The Biggest Mistake That People Make With Email
Marketing
By Ntsikelelo
The number one biggest mistake people make with email marketing is
people do not understanding the power, nor use the full potential of
this application as a medium of communications.
People hate to be sold, but love to buy. Think for a moment. When
you hear the story about someone who was sold something, is the
ending usually favorable or unfavorable? On the other hand, if you
buy something you really like, do you say "Someone sold this to me."
or do you say with pride "Look at what I bought"?
Email marketing is one of the simplest forms of dynamic
communication today. Everyone has an email address. Some people
even have email addresses for their pets. The Internet is a medium
that is growing by leap and bounds. "Gillions" of website and mega
gillions of email addresses. They are everywhere business cards,
websites, promotional products, and even on bus benches.
People love information, especially FREE information. If you are
able to deliver information that has a high perceived-value, you
will find some taker-uppers to your offers. People will respond,
it's just human nature. If you build trust and deliver on your
promises, people will listen to you and read your messages. Many,
many eNewsletters are read religiously every day, week or month.
When the newsletter is late or the publisher misses an issue, they
hear about it.
Wait...I see a formula for opportunity, marketing success and
profitability if the numbers are only halfway right. Let's look at
this picture functionally; you've got mega gillions of email
addresses; and zillions of people who would buy almost any product
or service, if it is packaged correctly. So let me process this.
If I can identify a small loyal percentage of the zillions of people
and get their email address then maybe I can hold [daily (I don't
suggest it), weekly (you've got to have good stuff) or, monthly
(great way to start)] dialogue with my subscribers via an
eNewsletter and drop a little knowledge (value) on them to promote
my business in a very innocent and professional manner, yet giving
them value for their time spent with me. I like that idea; it works
for me!
Over time, some people will tell others people about my eNewsletter
and then people whom I don't know nor have a relationship with will
want to become a part of my mailing list because of something they
heard about me from someone else. I'm not dreaming folks. I become
the host of my own fan club. If you are not into viral marketing,
you are missing the proverbial boat. This is powerful stuff! It is
very simple and easy to get email addresses and see your mailing
list grow 10, 20 or even 100 fold. Just ask for them for it! A
little love goes a long way.
The next step is to develop a compelling message with an
appealing/eye-catching user interface for your subscribers and then
sending them out email messages on a regularly basis, (daily, weekly
or monthly). The articles can be long or short. Short is better in
most instances, until you master the concept. Use common sense for
your industry and market niche. Remember the old sales
adage. "Sell to Bob the way Bob wants to buy." Don't make it hard
or difficult. Listen to your customers and give them what they want
and what you promised.
Use your writing skills to position yourself as an expert in your
field or profession. What's going on? What do people in your realm
of the world or business like to hear, see, do or have a general
interest in? Find a topic or something you enjoy writing about.
The last thing you need is another job. If you find an area you
like or have a passion for, it will be easier when you sit down and
put your pen to paper.
There is help for those who can't or don't write very well. There
are many content providers from which you can purchase content for
your eNewsletter. If your kid is a good writer, hire them. Where
there is a will, there will be a way! In case no one before me told
you, you will need to develop a convincing title that is likely to
catch your audience's attention or appeal to a need they have.
Value, value, value. Everyone enjoys listening to that same radio
station WIIFM (What's In It For Me). Speak to your subscribers in a
way that addresses the issues that are important to them and use
testimonials whenever possible.
With the number of people you meet everyday you could quickly and
easily create a database of thousands of names that could easily
grow exponentially into many thousands of names and email addresses
if you put action behind your plan to get started. A growing list
of small and medium sized firms and civic associations is making
huge amounts of money and collecting liberal donations by putting
the power and potential of email technology to use to build and
enhance their relationship with their members and communities.
Not everyone is your customer! You can do quite well with a small
population of loyal subscribers who like you, trust you, and respect
you. There is software that makes it possible to quickly and easily
create appealing email messages, build and manage large email lists,
send personalized targeted messages, and track your success.
The potential is to provide high perceived-value in the customer's
mind to establish TOMA (Top of Mind Awareness). Ideally every 8 to
14 days you should sent a new message to your target audience.
Remember it may takes 7 or 8 tries just to get invited on to their
safelist. Some people will read every issue of your eNewsletter
strictly from their junk email folder. People are stingy about
letting you into their life. With so many messages coming from so
many different directions daily, you have to compete to make a
serious impact to get some of their precious time. Committing to
read, review or just look at your email is a serious act of loyalty
on behalf of your customer. Your opt-in mailing list of people who
love you, trust you and have done business with you before can
generate a substantial consistent income for years to come
Don't get it twisted; they're doing you the favor. If they don't
like what you have to say, or the way you say it, they will just
click delete, quicker than a heartbeat. The real potential is to be
the favored eNewsletter that people look forward to reading issue
after issue, follow recommendations from, refer to their friends,
make your sales swell and expand the size and scope of your business
while allowing you do the one thing you do best, talk passionately
about your organization or subject of interest.
Speak in your eNewsletter about how you bring value, solve problems,
save money, reduce time and effort, or provide solutions to problems
your customers face. Humor also works. The question becomes in
your customer's mind; why should I give you my fat wad of cash for
your itty-bitty bag of what did you say it was? With today's
technology it is really simple, easy, and affordable to set-up and
start a successful email marketing campaign that requires little
effort on your part. You can also track your results and manage you
email lists as about 37% of all email address change over any given
year.
Something very important, kindly respect people's privacy. Be
upfront and straight with them as to how you handle their personal
information. Trust is very fragile. If they ask to be removed from
your list, make it easy. Leave the tricks to unsubscribing them or
keeping them on your list to the magicians. It is bad behavior for
a web marketer to refuse to unsubscribe any user or make it
difficult. Don't waste your time with people who don't want to hear
from you. Your reputation and credibility are too important.
Frankly, there are bigger fish to fry and other people who need what
you offer. Stay focused.
Asking permission, keeping it simple and giving value is the formula
for making the power and potential of the Internet and email
marketing deliver results that increase sales to overflow your
barns. It is the hardest easy work you can ever do.
Ntsikelelo is an active Internet Marketer. He is a pioneer, with
over 9 years of talent in website design, management, marketing, and
promotions. He is the owner and operator of three highly successful
web properties: quickeasycontact.com, blasttemplates.com, and
needanotary.net. He is a recognized writer, speaker and educator on
Internet and Computer related subjects, and Real Estate Finance
topics.
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