information below it...
5. A call to action. After you have finished your sub headlines and the corresponding information. Use a pre- closing paragraph to tell the reader exactly what you want them to do. "Click Here" to download this information instantly! or Click the link below, fill out the form to have this ~~Product~~ delivered to you immediately. Where possible point out the uniqueness of your product. Is it priced lower then competitors? Is it the only one of its kind? Or also if it is a limited time offer. Anything that will give the buyer more incentive to take the above action. Keeping it honest of course. Don't make something up just to get better results.
6. Closing Paragraph. Thank them again and also sum up what will be in the next message. "Watch your email the next few days for a great thank you gift I have set a side for you for taking the time to look at my product.", "I will have a free chapter, from my "make a living at home" ebook, for you in a few days.", etc.
7. DISCLAIMER. This is a short paragraph to remind people they are receiving your message because they asked to be on your list. It will keep them from clicking the SPAM button if they decide they aren't interested in your product, and keep your autoresponder and web site off Internet blacklists.
8. Unsubscribe link. This is critical to a successful autoresponder campaign. You must give subscribers the option to discontinue receiving messages from you, or you will be labeled as SPAM. Most autoresponder services will provide you with an automatic unsubscribe list for all your autoresponder series. All you have to do is make sure to include the link in your message.
One of the most powerful ways to get more traffic to your site can be your autoresponder series. Your well-crafted messages will send people in droves to your site to check out what you have to say. Just make sure you give them a good reason to go there, and great reasons to keep coming back, and you will build a rock-solid autoresponder campaign that keeps your profits rolling in.
A quick tip on how to format the messages... with today's advances in email, HTML is a good option if your autoresponder system allows it. One step better is to use one that has both plain text and HTML options so that when a person has HTML turned off for their email software, they will receive the text version only. For the letters to look uniform and to avoid the auto wrapping many autoresponder systems will use when adding your letters, I highly recommend not making the lines of your letters longer than 50 characters in length.
Kick start your campaign by offering a free report or e-book via a lead capture page with your autoresponder sign up form attached to the autoresponder letters you create. It will keep a non-stop flow of people receiving your letters and coming to your site to buy your products.
By : Debbie Ducker
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
The Offline Connection to Online Marketing
Looking for a way to boost your online marketing results? Take a look at the offline experiences your customers talk about, the experiences that form the basis of what your potential customers consider when evaluating competing options. The experiences you create in the actual delivery of your product or service drive the online conversations that are increasingly a factor in purchase decisions.
Case in point: Last week we flew into Providence, RI, for our annual summer trip to Cape Ann, Massachusetts. We arrived in Providence and headed for the Hertz counter to rent a vehicle. We were promptly given the keys to our car and headed off to throw the bags in and travel to the beach house. Walking over to the car, I noticed a dent in the side. Hmmm. As an ex-insurance guy (I was a product manager at Progressive Insurance for a number of years), I always do the walk-around before putting our luggage in the car. The dent wasn't bad, but I don't drive a car with a dent in it at home, so why would I while on vacation? It wasn't like I'd chosen Rent-A-Wreck. I looked closer. When opening the car door, all I could smell was stale cigarette smoke. With an hour and a half drive coming up, I really didn't want to start the vacation this way. I'm a pretty easygoing consumer and, to be fair, understand that mistakes happen. No one expects -- though we all strive to deliver -- perfection at every turn. At the same time, we clearly had a situation here.
I took the keys back to the counter. The gentleman at the counter apologized, gave me an alternate car, and asked me to check it out. The substitute was a clean car but was about the size of a golf cart. This was an airport, we are a family, and families have luggage. Luggage calls for real trunk space. This car didn't have a trunk. Not wanting to choose between taking my family or our luggage to the beach house, I went back to the counter. No cars in the class we'd rented would be ready anytime soon.
At this point, the amazing experience happened. The Hertz agent, empowered by an effective corporate policy and culture of ensuring satisfaction, handed me a new set of keys, and said, "Go look at the car in number 37." I walked over to a bright red VW Jetta, spotless inside and out, with plenty of trunk space. I walked back to the counter, smiled, and said, "37 rocks." The agent smiled back and said, "That's a free upgrade. Enjoy your vacation. Again, we apologize." We had a great drive up to the house, are enjoying our vacation, and have retold the story more than once.
Ten years ago, that's about as far as this would have gone. The people we come into contact with and who ask about our vacation might get the story. We'd maybe tell one or two people. Now there's a much wider audience and a set of tools that makes it easy for a large number of potential customers to find these conversations. Searching Technorati or, even better, using BlogPulse as a consumer, you can quickly find the conversations that matter to you.
On BlogPulse, search for "hertz rental." You'll find posts like one from last week that recounts a similar experience to mine. This other case involves a customer who actually switched on the spot from Dollar to Hertz because of the difference in customer service. That post, like this column, is now part of the online conversation the next round of customers will use when choosing a rental car company.
As a marketer, how do you systematically ensure the retelling of favorable experiences? More to the point, how do you prioritize your efforts and focus of the things more likely to generate a beneficial online conversations that favorably influence purchase decisions? Touch-point analysis, a technique that you may have used long ago, is perfect for online marketers seeking to get the most out of the offline experiences that involve their brands, products, and services.
Touch-point analysis involves identifying all the experiences that connect your customers with your product or service, online or off-.
Each touch point is then evaluated in terms of its performance. Does it generate a negative experience, such as a dent and the smell of stale cigarettes? Or does it generate a positive one, like being offered a sincere apology and the keys to a snappy, clean rental simply because both were the absolute right things to do at that moment? Contemporized touch-point analysis goes a further step: each touch point is also ranked according to its likelihood of generating a conversation.
Now you've really got something: your performance score on the specific points where your customers have actual experiences, ranked by how likely each is to generate a conversation. Prioritizing your next steps -- fixing the negatives and accentuating the positives that are generating online talk -- is straightforward. Best of all, by using platforms like BlogPulse and Cymfony or basic tools like Technorati, Google Alerts, and Blog Search, you can track and monitor your performance on these touch points quantitatively over time. This gives you the data you need to engage customer service, human resources, operations, and the rest of your internal constituents who are essential in bringing about changes that drive beneficial word-of-mouth online.
Add touch-point analysis to your marketing toolbox. Combine it with conversational analysis and focus your efforts on the touch points that matter. In a marketing world increasingly driven by social media, what goes around comes around. With planning and effort, it can come around in a good way. Put that cycle to work building your business.
By : Dave Evans, The ClickZ Network
Case in point: Last week we flew into Providence, RI, for our annual summer trip to Cape Ann, Massachusetts. We arrived in Providence and headed for the Hertz counter to rent a vehicle. We were promptly given the keys to our car and headed off to throw the bags in and travel to the beach house. Walking over to the car, I noticed a dent in the side. Hmmm. As an ex-insurance guy (I was a product manager at Progressive Insurance for a number of years), I always do the walk-around before putting our luggage in the car. The dent wasn't bad, but I don't drive a car with a dent in it at home, so why would I while on vacation? It wasn't like I'd chosen Rent-A-Wreck. I looked closer. When opening the car door, all I could smell was stale cigarette smoke. With an hour and a half drive coming up, I really didn't want to start the vacation this way. I'm a pretty easygoing consumer and, to be fair, understand that mistakes happen. No one expects -- though we all strive to deliver -- perfection at every turn. At the same time, we clearly had a situation here.
