And The Winner Is
Late last year I posted a contest here where you were given the chance to win a “secret” marketing package worth $97 by voting on the Best Marketing Videos of 2008.
While the response wasn’t exactly what I had hoped I am happy to announce the winner of the $99 Marketing Sherpa, Tweaking Your Site’s Copy to Get More Search Engine Traffic How-to Kit!
Congratulations to Rodney Jacobsen who was chosen at random from those of you that voted on the winning video. Choice #1 was the winner and you can view it and the other videos here.
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E-mail Marketing Success Steps - Part II
Sorry for the wait! Here is the conclusion of my e-mail marketing success steps.
Step #6: Send test mailings before unveiling to your full list
Before you send any email to your mailing list, there are some essential steps you need to take to ensure that there are no “accidents” that make you look unprofessional and destroy the mailings conversion rate.
- At a minimum you should send test mailings, open, and view them in Microsoft Outlook, Google Mail, Yahoo! Mail, MSN Hotmail, and AOL.
- Ensure a text message is no longer than 65 characters and a message written in HTML has no viewable code.
- Verify there are no strange characters in the subject line or body of the message.
- Verify that all of the fields you have chosen to “Merge” in the mailing have done so properly.
- Check that all hot links are working.
- Make sure to spell check the entire e-mail including the subject field.
- Ensure your contact information and mailing list removal details are clearly visible.
- Test your e-mail for SPAM Triggers. There are many tools out there for this purpose including stand-alone software as well as Word and Outlook Plug-ins. But, to get you started I recommend using this simple online tool.
If you follow these simple steps every time, the only thing that could prevent your e-mail from being successful is the copy itself, and not an easily avoidable mistake that is made while formatting or sending it.
Step #7: Send follow-up mailings
Did you know that a large portion of your existing customers will account for the majority of your future sales and profits? It’s true!
Your existing customers are also your very best prospective customers. If you run your business in the proper manner these people should already know and trust you, because they’ve had a good sales experience with you before. And while creating new customers and leads can be expensive and time consuming, sending follow-up emails to existing customers and leads doesn’t cost you a dime!
“This Is Where You Earn Your Money” is an article I wrote late last year that will assist you in understanding this subject better.
Automating the process of sending your follow-up mailings is the most important part of this step, and there are many software, script, and online autoresponder choices currently available for you to choose from.
One that I personally use and highly recommend for features and ease-of-use can be found here.
Step #8: Track the response to your e-mail promotions
Always track and monitor the results of your e-mail tests and promotions to determine what worked —and what did not (so you can dump the losing promotions and give your attention to the winners)!
Testing and tracking is a huge topic on itself so I won’t go into much detail here. If you chose my recommended autoresponse system that I talked about earlier it includes some powerful tracking tools that you should make use of. The creator of the software has included detailed tutorials to teach you how to use them properly as well.
Step #9: Continuously seek opportunities to automate
This process should be an ongoing part of your online business, not a simple “step” that you complete as part of an e-mail campaign.
You should always be looking for opportunities to automate repetitive tasks. The more you focus on “growing” your business instead of “running” it, the faster your sales and profits will multiply — and the more free time you’ll have to enjoy it.
Throughout my Blog, you will find plenty of material detailing how you can automate various aspects of your business. In fact, after you find the right people you will probably find yourself doing very little with your e-mail marketing beyond approving the sales copy before it is sent.
Here is a great place to get started automating your business.
Step #10: Enjoy the success
Often I meet Internet marketers that are having some sort of success but, they never take the time to enjoy it! What is the point?
Don’t forget to enjoy it! Take a trip, work half days on Friday, etc. Do anything you can think of to enjoy your success and not burn out.
It took a little longer than expected to get them all to you but, there you have my ten success tips for a successful e-mail marketing campaign.
As I said in the earlier post, I didn’t go into a ton of detail on this so don’t hesitate to post a comment with any questions or comments you may have.
Like this blog post? Buy me a coffee or send me a tip! E-mail Marketing Success Steps
I’d like to take a moment to give you an outline of a successful email marketing campaign. Remember that every step in this course of action is essential to your success, so it’s important that you understand these ten steps and how they will all work together.
I can’t go into great detail in only one blog post but, I am open to questions so don’t hesitate to post any questions you may have if you are unclear about something via the comment form and I will respond as soon as I can.
Let’s get to it:
Step #1: Build an opt-in list of highly responsive subscribers
To begin with, you need to have an actual list of opt-in email addresses to send your promotions to. This may seem like a “master of the obvious” type statement but, without a list, your campaign is going nowhere!
And while building your list is unquestionably going to be your first priority, it will also remain a key focal point for as long as you are running your own business. To start growing and managing your new or current opt-in list, I recommend you utilize some proven strategies and tools. One such strategy and tool that will assist you in doing this is Co-Registration Leads.
