Email Marketing
Email Marketing is a very inexpensive, highly rewarding form of Internet
Marketing. Having your own double opt-in mailing list is almost like
having the goose that lays the golden egg and whenever you need another
egg all you have to do is go out and get one.
Maybe that analogy is a little exaggerated, but the principals behind a
successful email marketing campaign are the same.
A double opt-in email marketing campaign is also rewarding because your
subscribers wanted to receive your newsletter and took the time to
opt-in. A double opt-in list is not only more targeted and successful
than a single opt-in list; a double opt-in list is much safer.
With a single opt-in list it is easy for anyone to submit any email
address, even if it is not theirs and they are doing it for a friend.
The persons email address they submitted may not want to be on your list
and they will not know that they subscribed until they start receiving
emails from you. These subscribers will probably not ever open your
newsletter and may report you for sending SPAM. We all know how bad SPAM
is getting, so don't contribute to the problem.
Double opt-in is an enhanced permission that tackles these issues. With
double opt-in, the submitted name is not immediately added to a mailing
list. Instead, an email is sent to the address, asking to confirm that
your name should indeed be added. If the recipient of the confirmation
email does nothing, the submitted address is deleted and never added to
the Email Marketing Campaign. The name is only added to a list if the
recipient responds to the confirmation email and thus double opt-in.
How do you get subscribers?
Getting subscribers to your mailing list is just a matter of having
something others want. You may have insight on a certain subject,
offering a great download to the subscribers, running a contest where
the only requirement is to subscribe, etc.
There are many ways to get subscribers but the main requirement is for
you to give potential subscribers something they want or need.
There is just one rule you should follow; Be Honest. Honesty will get
you a more targeted subscriber which in turn will benefit you.
Treat your Emailing Marketing subscribers like Gold.
Why? Because if you treat them with honesty, don't talk down to them and
give them good information on a consistent basis, your members will
repay you by not only reading your newsletter but participating in the
"calls for action" within the newsletter.
A good newsletter can get a much higher return then a website and that
is why many companies are now heavily focusing on their Email Marketing
Campaigns.
This probably goes against everything you have learned about email
marketing but don't be afraid to "yada yada". That is not to say that
you can just talk about something that has no relevance to your
newsletter but if you have a good story don't hold it back. Subscribers
are just people and a good or funny story always can keep our attention.
Your subscribers will get a better understanding of you and look forward
to getting your newsletter to just see what you have to say. Happy,
attentive subscribers are loyal subscribers
Should you use HTML email or plain text?
This question is asked all of the time and the answer is easy, "plain
text". Your newsletter should be sent in text and not HTML.
HTML email can look great and add some eye candy to your newsletter but
like in real life too much candy can be bad. Plus because spammers only
really use HTML emails, people are either filtering out all HTML email
or finding ways so their email software will read all email in plain
text, your newsletter may not get delivered.
If you like place a link on top of the text email to open an HTML
version of the newsletter.
Getting your email read.
In internet speak typing in ALL CAPITOL LETTERS is the same as yelling
and SPAM filters watch out for that, plus it annoys people. Avoid all
caps in your subject lines and email headings.
Limit you fingers to hitting the punctuation keys only once. Email
filers will definitely flag an email with more than one "!!!!!!!!" or
"??????". Be careful with your punctuation and try to remember what your
elementary school teacher taught you. You do not want to have to sit in
the corner or miss recess.
You need to test.
Before you send out a newsletter you need to test it to make certain
that everything is formatted correctly. Test your hyperlinks and make
sure you have included the http:// and do not use IP address numbers in
place of actual domain names.
If you have a lot of subscribers with AOL.com email addresses you need
to set up a special hyperlink for them.
In a plain text email a hyperlink such as http://www.anydomain.com would
be able to be clicked on and open a browser to the URL but because the
way AOL's email software handles email it would not. You would have to
add this line <a href="http://www.anydomain.com">http://www.anydomain.com</a>
to allow AOL subscribers to make the link clickable.
Send a test newsletter to yourself so you can see it just like your
subscribers will. Any successful Email Marketing Campaign needs to come
from a person and sent to a person, so test it to make sure it comes
across that way.
The Google Toolbar is more powerful than just helping you to Search the
Web and block pop-ups. It is a great tool to use to help your website
get spidered and thus listed on Google. Go and download the toolbar and
select the advanced setting option. Once the toolbar is installed go to
your website a few times a day for a week or so and before you know it
the Googlebot will be making visits to rank your website. |