I took the keys back to the counter. The gentleman at the counter apologized, gave me an alternate car, and asked me to check it out. The substitute was a clean car but was about the size of a golf cart. This was an airport, we are a family, and families have luggage. Luggage calls for real trunk space. This car didn't have a trunk. Not wanting to choose between taking my family or our luggage to the beach house, I went back to the counter. No cars in the class we'd rented would be ready anytime soon.
At this point, the amazing experience happened. The Hertz agent, empowered by an effective corporate policy and culture of ensuring satisfaction, handed me a new set of keys, and said, "Go look at the car in number 37." I walked over to a bright red VW Jetta, spotless inside and out, with plenty of trunk space. I walked back to the counter, smiled, and said, "37 rocks." The agent smiled back and said, "That's a free upgrade. Enjoy your vacation. Again, we apologize." We had a great drive up to the house, are enjoying our vacation, and have retold the story more than once.
Ten years ago, that's about as far as this would have gone. The people we come into contact with and who ask about our vacation might get the story. We'd maybe tell one or two people. Now there's a much wider audience and a set of tools that makes it easy for a large number of potential customers to find these conversations. Searching Technorati or, even better, using BlogPulse as a consumer, you can quickly find the conversations that matter to you.
On BlogPulse, search for "hertz rental." You'll find posts like one from last week that recounts a similar experience to mine. This other case involves a customer who actually switched on the spot from Dollar to Hertz because of the difference in customer service. That post, like this column, is now part of the online conversation the next round of customers will use when choosing a rental car company.
As a marketer, how do you systematically ensure the retelling of favorable experiences? More to the point, how do you prioritize your efforts and focus of the things more likely to generate a beneficial online conversations that favorably influence purchase decisions? Touch-point analysis, a technique that you may have used long ago, is perfect for online marketers seeking to get the most out of the offline experiences that involve their brands, products, and services.
Touch-point analysis involves identifying all the experiences that connect your customers with your product or service, online or off-.
Each touch point is then evaluated in terms of its performance. Does it generate a negative experience, such as a dent and the smell of stale cigarettes? Or does it generate a positive one, like being offered a sincere apology and the keys to a snappy, clean rental simply because both were the absolute right things to do at that moment? Contemporized touch-point analysis goes a further step: each touch point is also ranked according to its likelihood of generating a conversation.
Now you've really got something: your performance score on the specific points where your customers have actual experiences, ranked by how likely each is to generate a conversation. Prioritizing your next steps -- fixing the negatives and accentuating the positives that are generating online talk -- is straightforward. Best of all, by using platforms like BlogPulse and Cymfony or basic tools like Technorati, Google Alerts, and Blog Search, you can track and monitor your performance on these touch points quantitatively over time. This gives you the data you need to engage customer service, human resources, operations, and the rest of your internal constituents who are essential in bringing about changes that drive beneficial word-of-mouth online.
Add touch-point analysis to your marketing toolbox. Combine it with conversational analysis and focus your efforts on the touch points that matter. In a marketing world increasingly driven by social media, what goes around comes around. With planning and effort, it can come around in a good way. Put that cycle to work building your business.
By : Dave Evans, The ClickZ Network
Do the Right Thing in an E-mail Marketing Campaign
From time to time we encounter a situation where we make a recommendation to a client. A short time later the client responds by saying that "legal" told them they don't need to do what we recommended or that it's OK to continue doing what they're doing.
What kind of recommendations get this response? Most recently, a recommendation to include an opt-out in an e-mail was denied because the message is technically transactional. And a recommendation to monitor the response address for a mailing was denied because "legal" says it isn't required. In one egregious case, a recommendation not to mail a list due to poor hygiene was met with insistence that they were legally allowed to do so.
This attitude is usually the result of one of two things: either a failure to consider there are multiple constituencies that should be taken into account when determining what marketing e-mail to send, or an attempt to hide behind the legal department when wanting to do something that isn't going to be popular with recipients.
Successful campaigns are built by balancing the requirements and restrictions of three key constituencies: legal, industry best practices, and business objectives.
Legal
Corporate Internet communications and companies' online activities are regulated by a plethora of state and federal anti-spam, privacy, and online protection laws. These include Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act (CAN-SPAM), Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), and Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Therefore, it's prudent to have your legal department approve e-mail marketing plans.
However, it's also essential to understand what the legal department will and won't tell you. Lawyers review activities within the context of what the law says. Legally speaking, you only have to do what the law specifically requires and must not do only what is specifically prohibited. While this provides the outer boundaries, it doesn't and shouldn't guide what is optimal for your e-mail marketing campaigns.
All marketing, e-mail or otherwise, clearly must comply with the law. However, "Non omne quod licet honestum est" (not all that is permitted is honest). The law doesn't define effective, or even honest, e-mail marketing. Good marketers understand this and create their campaigns within the requirements of the law and this maxim.
Industry Best Practices
In the online world, the customer rules. Failure to meet recipient expectations and desires will have a negative impact.
ISP deliverability requirements are primarily an implementation of what the ISP believes are its customers' desires. E-mail marketing best practices are a codification of the ISP and recipient requirements. They aren't the be all and end all of customer expectations, but they provide an excellent touchstone of what should and shouldn't be done.
E-mail best practices are a moving target, evolving constantly. Industry bodies, such as the Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG) and the Email Experience Council (EEC), provide guidance on industry best practices. Publications such as ClickZ provide guidance on the current thinking in areas from deliverability to content creation.
Many of the more formal best practices (such as the MAAWG Sender Best Communications Practices are so important they should be given almost as much weight as legal requirements.
Business Objectives
Marketing e-mails must meet the organization's business goals. Whatever you do will be modulated by what you have the resources and capabilities to achieve. Not everyone is ready or able to produce highly dynamic, targeted, cadenced, and triggered customer communications.
Understand your organizational constraints and how they impact your campaign objectives. Technical, data, or personnel limitations can often place such restrictions on a campaign's final implementation that it compromises its entire purpose. Understanding these limitations frequently leads to identifying the highest priority areas for systems development, process, and personnel improvement.
The result is two key points:
By : Derek Harding , The ClickZ Network
- If meeting legal or other requirements undermines the basic value or purpose of a campaign, that campaign needs to be re-thought rather than fulfilled in an ineffective or inappropriate manner. Campaigns often continue to plow ahead even though their original premise and purpose has been completely compromised by other restrictions or requirements. The results aren't pretty: low or negative ROI (define) and often irritated or bemused recipients.
