I remember the good old days of the internet when it was a real treat to subscribe to someones newsletter and receive all their wonderful information through the convenience of your email.
Its still like this today - for the publishers that are getting it right. I believe newsletter publishers somewhere along the way forget WHY readers subscribe. On their websites we are promised all this wonderful information and instead we receive a sales pitch, email after email.
Bad newsletters far out number the effective ones. Here is a list of mistakes I find newsletter publisher religiously make
1. Sell right off the auto responder
When I subscribe to a newsletter and get the sales pitch right off the auto responder, I know my subscription to this newsletter wont last long.
The autoresponder is the ideal place to get your subscriber familiar with yourself and your business. Its a great first step in building that relationship with your reader. Get them enthusiastic about receiving your newsletter. Tell them the wonderful things they will come to expect.
Welcome them and just leave it at that.
Something to take with you: Dont put the cart before the horse
2. Talk about how much money you are making all the time
Hyping is old news. Are you still doing it
The newbie internet marketers love to tell you how much they are supposedly making. They love referring to this time and time again in their newsletters. They havent yet realized that hype doesnt sell. Information does.
If you are making all this money, then help someone who isnt. Give them some intelligent information. Help them make an informed decision about buying your product.
Something to take with you: Uh Dont hype
3. Instead of 80% content and 20% selling you are doing it the other way around
Your subscriber didnt give you permission to sell to them. They gave you permission to give them more information. Thats what you promised when they signed up. Are you honoring that promise
Subscribers know that you will be doing some selling in your newsletters. They are not stupid. So weave the selling process in with your great information. That way it wont stick out like a sore thumb and your readers wont feel pitched.
Something to take with you: Always give before you ask to take. It rarely works the other way around
4. Copy and paste an article in your newsletter and hey presto! You have a newsletter Not
There is no double about it. Articles are very effective the ones that are well worded and give the reader insider information about a specific topic.
One publisher I subscribe to uses the power of articles very well. He is an affiliate and in his newsletter he publishers different peoples articles.
This is his technique:
Ive bought from this affiliate time and time again. Know why Because his technique works.
He puts effort into his newsletters. Readers see that. Through them, Ive come to know him, trust him, like him. Not only does he provide me with good articles, he is also knowledgeable in the subject hes involved him and his contributions really help reinforce the information of the article.
Unfortunately, most newsletter publishers dont use the power of articles. You see, when you dont put effort into it, I know you went to an article directory, selected an article, joined its affiliate program and just stuck it in your newsletter with nothing else but your name and contact details.
Not good.
Something to take with you: Go the extra mile. Its not crowded.
5. Not telling people abit about yourself
Give readers a sense of you. We are curious creatures and want to know abit about people we associate with. You do want to bond with your readers, dont you Then your name and website address at the bottom of your email wont accomplish much.
The best newsletters I subscribe to, without fail, always include a small paragraph in the beginning about themselves.
Tell readers something and keep it short and sweet. Dont go to the other extreme and devote your newsletters to talk about yourself. Boring.
Something to take with you: Balance is what we are looking for here.
6. Giving subscribers info that is so basic, they can tell you are new to this
Your defense may be that you are catering to newbie internet marketers so your information has to be basic. Okay, lets put it another way. Last time I checked there were 55,000 people looking for internet marketing. Do you believe all those are new to this
There are many types of products to do with internet marketing like ebooks, newsletters, autoresponders etc. An internet marketer needs a variety of products to build and run their business.
Consider something else. Who else buys your products Answer: Affiliates. So at most times you are dealing with people with a higher level of experience.
Let me give you an example of what I consider basic information. If you write an article telling me why I need an email service then this wont make an impression on me. I already know this. And if I was a newbie, I would know this too because I wouldve come across it hundreds of times before from other people who rehash the same information.
On the other hand, I may not know what the best email services are and why. So tell me.
Something to take with you: Do some research. It always pays off.
7. The biggest booboo of them all
I was stunned. Are people this dumb
About a month ago, I subscribed to a bunch of internet marketing newsletters. I dont remember now from where. Pity.
Well, I received the autoresponders, as all newsletters begin. All the same. I received the first newsletters, second newsletters, third newsletters. (then I unsubscribed from them all). All the same.
Word for word they were all the same. The only thing that changed was the contact details of these people.
I found out later that you can pay for a service and they will write your newsletters and send them off for you, with your name and contract details of course. You join their affiliate program and you make your money that way. Well, thats the theory anyway.
Doesnt work. Write your own newsletters.
Something to take with you: Email is a powerful medium. Are you using or abusing its power
About The Author
Copyright Gina Stathopoulos & Nick Vernon
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Creating a newsletter is an ideal way to drive repeat traffic to your website but its design, format and implementation need to be carefully considered in order to achieve the desired results.
Signing Up
Before you begin creating a newsletter itself attention needs to be paid to the way in which your website will facilitate the capturing of customers email addresses and other information. Though many sites opt for the quick and simple approach of placing a Name & Email Address box on their homepage this is not always the best solution.
Although such an approach makes it extremely simple for users to provide you with their basic details it leaves little scope to sell the newsletters benefits. Neither does it provide your business with the opportunity to simultaneously capture vital demographic information from its customers. A balance needs to be determined between the ease of signing-up for the user and the quality/quantity of information captured by you.
Format and Frequency
Your website visitors need to be made aware in advance how often they are going to receive a communication from your business. Failure to provide such information may deter people from giving their permission to be contacted in the first place. Stating the newsletters frequency up front will also benefit your business in the long-term as customers signing up to receive it will all share a common understanding of the expected volume of email they are going to receive - this will lower the number of customers who unsubscribe.
The format of your newsletter is also important - you should either state the format during the sign-up procedure or provide an option for your customers to choose their preferred delivery format. Most newsletters are delivered in standard text format though HTML is being favoured more and more as it enables greater use of images and links but beware - not all Internet users can view HTML newsletters. There are various ways to combat these issues of compliance including delivering a newsletter in both formats based on customers chosen option at the sign-up stage.
Content is King
This phrase applies equally as well to newsletters as it does to a websites content. Your newsletter may be well-designed, easy on the eye and technically sound but if it doesnt contain information that recipients find of value it is worthless.
Creating a newsletter can achieve many objectives and therefore you must decide on which are most important to you. Do you want to use the newsletter to facilitate increased traffic, enable capture of marketing information, push direct sales, improve public relations, generate product feedback or foster loyalty Your newsletter needs to be tailored to the needs and objectives of your business in this regard.
Generating repeat traffic is one of the easier objectives to attain via a newsletter - including relevant links to certain areas of your site, or featuring competitions / special offers can all drive traffic to your site.
Summary
Engaging in newsletter activity is the electronic equivalent of knocking on your customers door - your business has the potential to sell, whether this be selling products, services or the ethos of your company - the potential should not be overlooked.
Mike Cheney
About The Author
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