Tag: e-Newsletters

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How to Start Your e-Newsletter List

Don’t think you can start marketing your services with an e-newsletter as you don’t have a big list?

Get started building your e-newsletter list fast

Here's How to Start Your e-Newsletter List.
Here’s How to Start Your e-Newsletter List.

1.  Go back to your correspondence with current and old customers and grab the email address. Start creating your list in an Excel spreadsheet. All you really need is the first name and email address.

2. Update your website privacy policy before you really get serious about building your list. Make sure that you clearly state that if someone contacts you at your business email address that you will be adding them to your e-newsletter list. Make sure you also state if you will be selling your list to third parties or only using it for your own purposes.

3. Every time you get an email, add that address to your spreadsheet. You will be amazed that in 30 days your list can grow to several hundred people.

4. Take time to review old records of past clients and add them to your e-newsletter address list too. The Can Spam Act does not allow you to harvest emails from people you do not know, but if you have had a business relationship with anyone, you can add them to your list.

5. When your e-newsletter list has about 200 people on it, you are ready to send out your first newsletter. Make your first one the explanation of what you are doing and tell people how to opt out.

Sending to your e-newsletter list

Once you get started, be consistent in sending your notes. I like monthly for my e-newsletters. Quarterly may be too much time apart and weekly for most businesses is too frequent. Whatever you choose, just stick with it.

Make sure you have a subscription form on your website. Allow your website and blog visitors to self-subscribe to your e-newsletter list by putting your subscription services form on your website.

Creating your initial list is not hard and is not really time consuming. The value of being able to contact and promote your business and services to current, past, and future clients is highly valuable to your overall marketing efforts.

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Why I Like e-Newsletters as a Business Outreach

E-newsletters can be put to work for you.
E-newsletters can be put to work for you.

I take time each month to write an e-newsletter and have found over the years that for me personally it is an excellent way to continue to connect with existing customers and potential new prospects. For my business needs, an e-newsletter has simply not gone out of style.

I have found that many businesses have never tapped into the power of e-newsletters and want to let you know why as a business owner you should.

1. It is less costly to build sales with existing customers than new customers.

2. With a monthly newsletter you put your name with your “face” in front of your existing customers on a regular basis. Reminding them why you matter and letting them know of any new services or programs you offer.

3. An e-newsletter is a great way to showcase a new product, mention specific features and benefits or simply establish yourself as an authority on a topic.

4. It is easy to grow your subscriber list. Make sure you cover what you do with email addresses in your online privacy policy by stating that if you are contacted by a prospect by email you will be automatically adding them to your email list. Assure that if they ask to be removed from the list, you do so right away or use a subscription service with self management features.

5. I cannot begin to tell you the number of times a new customer has said to me, I have been getting your e-newsletter for a while and now that I need X services, I thought to call you first. I find that my e-newsletter makes me approachable. I will have subscribers frequently send me a personal note with a question. All of which I will respond to personally.

E-newsletters really work for my own business, if you are not using one, I feel that you are missing a golden opportunity. Take a look at our online information about e-newsletters to find out more and to learn how easy we can make it for you to get started with one.

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Mobile-Friendly Designs for e-Newsletters

Teens whispering
Get on the advanced notification list.

I have been testing mobile designs for e-newsletters for my clients and am just about ready to roll out a new program. For those that are not using an e-newsletter yet, but are looking for a fairly inexpensive way to touch base with clients and build loyalty it is time to give an e-newsletter serious consideration.

With the advent of increased activity in the mobile space and the higher cost per click on AdWords, keeping your customer base alive and purchasing from you regularly makes a mobile-friendly e-newsletter a cost efficient solution for staying in touch.

Although many subscription management services have e-newsletter templates, not all have templates that are mobile friendly and all do not allow you to archive your own newsletter in html back on your own website for search engines.

It has been said that it is three time less expensive to build up sales with existing customers than it is to get a new customer. This is where e-newsletters are a great fit.

If you would like to be on our advance notice list of our program launch, please just contact us and we’ll make sure you get contacted.

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Should I Do an e-Newsletter? Isn’t it Passé?

Are there Pros and Cons to an e-newsletter?
Are there Pros and Cons to an e-newsletter?

I cannot begin to tell you how many times I’ve heard, “I love your newsletter, it has value to me, and now that I need X, I thought to call you first.”

If you are not creating great content that is shareable in an e-newsletter format, not only are you missing potential sales, but you may be missing ways to create loyalty with your current client base. When you create loyalty with your current base, you protect your business from “poaching”, build advocates for your own services, enhance referral actions, and protect your business from price shopping.

Doing an e-newsletter is easy, especially if you are blogging at least twice a week. We recommend to our blogging clients that they use the best blog post (or two) as the content for their monthly e-newsletter. I’ve found that typically the person who reads your blog is not the person who subscribes to your e-newsletter. If you feel that using blog posts may be too redundant for your audience, enlarge the blog post or add additional content value to it for the e-newsletter version.

With so many options for prefab e-newsletter templates you don’t need to have a custom one built necessarily, but some of our clients like one that reinforces their own brand.

Once your subscriber list size is about 100 or so you are ready to start working on creating and publishing your e-newsletter.