- When defining and designing e-mail campaigns, all three constituencies are important and should have veto power. If a campaign isn't legal, don't carry it out. Similarly, if it doesn't meet business objectives or industry best practices, it
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Strategies for Expanding Your Email Programs
In order to survive, any business needs to expand and diversify. In email marketing, increasing the frequency of your mailings can be a tricky proposition, especially if you start peppering your subscriber with more messages on different topics than they opted in for at the start.
By : Stefan Pollard
You're probably thinking, "What's the big deal here?" You already have permission to mail to your current subscribers. So what's the harm in increasing frequency by adding a newsletter, sales flyer or new-product info? After all, you need to expand your program if you want to build your business, and you know these people already want to hear from you.
It's not that simple, though.
Welcome to the place where the rock of your email program goals meets the hard place of subscriber expectations and preferences. The typical email marketing program has a built-in tension: You need to get as much use out of your subscriber database as possible in order to get the most return on member acquisition costs. But you risk irritating your current subscribers, who didn't necessarily sign up for your new information, and prompting a flood of unsubscribes or spam complaints or just indifference.
Your subscribers’ permission is the most valuable asset that you have – and the easiest to abuse. Remember these three principles when you think about increasing how frequently you email your list with new message categories:
1. "Interest" and "permission" are not interchangeable.
Sure, you have no better audience to market your new email messages than the database of people who gave you permission to email them. That doesn't automatically mean that they want to receive anything else from you for which they didn't specifically sign up. Never assume you have permission to email them anything they didn't request.
2. Each message must deliver high value.
If you merely want to increase frequency, rather than introduce a new product or email message, do you have enough content to make each message valuable to subscribers? Moving from a bi-weekly to a weekly message means you will need to have twice as much content so that subscribers don't assume they're receiving duplicate mailings several times a week.
3. Subscribers still retain the control.
Relevance is the holy grail of targeted marketing. If you can't send out highly targeted mailings because you don't have the database capability to segment your list, you can make up for it somewhat by adding more specialized email publications to your current offerings.
What you can't do is impose your will on subscribers. You can lead them to your new content by making it as enticing as possible, but you shouldn't send it to them without permission first.
The trick is to introduce your expanded marketing program to your current customers in such a way that you don't violate their expectations or your original permission grant and respect their interests.
The Right or Wrong Way?
Here are two real-life examples where online companies expanded their email product offerings. One is the wrong way; the other is the right way. Can you tell which is which?
Example A: Floral Retailer
An online floral retailer issues a weekly sales newsletter promoting special values on cut flowers and arrangements, as well as one-off sales flyers near seasonal events and special occasions. After the company acquires a mail-order gourmet food business, it begins sending out a separate weekly sales newsletter to its floral database but under the new business' brand name.
Example B: Cable-TV network
This entertainment company specializing in food and lifestyle shows publishes a weekly email newsletter promoting show content, hosts and special guests. When the Christmas/holiday baking season approaches, the newsletter includes a special promotion urging subscribers to sign up separately for a 12-day series sharing one cookie recipe each day. This secondary mailing ceases after the 12th recipe is sent out.
Why is B a great example of adding new content and increasing frequency the right way while A comes close to spamming its own subscribers?
1. It promoted the new offering in existing newsletter space, whereas the floral retailer simply began mailing the new newsletter to its existing database and assumed permission and interest.
2. It left the opt-in decision up to the individual subscriber. The floral retailer forced subscribers who didn't request the additional email and who didn't want it to unsubscribe. Although the floral retailer followed the letter of the CAN-SPAM law, it forced uninterested recipients to opt out. The cable-TV network example gave their readers the choice up-front, and delivered the new content only to those who requested it.
3. The cookie series was relevant to the original newsletter's content.
Flowers and gourmet food might occupy the same general niche in the consumable-product department, but they don't have that direct tie-in or association that you have between general food news and specific cookie recipes. Don’t assume that consumers will be interested in a related area – ask and give them the option to opt in.
Strategies for Increasing Subscriber Contacts
As these examples show, there are right and wrong ways to expand your email program. Consider these strategies when developing your game-plan:
1. Calculate the cost of increased frequency
Technically, we should file this discussion under "increasing frequency," because at the heart of it, that's what you'll be doing. You might think each kind of email message belongs in a different category but your subscribers might not distinguish between a regular weekly newsletter and an on-the-fly solo offer. To your subscribers, each email you send comes from you, regarding of the category. If you are simply sending them more email, it may be more than they wanted or requested at sign-up.
You can find more strategies and recommendations, as well as several formulas that can help you assess whether you would gain enough in sales, registrations or other relevant metrics to cover the costs of more frequent mailings, in Loren McDonald’s "Calculating the Cost of Increased E-Mail Frequency," parts one and two.
2. Promote from within first.
You can safely upsell existing subscribers using three message channels already open to you. The fourth is a little trickier but can pay off if you do it right.
1. Regularly scheduled mailings
When you need to upsell your current subscribers, always start by promoting the message category in emails they already receive. In the cable-TV network example above, the limited-run newsletter was advertised within the existing newsletter, where subscribers were given a separate link to sign up.
2. Transactional messages
Many marketers fail to mine gold from transactional messages, which come as close to guaranteed opens as you'll get in email. If buyers fail to sign up for your email program during the buying process, take advantage of the transactional email you send out to confirm the purchase to promote your newsletter.
3. Welcome emails
Because new subscribers are usually the most enthusiastic, you should capitalize on eagerness to read your content by listing in your welcome letter other email offerings that may not have been chosen at sign-up. Keep it brief by focusing on the benefit, and link directly to the subscriber's preference page where they can edit their sign-up choices.
4. One-off sample issues
This is where upselling can get tricky. Any food marketer will tell you that sampling a new product in the supermarket is the best way to drive sales. Email is different, though. If you think sending a sample issue will get you the most attention, go for it. But, follow these guidelines to avoid even a whiff of in-house spamming:
- Test the sample first on a relevant segment of your list, such as recent buyers, new subscribers, or subscribers who have not responded to mailings in a certain time period.
- State clearly near the top that the mailing is a sample only and that subscribers will continue to receive it only if they sign up for it, and link to the preference page.
Final Thoughts
To grow your business or your email program – and to appeal to as many subscribers across the spectrum as possible – you'll need to branch out and diversify your email holdings. You'll find your greatest success when you let subscribers retain control over their inboxes and promote the mailings using the channel for which you already have permission.
By : Stefan Pollard
Mobile Email Marketing Tips
The future of email marketing is here, and it's in your customers' hands.
Email marketing on mobile phones has been hovering like either fate or opportunity, depending on how you view it. Maybe you've embraced it already, because your customers are a mobile bunch. Or, maybe you think it's something you'll think about tomorrow, like Scarlett O'Hara.
Just a few years ago, the mobile Web was something that only the folks out on the bleeding edge of technology had to deal with. The iPhone, introduced in 2007, and other breeds of smart phones, have now put the Web squarely in millions of people's hands.
According to the Pew Internet Project, "58% of adult Americans have used a cell phone or personal digital assistant to do at least one of ten mobile non-voice data activities, such as texting, emailing, taking a picture, looking for maps or directions, or recording video."
