There is a lot of buzz about web 2.0 and "social media" but I believe that email is the original "social media." Facebook became more popular than MySpace and Twitter is more favored by some than Facebook, but email has stayed the same. One person can keep in touch with many people using email. This is great for a business because it is a means to communicate to many potential customers. To produce maximum results one must learn the art of email marketing. You have to carefully introduce products to your list. Here is some advice to think about when creating your campaigns!
So you hear all this talk about "building relationships" and offering value first; instead of trying to sell to your subscribers immediately. I know some people are not interested in building relationships because it is a time consuming process, but I do believe that there is a lot of value in doing so. Using email autoresponders is a great way to build relationships and market via email. There lies a thin line between a call to buy and a personal touch. To get the best results your emails should be in the middle of the two. Special touches such as traditionally sending an email thanking new and old subscribers for reading make a significant impact. This small gesture reassures your subscribers that you are human and not an advertising machine.
Your goal should be to provide your readers with good content so that you gain their trust. They will value your word when you keep sending them value. So, when you do offer a product they will be more prone to purchase because you have provided them with so much free content that they trust the product you are offering will benefit them very much. Your subscribers should feel like you have their best interest at heart. They can tell when you are using them to make a quick sale. Something to keep in mind is that "people do not care about what you know, they want to know that you care." With that said, keep your subscribers interests in mind to increase your sales. Think about them when you write. Ask yourself what they are doing on your website and in your emails; what were they looking for when they signed up. Relevance is a very important factor.
Another overlooked tip is the "Welcome" email, which is designed to remind people that they signed up in the first place. The welcome email is also a good place to point out extra benefits and features that the subscriber may not have known about when joining your list. Also provide other ways for your subscribers to connect with you; via facebook, twitter, etc. You should also have useful links to other sites such as your blog or website. Your welcome email should peak their interest and have your readers pleasantly waiting to receive your emails to follow!
Here are some common mistakes that marketers make when using auto responders:
1. Providing a link that either does not work or links to a place you did not intend: This tiny mistake can cause readers to unsubscribe from your list or ignore future links because they had a bad experience with a link before. I know that sounds silly, but that is how finicky readers can be.
2. Spamming: This is useless because the person did not ask for the email and were not expecting it. So the chances that they read it are pretty slim. Spam is anything a reader does not want in their inbox.