Click here for more information about Co-Registration Leads and my recommended Co-Registration Leads Source.
Step #2: Build strong relationships with your opt-in list
The most successful Internet marketers focus on developing strong, personal relationships with their opt-in subscribers.
It doesn’t cost you dime, and if you can offer the kind of precious information that your subscribers are seeking, it won’t be long before word spreads and your opt-in list (and your reputation!) begins to grow.
And no matter how large your list gets, you can make sure each of your subscribers feels they’re getting the personal attention they believe they deserve.
Today’s best autoresponder tools personalize your messages and are able to send them to targeted segments of your mailing list, all the while saving your huge amounts of time.
My recommended autoresponder service not only is one of the best on the market right now but, includes several other powerful tools that you can either implement now or use to replace another related service and save you money! I have been using the service for years and they have never failed to keep up with the continuous changes the various ISPs make to prevent your e-mails from being read.
Click here for more information about my recommended autoresponder service and while you are there go ahead and take it and the included tools for a 30-day test drive for free.
Or if you would like an example of how effective an autoresponder service it is click here and subscribe to my mailing list about “How autoresponders can make you money.”
Step #3: Write compelling, effective e-mail promotions
Clearly, a key component of any successful email campaign is the actual salescopy itself. How do you write convincing copy that generates the largest possible response, and ensure that it’s formatted so that the greatest number of email programs will display it the way you anticipated?
After all, there’s really no point in creating an exceptional email marketing campaign if it winds up in the targeted readers “Trash” folder! But there’s a fine line between attracting interest and looking like spam.
Successful e-mail salescopy differs greatly from the salescopy you would normally put on a website. If you don’t think this is the case you are wasting time and money on e-mail campaigns that aren’t optimized. Let’s take a look at a few of the key elements of great e-mail copy:
- The offer is important to the readers needs. Answer the question, “How will they benefit?”
- Include a single offer or “call to action.” NEVER include multiple offers in a single e-mail. If you want them to buy something then focus on that. If you want them to subscribe to a different list then that should be your focus.
- Create an urgency to the offer. Only good for the next 24 hours, free shipping, etc.
Writing great e-mail salescopy isn’t an art. If you take your time and hit on all the key elements you will be successful.
One of the people I consider an authority on the subject of writing effective e-mail promotions is e-mail marketing expert Jimmy D. Brown. He has many books on the topic but, my favorite one, and the one that has assisted me with creating my own e-mail marketing campaigns can be found by clicking here.
It not only includes in great detail how to write the best salescopy for your campaigns but, it also discusses just about every other aspect of great e-mail marketing. It is a must read for any online marketer in my opinion.
Step #4: Prepare your opt-in list for a mailing
Once you’ve prepared your email promotion, it’s time to hit “Send,” or add it to your autoresponder series. But don’t be too hasty! Always take great care in preparing your opt-in list for a mailout (all the top Internet Marketers do and so should you).
Most of the top autoresponder services (including the one I recommend above), offer ways to manage your opt-in list for maximum efficiency and profits. They assist you by removing duplicate addresses from your list, automatically manage your bounced-back messages which will increase your delivery rate, remove known “spam” addresses to keep you from being reported maliciously, and much more.
You should always do everything you can to prevent your e-mail campaign from being a total disaster! Always, always, always check your e-mail for formatting, content, omitted hot links, and spelling. All of these things are easily avoidable but, if not taken care of before you hit send, will significantly impact the success of your campaign, and lower your credibility with your readers.
Step #5: Make sure your e-mail promotional messages don’t look like spam
If you are accused of sending spam, nearly all of your future messages may be blocked by ISPs and anti-spam organizations! This can be the biggest headache in online marketing to fix and until it is, your subscribers will never even see your offer! It is vital, I repeat, it is vital that you keep your mailing list off the “blacklists.”
I’m not going to go into all the ways your e-mail activities can get your blacklisted as I am assuming that you aren’t into using deceptive or phony marketing practices. But, even the most respected marketer can end up with his or her mailing list blacklisted if they don’t do the following:
- Include a clear and easy way for readers to unsubscribe for your list, in every single e-mail piece that is sent out.
- Include a valid postal address, in every single e-mail piece that is sent out.
If you don’t follow these simple steps you will quickly find yourself with a completely useless mailing list because, no one on it will receive your offer.
I know I promised “ten steps” but, this post is getting on the long side and you probably already have actions to take based on what I have shared already.
I promise I will post the remaining five steps shortly. If you have any questions just leave a comment below or click on the “contact” link at the top of the page and drop me an e-mail message. I want you to succeed with your business and if you have a question that goes unanswered you are really doing yourself and your business a disservice.
Come back tomorrow for the other five steps…
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