Mobile's biggest challenge will be in forcing you to cross the final frontier in your email-marketing program to make it completely customer-centric. We talk a lot about customer-centricity, of designing campaigns and messages to make them as close as possible to what the customers want to receive, when, in which format and on what platform. Maybe you read all that and thought, "Yeah, yeah, sounds good ... but I'm still going to send all my email in HTML because it lets me run a big pretty product picture."
It's time to face the music.
Are Your Customers Going Mobile?
First, find out, if you can, how many of your regular readers read your email on their cell phones or portable devices.
Create a text version of your HTML message and place it on a page at your Web site. Then, put a link to this version at the top of an email message, next to the link to your Web version. Count the number of clicks the link draws in the first three or four times you send it out. If fewer than 2% of your subscribers click on it, you don't need to drop everything just yet.
If it's more than 10%, however, it's time to roll up your sleeves.
What Makes Mobile Different?
1. The platform
Obviously, the platform is different. Instead of a screen that measures 13 to 21 inches on the diagonal, you have maybe 2 to 4 inches. And you thought the preview pane was restrictive?
2. Content rendering
Mobile devices vary wildly in how they render content. Even the recent news that BlackBerry software will be updated to show HTML content won't mean an immediate revolution. Text usually renders well on most devices, but you'll want to rethink even your text messages to optimize them for the smaller screen.
3. Uses
Your readers might not be living their lives through their mobiles just yet, but they most likely use their phones to triage their inboxes when they're away from their keyboards.
"Triage" here means they are reading their email on their cell phones while they're waiting for a flight, taking the commuter train to work or going home, sitting at a child's soccer game, or stuck in traffic. They scan through the inbox quickly, seeing which emails to open right away, which to ditch and which to save for later use at home or in the office.
Optimize Messages for Mobile Readers
The good news is that if you optimized your HTML messages to compensate for blocked images and the preview pane, both of which are default settings for most desktop and Web email clients, your messages will show up better on most mobile platforms.
However, you should take a couple of extra steps to make messages even more mobile-friendly:
1. Reformat text
You should always offer a text option as an alternative to HTML for all readers. You can send this version to your mobile readers, but you might also have to reformat it to make it show up better on the smaller screen.
Most text messages have 60 to 80 characters per line. Mobile platforms will show 20 to 40 characters in 12 to 15 lines per screen, depending on screen width and type style.
Desktop-friendly line lengths can create long paragraphs in the mobile reader. If you use typographic devices as copy separators that also run 60 characters, for example, you'll give up four to five lines on the screen for something that adds no value.
2. Rethink tracking URLs
Same goes for URLs. Tracking URLs can also consume four to five lines per screen. If you can, use a simpler URL even if it means sacrificing some tracking ability. These long URLs can result from automatically reformatting HTML copy into text, so your text version may need some hand-tweaking in order to render better on all platforms.
3. Be brief.
Message size must come down whether you send in text or HTML. Messages over a certain size -- even as small as 12KB -- risk being cut off halfway through. In many clients, your reader can opt to click a button that will call up the rest of the message, but do you want to throw up that obstacle?
Personally, I hate it when I open a message and find "message truncated" right at the top. I need more to make me want to click the button that will deliver the rest of the message.
Another message I get that frustrates me to no end is "This message contains a rich-text HTML portion. Consult your mail client's documentation for information on how to view it." Uh, I don't think so. Delete! That means it won't be there when I get to my desk.
Also, rethink the content itself. Long sentences in long paragraphs force more and more scrolling. This also can be a barrier to conversion or another source of frustration for readers.
4. Validate your Web site, too.
Is your Web site mobile-friendly too? Probably not, if you haven't had it redesigned specifically for mobile applications. If you have to send readers to your Web site to get the most value from your email marketing, better make sure it will also render on their devices. You can check it easily by using a new validator developed by the World Wide Web Consortium: http://validator.w3.org/mobile/.
Final Thoughts On Mobile-Friendly Emails
- Include a mobile option on your subscription or registration page. Track how many users check this option.
- Add a mobile reference to your online-version link in your message copy.
- "Above the fold" becomes even more crucial on the mobile screen. If you must keep boilerplate elements such as an admin center at the bottom, link to it near the top so that readers will know they need to click to download it.
- Keep your message short, and give readers a reason to save it for later to view in their desktop clients.
- Test before sending. You should be doing this anyway, but mobile adds another platform to the mix. Don't assume that because it looks good on your BlackBerry or iPhone, it will show up that way on all Web-enabled phones. Make sure it looks good on the cruddiest phone in the office, too.
By : Stefan Pollard
Monday, October 27, 2008
Email Marketing Copywriting
Personalized Email Marketing -- Benefits and Pitfalls
Thinking about personalizing your email marketing messages? That can help to build relationships with your audience, but keep in mind these cautions.
If you're looking for a way to increase the response to your email marketing efforts, you should definitely consider personalization. Email marketing programs such as Broadc@st [http://www.html-publishers.com] can automatically compose and send mass email messages with personalized fields and content, driven by a database.
Personalization can help you speak directly to your customer or prospect and achieve the much-sought-after goal of one-to-one marketing. However, in some ways personalization can work against you. Keep in mind these precautions:
Garbage in, garbage out. If some records in your database have missing or mixed-up fields, you can end up with odd constructions, such as:
Dear ,
We hope you've been enjoying the copy of you purchased from us back in .
or:
Dear VP Mktg,
We know it's not easy being Suzanne Myers of Wilmington, Delaware in Corrugated Products Co.
It's best to avoid personalization in the Subject line; usually it sounds artificial. And if you use an informal Subject like "Hi, Bob!" the recipient will expect to find a note from a personal friend. He'll be annoyed when he finds instead a commercial message from your company.
Be sensitive to privacy concerns. Don't overdo it. An email with too much of the recipient's personal information might seem like an abuse of privacy.
Whether you personalize your email marketing messages or not, it's important to make them sound personal, like a one-to-one communication from one friend to another.
How To Write an Autoresponder Message That Gets Results
With an autoresponder, you can deliver your sales message or other information rapidly, 24/7. Here are nine ways to use this tool successfully.
The autoresponder (or mailbot) is one of the great workhorses of Internet marketing. With the autoresponder, you can deliver your sales message or other information rapidly. And you can deliver it 24 hours a day to any Internet email user in the world.
But how can you create an autoresponder message that gets real results? Here are some methods of power communication that I've had success with as a writer of sales letters, mailbot copy, World Wide Web content, ads and more.
1. Focus on the reader, not yourself
Your message should be about the customer's needs and how your product will fulfill those needs, not about how wonderful you are and how great your product is (in your own opinion).
Don't talk to me about your fertilizer, talk to me about my lawn. Take a look at my first few paragraphs above. How many times did I talk about "you" and "your" as opposed to "I" and "me"?
2. Make it personal.
As with any sales letter, write your autoresponder message as a one-to-one communication. Pretend you're sitting down to talk to a friend.
