If theres one thing Ive learnt in over 3 years ofweb marketing, it is this: you *must* follow up withyour visitors.
The statistics are very clear about this: the 1stcontact produces 2% of sales, the 5th to12th contactsproduce 80% of sales.
I knew about this for years but didnt act on it.Then, about 8 months ago I wrote a 5 Day Email Courseabout my eBook (Ezine Writer) and offered it to myvisitors.
The response was amazing - my sales almost doubled.
This is how it works:
When visitors leave the index page of my website, apopup appears inviting them to join my newsletter.
When they join, they also receive a free subscriptionto my 5 Day Email Course, which is delivered bysequential autoresponder.
But theres an important detail here. You dont wantthe popup appearing when your visitors click on theorder link - it distracts them and you could wellmiss a sale.
So the popup has to be designed so that it *doesnt*appear when the order link is clicked.
You do this by including an exit=false tag withinthe order link. You can get the code for this - andfor the popup - at:http://www.ezine-writer.com/popup-code.html
The next thing to do is set up your Message Sequenceon sequential autoresponders.
There are two ways of doing it - you can use aweb-based service or you can install a script on yourserver.
I use a web-based service (aweber) - mainly because myweb host doesnt allow mailing scripts of any kind.
Here are two of the best-known web-based services:http://www.aweber.com http://www.getresponse.com
If you want to avoid monthly fees, there are sitesthat offer free sequential autoresponders (but theywill insert their own ads in your autoresponse):
http://www.freeautobot.com/
http://www.informationbyemail.com/
http://www.autorespond-it.com/
http://www.sendfree.com/
The advantage of a web-based service is thateverything is done for you. The downside is monthlyfees and a limited number of follow-ups (you can getmore, but you have to pay for them).
The second method is to install a script on yourserver. Here are some scripts that give you unlimitedautoresponders:
http://www.smithfam.com/follow-up.html
http://www.ursoftware.com/autoresponder/
http://www.constructorbooks.com/easysponder/
The advantages of a script You have no monthly fees(just a one-time payment for the script) and you getunlimited follow-ups.
So, those are the tools you need to deliver yourMessage Sequence.
Writing your Message Sequence is quite an art and youmay need some help. Here is an excellent shorttutorial:http://autorespondertools.com/autoresponder_follow-up_series.htm
Thats it! All the info you need to double yourconversion rate.
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Michael Southon has been writing for the Internet for over 3
years. He has shown hundreds of webmasters how to use this
simple technique to build a successful online business. Click
here to find out more:
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When you are an expert, you sometimes forget that others dont know as much as you do. Not only do you understand your topic at a higher level, but you also know whats important for a novice to know. By providing your insight to those at a basic level, you can save them time in learning and applying their newly acquired knowledge.
So how do you share your expert information with prospects and clients in order to showcase your expertise while providing them with desired knowledge Why not offer a course via email
Your course will consist of several lessons, delivered at pre-set intervals. Youll compose the lessons once so that youre ready to deliver them to anyone who signs up for the course.
Now wont that be a bear to administer, you ask Not if you use one of the online services that is designed to do this. This category of service is called a sequential autoresponder. There are several services to choose from.
In using one of the popular autoresponder services, for example, you have up to 52 lessons. Your first lesson is set to go out immediately after your new student sends an email to the course address (you set this address!). Then each lesson goes out automatically on the day you prescribe. It may be daily for the first 3 days, then every 3d day thereafter. Or it may be weekly.
Regardless of the interval, you enter each lesson as you want it to appear to the enrollees. Since you dont know when someone will sign up, the system tracks each enrollee individually so that they receive their emails on schedule, regardless of when other people sign up. Its like having a private secretary to track all of the enrollments and
mailouts!
You can opt to receive a notification each time someone signs up to take the course (fun at first, but overwhelming in the long run). At any time you can log into your control panel and see who is enrolled in your course, which email they have received and when they last heard from you.
Why would you want to offer an email course
Maybe you have a complex subject on which you need to educate prospects. Why not create a course - with a small commercial in each lesson
Maybe you delivered a great seminar and you now want to keep in touch with audience members. Why not create a series of reminder emails to be sent at regular intervals
Or maybe you want to offer an online course, but youre not sure how well it will go over. Why not pilot some of the content with an email course to test the market
Or perhaps you sell a product or service online and you want to entice more people to share their name and email with you. You can offer the free course as the incentive to share their information.
Whats a course like this cost Fees vary, but you can offer an email course for less than $20 per month. In some cases you may already have the sequential autoresponders you need built into another feature of your website.
So go ahead and add an email course to your online strategy on an ongoing basis. You wont be sorry. Youll probably find yourself back starting a new course shortly! And each time you do, youll enhance your credibility.
For an example of an email course, send an email to
Dr. Jeanette Cates is an Internet strategist who works with experts who are ready to turn their knowledge and their websites into Gold. Her reputation as a speaker and trainer has earned her the title of The Technology Tamer. With more than 20 years in instructional design and elearning, Jeanette shares her news and views in