Getting the Word Out – Part 3 - Let's Go
by Andrew Shedden
In part two of this series you learned that content is the single most important component of your newsletter. To read part two please
click here.
Before you can effectively roll out your newsletter you have to be absolutely certain that you have considered all of the areas in part one and two of this series which is to say…
You have spent some time thinking about the structure and purpose of your web site. You have an excellent idea of what response you're trying to obtain.
You have concluded that an e-mail newsletter is the most effective way to reach current and prospective customers and attract them to your web site.
You have a clear marketing purpose in mind for your newsletter and know the correct ratio of content to advertising.
Now your first issue is written. Your finger is poised and ready to click send and you steel yourself for publishing fame and fortune… but wait.
Before you start here's inviolate Rule # 1
If you want to quickly destroy every vestige of hard earned on line credibility buy one of those CD directories that contain ten million e-mail addresses and start sending out your sales pitches and wait for the money to roll in. It ain't gonna happen. What will happen is you will be branded as having committed the ultimate on line marketing faux pas.
As with almost everything else in marketing, there are no quick fixes. Sending out Unsolicited Commercial E-mail (UCE) is what is known as spamming. The term comes from the Monty Python sketch where Spam is served with everything.
There is a tremendous amount of hysteria about the pernicious nature of spam on the Internet. Some Internet users become psychotically enraged with the receipt of even a single errant e-mail message. I receive spam in my company mailbox every day. I find it a somewhat annoying, but allowable price we all pay for cheap, easy, and fast mass communication. Regardless of your personal viewpoint DON'T SPAM.
Because of the concern regarding all things spam some people become very fearful and begin to question the validity of even attempting to market with e-mail over the Internet. I can assure you that e-mail marketing is an ongoing and rapidly growing concern.
Two questions seem to arise with all companies that hire us to handle their marketing and communications challenges. I am consistently asked the following:
1. "What if I want to send an e-mail to a past or present customer announcing some new promotion? Can I do that or will I be spamming?"
2. "How can I ethically build my e-mail newsletter subscriber base on line?"
The answers I give are these:
1. "Consider the words Unsolicited and Commercial before you send out any mailing."
Unsolicited simply means I didn't ask for your e-mail and you have no relationship with me. Commercial means cookie cutter. Think about untargeted bulk messages apropos of nothing being blasted out in cyber space. If you have a past relationship with your intended recipient by all means send out a relevant message with the option of them opting in. If they don't opt in then don't send them another message. Simple, isn't it?
2. "There are many on line activities you can participate in to build your subscriber base without spamming. The key to not spamming is to always be sure you have their permission."
There are a great number of promotional activities you can engage in to build your subscriber base. Search engines obviously are very important, but there are other promotional activities you can avail yourself of. Besides taking 30 seconds to put a link to your newsletter in your signature file here are the best on line methods of growing your subscriber base.
House List
Absolutely positively the best place to start is by creating your own house list from your current customers. If you need to call them for their e-mail address make sure you ask their permission to send a copy of your brand new newsletter. Also assure them that they can unsubscribe at any time. By the way, phoning and asking permission to send ONE promotional e-mail is a great way of building your very own targeted list.
Search Engines
Create and optimize a page that specifically highlights your newsletter and submit this page to the top search engines, directories, and specialized industry-specific directories. Make sure that you have properly added the correct key words and description to this page. Don't forget to use your key words in your title, and alt tags where applicable. Remember that it can take months to get listed. Submit your page and check monthly to see if your page shows up. If your page isn't showing up resubmit it.
Ezines
There are thousands of ezines on the Web that promote everything from wonton soup to macadamia nuts. There are two main paths you can follow to promote your newsletter in an ezine. You can either buy an advertisement or write an article and submit it with your own contact information.
If you choose to buy ads make sure that you pay the extra money for the prime position, as it will make a big difference to your results. Be aware of the fact that some repetition will likely be necessary in order for you to obtain accurate results. Measuring results from one ad is unfair. Conversely, you don't need to run 20 ads in an ezine to know they're not working.
A third option is to ask about trading ads with another publisher. This tends to work best once you have a minimum of 500 subscribers. You also can go to one of the on line ezine ad auction sites and get a great deal on unsold ad inventory.
Be sure to subscribe to any ezine you are considering for your promotional activities. Check out some back issues if you can. Make sure that the ezine has a good "fit" with your company and its objectives and positioning. Be sure to track your results individually for every ezine in which you advertise, barter, or write articles. You will soon separate the wheat from the chaff. Remember, if you're not measuring you're not marketing.
Opt in e-mail lists
These are the Internet based first cousins to the print mailing lists you have probably used in your business. Basically, you identify the targeted list you want or you can utilize the assistance of a list broker. Once you have selected your list the list provider will ask you for the outgoing e-mail you wish to send. Your e-mail will be sent to the opt-in list and you will receive inquiries. Once your message is sent any incoming e-mail addresses as leads or subscriptions become your property. You may market to them over and over with their permission. Despite the inflated figures that you might read responses typically run from 2 - 5%
See http://www.postmasterdirect.com
http://www.yesmail.com
An increasingly popular subscriber building option is to utilize the new service companies that offer pay by subscriber options. You will pay from 15 cents to one dollar per subscriber. If you know the real value of a subscriber to your business this can be a very attractive option.
See http://www.topica.com
Press Releases
You can send out on line press releases as an effective and relatively inexpensive way of growing your subscriber base. Keep in mind that because of the ease of using e-mail many editors are absolutely inundated with press releases. Some sites are free but you should know that these resource sites only provide you with links. You will still have to send out individual releases.
See http://www.prweb.com
http://www.ideasiteforbusiness.com/direct.htm
Paid sites tend to offer much more complete lists and contacts. You can build your own list of contacts or have it done for you. Some of these companies will also send out your press release on your behalf.
See http://www.bacons.com
http://www.silverplatter.com
Banner Ads, Banner Exchanges, Link Exchanges etc.
I don't recommend banner advertising. When was the last time you clicked on a banner? The clickthrough rates normally are abysmally small. Nor do I recommend banner exchanges. Link exchanges can be of some use but you need to ensure the site that you are exchanging links with has at least as much traffic as yours. Finally, I would question the validity of providing your customers the opportunity to click on a link and leave your site. You have worked very hard to bring traffic to your site, why send it away?
This concludes a primer on marketing with newsletters. Now, good luck and get going.