Let your message be friendly, animated and informal. Go ahead and use contractions (like "you're" and "don't" and "we'll"). Don't be afraid to start a sentence with "and" or "but." Your English teacher will never read it, and he wasn't teaching you to write advertising, anyway.
3. Emphasize benefits.
Rather than thinking of yourself as selling a product or a service, think of yourself as providing benefits. To determine the benefits, ask yourself, "What does the customer get out of my product?" The answer should be something like "more time," "more money," "more pleasure," "an easier life," "better health," or "greater safety."
Benefits are different from features. Example of a feature: "This computer has a Pentium 4 processor." Now we turn it into a benefit: "Lightning-fast Pentium 4 processor means you get more work done in less time."
4. Include a "call to action."
Be clear in your mind about what you want the reader to do after reading your message. What do you want? A reply by email? A visit to your Web site? An order called in to your toll-free number? Let the user know what response you want, and let them know in a compelling, urgent, benefits-oriented way. Include complete contact information, and triple-check it for accuracy.
5. Offer useful information.
One good autoresponder strategy is to offer a free report giving useful information but including a sales message -- an "advertorial" approach.
For an example, for several years I distributed a report, "10 Tips for Selling on the Internet and the World Wide Web." This was a report with much solid nuts-and-bolts advice. But at the end of the report, I told the user how to order my "Smart Business Guide to Internet Marketing," and I even included an order form. Users didn't resent my pitch because they got so much value from the report.
6. Use correct spelling, grammar and punctuation.
You tell the world whether you're a professional or an amateur by the quality of your marketing communications. Take the time to edit your autoresponder message for errors. If you're not a good speller, get help from someone who is.
7. Use layout to make it easier to read.
Since a mailbot message is delivered in plain ASCII text, your design capabilities are limited. Here are a few tricks you can use to make your message more readable:
-
For a headline, use ALL-CAPS and insert a blank line before and after.
-
Use short paragraphs, say 5-7 lines at the most.
-
Set out material in bulleted lists (like this one).
-
Use "white space" to center important material and call attention to it, like so:
Now available:
Solid strategies for "Net" results!
Send any message to ebook@silverquick.com
Warning: I suggest you not try to create cute pictures with text characters. Different computers use different screen and printer fonts, so your picture will often come out as a big mess.
Also, I think it's a good idea to limit each line to 55-60 characters, as many email systems will automatically wrap the text at that length.
8. Obey the law.
False advertising is still illegal, even if you're on the Internet. In many countries, pyramid schemes and chain letters are illegal. You should assume that all tax and licensing laws in your town, state, province, country and so forth still apply. If you're in doubt, check with your attorney or accountant.
9. Read the messages people send to your autoresponder.
A good autoresponder system will send you a copy of the request every time someone sends for your report. With most systems, the user doesn't have to type anything in the body of their message when they send in the request. But often they do! By reading the message and replying to the user personally, you may increase your chances of selling to that person.
If you create a strong, well-written, persuasive message, your autoresponder can help you increase your sales and fulfill the goals of your email marketing effort.
Founder of EmailResults.com
Email Marketing Nuts & Bolts
Beware of Dueling Robots!
A recent foulup at Razorfish emphasizes the importance of getting permission before signing people up to your email newsletter -- and of making sure you understand the configuration of your list server.
Razorfish Inc. has egg on its face over an email fiasco that occurred recently when the Internet consulting firm sent out the first issue of a new newsletter targeted toward clients. Reports indicate that Razorfish didn't ask permission before adding clients to the new newsletter list, prompting a number of them to email back asking to be removed.
That might not have been so bad, but unfortunately the email list was configured as a discussion list rather than a newsletter. If you've participated in email discussion lists, you know what that means. Every message sent by a user back to the list server got broadcast out to the whole group. As members' email boxes started filling up, more and more of them sent back irate protests to the list server, and in turn those protests were broadcast out to all members.
This is an example of a phenomenon I call a Mushrooming Slugfest. Closely related is the equally frantic Dueling Robots phenomenon, in which two computers get caught in a loop, sending automated messages (with copies to users) back and forth to one another. The Slugfest is more fun because of the human element: Users don't understand the problem, they accuse each other of spamming, and their tirades get more and more desperate and profane as messages continue to spew out from the list server and stack up in people's inboxes.
Both types of goof-up emphasize the importance of thinking out your permission policies when building an email newsletter -- and making sure you correctly understand the settings for your list server. I recommend that you not add anyone to a standing email list without permission. Don't assume that it's all right to use all the contact email addresses in your address book as the nucleus of a newsletter list. Not everyone (even your friends) will want to receive your new publication, and not every address is appropriate for sending commercial email.
These points are illustrated by a hybrid Slugfest/Robots incident I got caught up in back around 1996. At the time, I was publishing an email newsletter called NETResults, using a list server provided by Silverquick (http://www.silverquick.net). One of my subscribers, Mr. Butts (later many people came to feel he was aptly named), decided to start a newsletter of his own, focusing on travel. To build an initial list, he gathered all his contact addresses and added them to an email list server.
Unfortunately, one of the addresses he added to his list was my own list server address. Picture two robots striding into the middle of a dusty street in a little town in the old American West, six-guns strapped to their metallic thighs. A robot duel is about to begin.
You see, whenever my list server received a message it didn't understand, it kindly sent back a help message giving instructions about the correct commands for subscribing, unsubscribing, getting help, and so on. So when the proud Mr. Butts fired up his own list server and blasted out the first issue of his travel newsletter, my list server responded with its help message. That wouldn't have been so bad, except for one tragic factor. Unbeknownst to him, Mr. Butts's list server was configured, not as a one-way newsletter, but as (you guessed it) an unmoderated discussion list.
The duel began in earnest. Since robots have no emotions, their duels are conducted according to the purest logic, most scrupulous courtesy, and most meticulous consistency. Nonetheless, the bloodbath is spectacular.
When my list server's help message arrived at Mr. Butts's list server, his server broadcast my help message out to everyone on the list, including (you guessed it again) my server address, which politely sent back a help message, which was again broadcast out to the whole list, and on and on.
Meanwhile, other people on the list (perhaps a hundred or so) began receiving this same deluge of messages. Panic ensued as baffled list members began sending in fruitless "unsubscribe" requests, which in turn were broadcast to the whole group -- including my list server, which dutifully returned its help message, which was then broadcast to everyone. If you've ever been part of a Mushrooming Slugfest or Robot Duel, you can imagine what kinds of rants and profanities were exploding across the Internet that day.
However, in time, cooler and more educated heads prevailed. Mr. Butts himself had no idea how to halt the melee. But I realized quickly what was happening, and I was eager to plug the dike, especially since my email address appeared in the help message and I was being accused of spamming (and more obscene infractions). With the assistance of Mr. Butts's ISP and the intrepid Gordon Burns of Silverquick, we were able to subdue the combatant droids and drag them off to the lockup. Whew!
