Your Newsletters Are Pretty Lame If You Are Doing These 7 Things
by Gina Stathopoulos
I remember the good old days of the internet when it was a real treat to subscribe to someone’s newsletter and receive all their wonderful information through the convenience of your email.
It’s 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 won’t last long.
The autoresponder is the ideal place to get your subscriber familiar with yourself and your business. It’s 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: “Don’t 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 haven’t yet realized that hype doesn’t sell. Information does.
If you are making all this money, then help someone who isn’t. Give them some intelligent information. Help them make an informed decision about buying your product.
Something to take with you: “Uh… Don’t hype?”
3. Instead of 80% content and 20% selling you are doing it the other way around
Your subscriber didn’t give you permission to sell to them. They gave you permission to give them more information. That’s 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 won’t stick out like a sore thumb and your readers won’t 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 people’s articles. This is his technique:
* His newsletters begin by telling readers a little about his day.
* Then he introduces the article author, giving readers about a paragraph of information about him/her
* Next we read the article
* Then he gives us his thoughts/tips/stories/comments.
* Then he finishes by referring to the author and the information in the article.
I’ve 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, I’ve come to know him, trust him, like him. Not only does he provide me with good articles, he is also knowledgeable in the subject he’s involved him and his contributions really help reinforce the information of the article.
Unfortunately, most newsletter publishers don’t use the power of articles. You see, when you don’t put effort into it, I know you went to an article directory, selected an article, joined it’s 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. It’s 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, don’t you? Then your name and website address at the bottom of your email won’t 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. Don’t 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, let’s 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 won’t make an impression on me. I already know this. And if I was a newbie, I would know this too because I would’ve 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 don’t 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, that’s the theory anyway.
Doesn’t work. Write your own newsletters.
Something to take with you: “Email is a powerful medium. Are you using or abusing its power?”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright © Gina Stathopoulos & Nick Vernon
Looking for a gift? Let Gina and Nick show you what we buy for friends/family and each other. At our site you will find popular gifts, gift information and stories from our readers. Come have a look http://www.we-recommend.com
| DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware. |
More Newsletter Marketing Articles
More By Developer Shed
 developerWorks - FREE Tools!
|
As businesses grow increasingly dependent upon Web applications to provide services to customers, employees and partners, these complex applications become more difficult to secure. Although traditional security solutions protect Internet infrastructure layers, they do not guard against HTTP and HTML attacks. Many organizations that conduct security testing still deploy applications that allow attackers to manipulate their logic and wreak havoc on their business. To mitigate this risk, development and delivery teams must address Web application security throughout the lifecycle, addressing the many layers detailed in this paper.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
WebSphere Process Server delivers a unique integration framework that simplifies existing IT resources. Often, as IT assets grow to support business demand, so too does their complexity and manageability. In this webcast, we’ll discuss how WebSphere Process Server helps deliver an SOA infrastructure that provides a common model to orchestrate, mediate, connect, map, and execute the underlying IT functions. Discover how WebSphere Process Server simplifies integration of business processes by leveraging existing IT assets as reusable services without the complexities of traditional integration methodologies.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
Download the Rational Application Developer (RAD) v7.5 open beta code and start developing applications for the JEE5 standard which features EJB3.0, JPA, JSF 1.2, JSP 2.1 and Servlet 2.5 standards. When you use this beta you will see how you can increase developer productivity for already existing applications with improved support for refactoring, as well as adding new features to existing applications. In addition, the beta provides tooling for JD Edwards, Oracle, SAP, Siebel and PeopleSoft to improve the developer productivity with these enterprise systems.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
Discover how IBM Rational AppScan Standard Edition can help you detext vulnerabilities in your web applications in the Web Application Security eKit. IBM Rational AppScan is a leading suite of automated web application security solutions that scan and test for common Web application vulnerabilities. The new Web Application Security eKit provides you with valuable resources, including white papers, demos, and additional information on the benefits of testing your Web applications.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
Secure your Web applications with IBM Rational AppScan Standard Edition V7.7, previously known as Watchfire AppScan. This Web application security testing tool automates vulnerability assessments and scans and tests for common Web application vulnerabilities. Visit IBM developerWorks to download a free trial of IBM Rational AppScan Standard Edition V7.7.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
This webcast outlines the best practices that must be instituted to gain the maximum benefit from SOA while maintaining high quality of service. Whether you are deploying new applications or managing and monitoring your existing infrastructure, learn how you can ensure high quality of services with SOA based solutions from IBM. All registrants who attend this live Web Seminar will receive complimentary access to a white paper titled “Maintaining QoS in an SOA Environment”.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
Join this Rational Talks to You teleconference on November 29 at 1:00 pm ET to participate in an interactive discusssion with Grady Booch around architecture and reuse. Get your questions answered!
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
Try the latest version of IBM Rational Manual Tester V7.0.1 by downloading a free trial from IBM developerWorks. This manual test authoring and execution tool promotes test step reuse to reduce the impact of software change on testers and business analysts and addresses the needs of teams performing at least a portion of their testing manually.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
User communities play an important role in communication and collaboration around products, solutions and other areas of special interest to members. Successful communities are able to provide the right mix of content and services to deliver a value proposition that resonates with each audience. Join Tom Inman, VP of Marketing for Information and Platform Solutions as he introduces the new LeverageINFORMATION community. During this webcast, learn about the value provided by the community and how customers and partners derive value from the community in addressing their own technical and business challenges.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
Explore how Rational and WebSphere software enable enterprise documentation in SOA environments. Specifically, a new integration between IBM WebSphere® Business Modeler and IBM Rational® Method Composer software can help technical writers more easily keep enterprise operations manuals in sync with changes that are made to business processes, resulting in more accurate and timely documentation that benefits the entire enterprise.
FREE! Go There Now!
|
|
|
|
All FREE IBM® developerWorks Tools!
|