The lessons for all of us? Once again: Understand your list server settings. Many list server providers make it hard to see the distinction between a one-way newsletter and an unmoderated discussion list and easy to get them mixed up. And when building an email list, consider carefully your policy for adding members -- go the permission route. Especially when robots are involved.
Formatting Email Marketing Messages
When composing an email marketing message, beware. What you see on your screen may not be what the recipient will see on his or her screen. Here's how to keep from looking like an idiot.
Any one of four factors can cause problems: word wrap, font, automated formatting and HTML tags.
1. Word wrap
You might be composing your email marketing message in a word processor or text editor, or in a window of your own email program, such as Eudora, Outlook or Netscape Mail.
However, you can't be sure what program the recipient is using. People easily could be reading your message on a dozen different systems, all of which have their own quirky ways of displaying messages.
Most email clients will automatically wrap lines at a set number of characters. If the lines in your original message are longer than allowed by the recipient's email client, your message will end up like this:
You will write a compelling, beautifully composed marketing
message, but because your lines are too long, the recipient's
email program will cut them off and create
annoying
"orphans." Your message will be hard to read, and
you will
look like an idiot!
The solution to this problem is to wrap your own lines at some reasonable length, perhaps 60 or 65 characters. Place a hard return at the end of each line.
2. Font
You might be composing your message in the default font for your word processor or mail program. But you need to realize that the recipient's email client may be using a different display font. As a result, what they see on their screen can be much different from what you see on yours.
For the purpose of this discussion, fonts come in two flavors: proportional and fixed-pitch. With a fixed-pitch font, such as Courier, every character has the same width. With a proportional font, such as Times New Roman, the width of characters can vary. So a sentence typed in Courier will usually come out longer than one typed in Times New Roman.
This can cause a problem if you are relying on characters to create effects such as lines. Your line may come out too short or too long, depending on the difference between your composition font and the recipient's display font.
Font width can also cause problems if you need characters to line up a certain way -- for example if you're creating a table.
Suppose you have created a nicely arranged table such as this one in a fixed font:
-------------------------
| Item Color Price |
| ----- ----- ----- |
| Shirt Blue $24.95 |
| |
| Socks Black $ 9.95 |
| |
| Hat Red $14.95 |
-------------------------
Unfortunately, the table will come out jumbled if someone looks at it in a proportional font:
----------------------------
| Item Color Price |
| ----- ----- ----- |
| Shirt Blue $24.95 |
| |
| Socks Black $ 9.95 |
| |
| Hat Red $14.95 |
----------------------------
This is a problem that's hard to work around. The best solution is to keep things as simple as possible, and look at your message in both proportional and fixed fonts to see if any serious problems come up. Generally, you're safest if you compose in a fixed font.
3. Automated formatting and HTML tags
A message composed in a word processing program will contain numerous hidden formatting codes, which can show up in odd ways if you merely paste the message into an email window and send it. For example, you can end up with an annoying "=20" at the end of each line.
Likewise, if you try to send out your message in HTML, many recipients will see all the HTML tags, making the message hard to read. If you're going to send HTML email, make sure that all your recipients are able to receive HTML-formatted email, or that you have technology that can deliver the right format to the right user.
Generally speaking, you are safer if you send all email marketing messages in plain text. To produce a plain-text message, compose it in a program that creates pure text, such as Notepad. Microsoft Word does not create pure text documents, even if you "Save As …" text.
If you want to use Word or another word processor to create a text document, first save the document in text, then close it and open it in Notepad (or other text editor). Now save it again in Notepad. Notepad will now save a pure text document, with no formatting. Close the document and re-open it in Notepad. You will now have a pure text document to send out. Paste this into your email window or Web form to send it out.
In summary, to avoid formatting problems, take these precautions when creating email messages:
Create and send documents in plain text
Limit your lines to 60-65 characters, including spaces, with a hard return at the end of each line
Compose in a fixed-pitch font
When creating tables or other graphics, stick to simple designs that will render properly in any font
View your message with both proportional and fixed pitch fonts to identify any formatting problems
Avoid HTML email unless you can be absolutely sure all recipients will receive the right format
Founder of EmailResults.com
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Strategies for Email List
Email marketing requires thoughtful attention to be directed to both email message and email list. This is attributed to the fact that both are components integral and vital to the success of email marketing. The truth of the matter is that the email list is the potential source of future online wealth. If it is efficiently managed, the building of the email list will be realized and the current email marketing campaign will then have achieved its objectives.
How best and in what ways can building the email list be achieved? There are various strategies to build an email list that is creditable, reliable and is capable of capturing prospects for your online business.
(1) Decide on how to target your market
Determine precisely what will be your niche product or service that you have a strong passion in. This enables you to stand out well above the rest in terms of knowledge and expertise. Devise a real catchy name for the purpose of targeting your market. Equally important will be the tag line which is in essence the unique selling proposition for the brand of product or service that will in turn reveals the identity of your website.
(2) Get hold of the attention of your target market
This is an important step that will capture the attention of a targeted audience. All that is needed is a short description of about fifteen words about your list or even your newsletter. Subsequent descriptions would include writing a thirty word as well as a one hundred word description solely about the benefits of your product or service. It is important to put in more emphasis and attention to the unique selling proposition, as it helps in the garnering of favorable customer perception about your product or service. Do not forget to include a strong and compelling rationale to induce future subscriptions.
(3) Plan a schedule for your list
Putting up a proper and systematic schedule to activate your email list ensures that the whole process runs smoothly. The list system requires an effective format and regulated frequency to run the follow-ups. These may be done by issuing a weekly or biweekly regular e-zine or newsletter.
(4) Devise a lead generation system
Construct a powerful lead generation system making use of your salesletter. With flawless support from a good sequential autoresponder, you can now send in a pre-set timing about five follow-up emails. This serves to welcome new subscribers and lay the foundation for the building of customer relationships.
(5) Make full and effective use of your website traffic
With the traffic that is slowly coming into your website, prompt action must be taken to take advantage of it. Make hay while the sun shines. Harness this website traffic to support your primary aim of building your contact list. With the opt-in box in appropriate places on your website, make the sale giving these people the choice of signing up. Another appropriate way to gather names of potential subscribers is to make use of the pop-up box, which can be quite effective in capturing leads.
(6) Make use of auto-launching
With the list of names of subscribers on hand, it is appropriate to perform follow-ups with them by making use of the auto-responder system to send five email messages at pre-set timing. Each follow-up can be accompanied by a bonus or freebies that you can offer for free. Incidentally, you can upsell to increase your revenue from the list. This is another great sales mechanism in operation on the internet. There is actually the opportunity to capitalize on leverage. It is imperative to note that permission to send these emails must have been first given by the subscribers. It is strongly recommended to include in each outgoing email message this clause: " You have received this email because you're a subscriber to our newsletter. Click here if you wish to unsubscribe". This inclusion serves to eliminate issues of privacy and prejudice of spam.
(7) Submission of your list
Build the list massively by submitting it to different directories. This is the route by which you can harness the power of websites and lists that currently have high traffic, and increase your own subscription list.
(8) Gain recognition in your niche
Create a huge inflow of traffic especially the targeted audience to your website to gain recognition for your expertise in your niche. This is best achieved through writing an article about five hundred words on your niche, and have it submitted to different publishers and article directories. When visitors assess you as an expert in your niche, they will visit your website through its address which you have indicated in the resource box to sign up for your list.
(9) Create your own sig file
A sig file serves to make yourself easily contactable with the visitors. It consists basically of your name, email address, statement of benefit and a return link or email. The components of email address and the return link that will bring the visitor to your website are basically means to contacting you. Another potential source of list building is via viral marketing. Word-of-mouth marketing by subscribers will create the massive impact that viral marketing is well-known for.
(10) Advertise
Get to advertise on e-zine ads and pay-per-click search engines. Ensure costs are kept to a minimum. This process actually permits a great opportunity for those who did not buy the first time. The ad copy with the hundred word description may be used here to drive traffic to your website.
(11) Affiliate marketing
This concept supports the simultaneous building of your list and capturing of customers. It is a commendable system that helps you to search for, make contact, and build relationships that are beneficial to your niche. A good recommendation with regards to affiliate marketing will be starting your own affiliate program. This is the ultimate system for the building of the email list.
(12) Partnership
To accelerate and increase the traffic to your website and to gain exponential growth in your income, it is always possible to partner another marketer in increasing each other's visibility through each other's resource box. Spread the word about each other and the products or services that are offered by both of you. The possibility of virally increasing the sign-ups is obviously very high.
(13) Pay for leads
Buying leads from co-registration companies will be another option to accelerate results in building an email list. The plus factor will be the saving in time, otherwise it will take a while to get subscribers into your list to build it up fast.
(14) Always be on the lookout for leads
Seminars and networking events are great opportunities to building your list. Collect business cards and perform follow-ups through personal emails or phone calls, asking them if they would be interested to be on your email list. It is prudent to remember that permission must be given first before sending out those emails. Do ensure that there is no spam.
Building the email list requires a great amount of planning and effort to bring in the results. The marketing aspect with respect to the email list must be given serious consideration. The strategies listed above are by no means exhaustive. Nevertheless, they should prove effective in contributing to the building of a respectable email list.
by : Jeremy Long Chia Teik
Monday, February 11, 2008
10 Things You Can Do With Your Autoresponder
Think of an autoresponder as a 24 hour sales person, not pushy, aggressive or irritating. By using an autoresponder, you will never have to deal with rejection because no one will hang up on you, pretend like they are not home when you knock on the door, or close the door in your face. Your autoresponder helps you to build trust with a subscriber list that has given you permission to contact them and wants to hear what you have to say. Even if they change their mind, the autoresponder will take care of unsubscribing them from your list and you do not have to deal with rejection of any kind.
The main purpose of using an autoresponder is to follow-up with your prospects. Provide them with valuable information, gain their trust and you have greatly increased the chances of them buying from you or buying affiliate products that you are recommending. Each message that you send to your prospects should have links to your website and links to your affiliate products. You can drastically increase your income just by using an autoresponder.
Your autoresponder works tirelessly for you at all times of the day. It generates and responds to e-mails for you even when you are away from the computer so you can have more free time to do other things. Autoresponders dramatically reduce the need for you to constantly check your e-mails to personally respond to each email in a timely manner. You will increase the trust and confidence the customer has in you when you are responsive to their e-mails which in turn increases your chances of retaining the customer and making further sales to them.
Here are 10 ways to use your autoresponder to save you time and increase your income.
1. Use your autoresponder to collect the e-mail addresses of the people who subscribe to your mailing list.
2. Set your autoresponder to automatically respond to frequently asked questions.
3. Send news about special promotions or coupons for the products or services you offer.
4. Immediately welcome new e-mail subscribers or thank people for subscribing to your newsletter.
5. Automate the process of sending order confirmations and thank you letters.
6. Send e-courses sent to the subscriber delivered in a time interval that you specify.
7. Give away free viral e-books and reports related to the niche of your website.
8. Send offers to those that have ordered from you in the past, as they will be more likely to buy from you again.
9. Send articles, reports and newsletters that offer great content and promote your website
10. Send a broadcast message to your entire list at anytime when you have a special message you want to send your prospects about a new product or service that they could benefit from.
by : Nina Greene
When To End Your Email Marketing Campaigns
Deciding when to end an marketing campaign is one subject which many business owners may struggle with on a regular basis. This decision can be difficult both in situations in which the campaign is enjoying a great deal of success and in situations in which the campaign is failing.
In general business owners will have to evaluate a number of different criteria to make this decision and there is no one specific formula which will work for all business owners.
In this article we will examine three different scenarios including a successful email marketing campaign which is approaching a logical conclusion, a marketing campaign which is failing and a successful campaign which may be able to run indefinitely.
First we will examine the case of a successful email campaign which is approaching a logical conclusion. In some cases it may be logical for a bussiness owner to conclude his email marketing efforts. The most obvious example is a campaign which is focused on achieving a specific goal and not selling products or services.
For example a marketing campaign which is political in nature may start off slowly, peak during a time when voters are most interested in obtaining information about the issues and then begin to wane as the voting process begins and the majority of voters have already made their decision.
Similarly a marketing campaign which is focused on collecting donations for a specific charity will logically end as the goal is reached. These email marketing campaigns may be highly successful but there is simply no reason to continue them beyond when the goals is reached.
Next we will consider the case of a marketing campaign which is not achieving its goal. Deciding when to end an email marketing campaign of this nature can be difficult because it will involve a number of different factors.
For example if the business owner is investing a great deal of time and money into email marketing and not generating results despite an honest effort it may be time to end this marketing campaign.
However, if the business owner has not invested a great deal in the campaign and has a few remaining ideas for turning the campaign into a success, it might be worthwhile to continue the email campaign for a little longer to see if the desired goals can be met.
Finally, it is important to note that email marketing campaigns do not always have to come to an end. Consider a niche topic such as search engine optimization (SEO).
A business owner who has been producing and distributing monthly e-newsletters on this subject and receiving a positive response to these email marketing tools, there is not reason for him to discontinue the email marketing as long as he is still capable of producing the e-newsletters.
Similarly to the way many magazines have been in publication for years and years it is possible for an e-newsletter to remain active for as long s there is a need and an interest in the information being provided. In our example of a business owner publishing an SEO newsletter, the need for this product remains because SEO is continually evolving and recipients of the e-newsletter may anticipate receiving the e-newsletter each month to get more information on current trends in the industry.
by : Jo Han Mok
In general business owners will have to evaluate a number of different criteria to make this decision and there is no one specific formula which will work for all business owners.
In this article we will examine three different scenarios including a successful email marketing campaign which is approaching a logical conclusion, a marketing campaign which is failing and a successful campaign which may be able to run indefinitely.
First we will examine the case of a successful email campaign which is approaching a logical conclusion. In some cases it may be logical for a bussiness owner to conclude his email marketing efforts. The most obvious example is a campaign which is focused on achieving a specific goal and not selling products or services.
For example a marketing campaign which is political in nature may start off slowly, peak during a time when voters are most interested in obtaining information about the issues and then begin to wane as the voting process begins and the majority of voters have already made their decision.
Similarly a marketing campaign which is focused on collecting donations for a specific charity will logically end as the goal is reached. These email marketing campaigns may be highly successful but there is simply no reason to continue them beyond when the goals is reached.
Next we will consider the case of a marketing campaign which is not achieving its goal. Deciding when to end an email marketing campaign of this nature can be difficult because it will involve a number of different factors.
For example if the business owner is investing a great deal of time and money into email marketing and not generating results despite an honest effort it may be time to end this marketing campaign.
However, if the business owner has not invested a great deal in the campaign and has a few remaining ideas for turning the campaign into a success, it might be worthwhile to continue the email campaign for a little longer to see if the desired goals can be met.
Finally, it is important to note that email marketing campaigns do not always have to come to an end. Consider a niche topic such as search engine optimization (SEO).
A business owner who has been producing and distributing monthly e-newsletters on this subject and receiving a positive response to these email marketing tools, there is not reason for him to discontinue the email marketing as long as he is still capable of producing the e-newsletters.
Similarly to the way many magazines have been in publication for years and years it is possible for an e-newsletter to remain active for as long s there is a need and an interest in the information being provided. In our example of a business owner publishing an SEO newsletter, the need for this product remains because SEO is continually evolving and recipients of the e-newsletter may anticipate receiving the e-newsletter each month to get more information on current trends in the industry.
by : Jo Han Mok
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Responsive Email Marketing
Are you new to the process of email marketing? If so, you may be unsure how to maximize the potential of each of your correspondence items. Here, we’ve addressed some of the basics of email marketing that you’ll need to consider to make your experience both lucrative and enjoyable!
Avoid Deceptive Subject Lines
Many email marketing attempts fail to produce any profits because they start off on the "wrong foot." For instance, if you’re advertising a revolutionary skin care product, don’t put "It Was Great to Meet You Last Thursday" as your subject line. Though you may have a better chance of getting through some recipients’ firewalls, they won’t appreciate your trickery and will probably press "delete".
Put All Information in the Email Body
Though you may have a fabulous .pdf or .doc file that you’d like to incorporate in your email marketing, resist the temptation to include it. Having an attachment of this sort will automatically send your email marketing attempt to "spam" files, meaning your prospects will probably never see your email at all.
Use Dynamic Language
In email marketing, as with all marketing, you want to capture your audience’s attention as quickly as possible. Because you only have a few seconds to catch a reader’s eye, be certain to use words that are active and practically "pop" off the page. Remember - if the email marketing piece doesn’t intrigue, the person will simply move on to another email.
Be Short and Sweet
Have a lot to say? Then put your lengthy information on your website, not in your email marketing text. Most adults have a very short attention span, and they don’t want to scour through an email marketing item for more than a minute or so. Include a link for the email marketing reader to click to send him or her to your webpage where more detailed information will be highlighted.
Practice Makes Perfect
Email marketing is a science, but one that’s always evolving and changing. So if you don’t get tons of "hits" the first time around, never despair! Keep trying, reaching, and exploring and you’ll soon uncover the best email marketing techniques for your product or service.
by: Mad Vlad
Avoid Deceptive Subject Lines
Many email marketing attempts fail to produce any profits because they start off on the "wrong foot." For instance, if you’re advertising a revolutionary skin care product, don’t put "It Was Great to Meet You Last Thursday" as your subject line. Though you may have a better chance of getting through some recipients’ firewalls, they won’t appreciate your trickery and will probably press "delete".
Put All Information in the Email Body
Though you may have a fabulous .pdf or .doc file that you’d like to incorporate in your email marketing, resist the temptation to include it. Having an attachment of this sort will automatically send your email marketing attempt to "spam" files, meaning your prospects will probably never see your email at all.
Use Dynamic Language
In email marketing, as with all marketing, you want to capture your audience’s attention as quickly as possible. Because you only have a few seconds to catch a reader’s eye, be certain to use words that are active and practically "pop" off the page. Remember - if the email marketing piece doesn’t intrigue, the person will simply move on to another email.
Be Short and Sweet
Have a lot to say? Then put your lengthy information on your website, not in your email marketing text. Most adults have a very short attention span, and they don’t want to scour through an email marketing item for more than a minute or so. Include a link for the email marketing reader to click to send him or her to your webpage where more detailed information will be highlighted.
Practice Makes Perfect
Email marketing is a science, but one that’s always evolving and changing. So if you don’t get tons of "hits" the first time around, never despair! Keep trying, reaching, and exploring and you’ll soon uncover the best email marketing techniques for your product or service.
by: Mad Vlad
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Email Marketing Tips
Pick Your Fate in 2008
As we linger here in that limbo between the holidays and the new year, perhaps you're considering a resolution or two to help you hit the ground running in 2008. If you're an e-marketer, no doubt one of your resolutions is to find new and effective ways to build customers online.
E-marketers understand that the key to building an online customer base is knowing what people want. More people use the Web for communication than for the purchasing of goods and services. As a whole, we're hesitant to trust what we cannot see or touch. And rightly so.
Many people have had bad experiences after choosing to blindly trust individuals and companies who tout their integrity over the Internet. Too many people have been scammed out of their money--even their identities. Most of us, at some point, have been spammed to death by communications we didn't request. We have a lot of work to do to fortify that trust again.
Your objective as an e-marketer is to come up with innovative ways to build trust and then deliver on your promise with excellent products and ethical communication practices. MyNewsletterBuilder's objective is to help you.
Email has revolutionized business tactics so that online retailers have to constantly learn new ways to communicate in a manner that will eventually convert readers to repeat buyers. Your success depends on your strategy.
Check this blog frequently for fresh perspectives in e-marketing.
Wishing you peace and prosperity in the new year!
Your Quality Control Checklist
Before hitting that send button, make sure your newsletter passes a test of quality, which will no doubt reflect your own excellent business standards.
Be sure that all of your links work, you haven't (gasp!) misspelled anything, your content is free of faulty line breaks, and you've tested the end product in multiple email clients.
Here is a little checklist to help you with quality control before each mailing:
1. Use a plain text file editor, like TextPad, to generate your lines at a set character number (experts recommend 60-65). This will help you avoid those wacky line breaks. NotePad works for this as well, but you'll have to count characters manually and do a hard return after each line.
2. If you're creating an HTML newsletter, write or paste your text into a program like TextPad or NotePad (TextEdit for Macs), so that content will render free of funky characters that were meant to be something else.
3. Always preview your newsletters in the major email clients, such as Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL and Outlook. What looks like a masterpiece in one inbox could look like gobbledy-gook in another!
4. Develop a working knowledge of how various email programs function. That way, if a customer complains about rendering, you can diagnose the problem based on their email settings.
5. Get a second and third opinion; always send your newsletter to a couple of colleagues before sending.
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