Email Marketing Tips

As a marketer, I'm always learning. With each message or marketing piece I work on for a client, there's typically a bit of testing and measuring that must be done before you get the results you want. Then, of course, there's the matter of "frequency" and "consistency." Without them you might as well not do anything.

This leads me to our topic for this newsletter: "Email Marketing Tips." Email marketing is a cost-effective way to market to your customers and there are so many things you can do to make it work. Yes, despite the amount of spam and the availability of people's time to read what comes into their in-boxes, you can make an email campaign work for you.

First you've got to decide how you are going to manage an email campaign. There are specific requirements outlined in the Can Spam Act and you want to make sure you don't ignore them. There are still a lot of unscrupulous people out there sending spam and you don't want to look like you're one of them because you don't know the specifics of this Act.

In a nutshell, you need to make sure you use a permission-based list and that within each email you give people the opportunity to opt-out at any time. There are some great companies that can do all this for you. They also have nice templates already designed and can provide you with other options like running surveys and polls. (Speaking of which, take our recent survey and you will be entered in our drawing for a $25 American Express Gift card. To take the survey now, click HERE.)

Here are links to two very well-known and reputable companies. Not only do they automatically manage your database, but you can track the response of each email, knowing who opens them and who clicks through to your web site or other links. Each offers a free trial so you can try out all of them and select the one that works best for you. Just click on a link, sign-up for your trial, and you're on your way to making email marketing very simple.

Constant Contact

iContact

Finally, here are some quick tips to make your email marketing work for you.

• Make sure you are providing value in your enewsletter. Whether it's knowledge or discounts, you're database of respondents are sure to appreciate the special offers.
• Include a sign-up form on every page of your web site, as well as one on the bottom of all the emails you send through Outlook or your email program.
• Team up with other businesses and see if they'll include coupons for your product/service in their e-newsletter if you do the same for them.
• Offer an incentive for someone to sign up for your e-newsletter. You could hold a contest or offer them a whitepaper or e-book.
• At the point of sale, ask your customers if they want to receive your e-newsletter.
  

Do you need some help with your email marketing? With Eagle Soars Marketing, you don't have to worry about your email campaign getting out on time. We can help you build your email list through a targeted campaign. We can also gather and write the material for your email campaign. Finally, we can send out your emails for you at whatever frequency you desire. We can do all this for a cost that's affordable to the small business owner. To find out about our email marketing services, contact us at info@eaglesoars-marketing.com.

Are your prospects walking on by or are they taking notice of you?

I was recently sent an email that told of an experiment that was done by the Washington Post. Very briefly, a man went to a metro station in Washington DC during rush hour and played his violin.

The email that was originally sent to me did not contain much of the details. After sending it to some friends, one was very kind to respond to me with the link to the actual Washington Post article. Her desire to find more on this article was very helpful to me, as she did not know I was going to feature it in this newsletter.

The piece was entitled, "Pearls Before Breakfast." If you work in a large city and commute using public transportation, you may be able to relate to the story. One cold January morning, a musician was playing his violin at a metro station. What people didn't know about this man is that he was Joshua Bell, an internationally acclaimed virtuoso, and that he was playing probably one of the most expensive Stradivari violins.

During this experiment, Bell played some of the most beautiful and difficult classical musical pieces. You would think, despite the casual way he may have been dressed, people would have stopped to listen. Right? Well, sad to say the answer is "wrong." You may read the entire article by clicking HERE.

Reading this story made me think. How many business owners provide a really great product or service but no one knows about it? Small business owners spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars each year to advertise and market their business. Where are they going wrong? Could it be that:

- people don't really know a good thing when they see it?
- most are just too busy to take notice of the things around them?
- our marketing just isn't telling the right message?

Because of our fast-paced world, it's important to get your message out to people in a way that quickly attracts their attention. It's not the cleverness of your advertising that gets them to respond. Instead, they must have a need for what you are selling.

As we read through newspapers and magazines we are actually skimming the advertisements. If you notice, you will usually stop at an advertisement that has a headline that captures your attention for something you need to purchase. For example, say you are interested in purchasing a new mattress. If you are skimming through the newspaper, your eye may be drawn to the headline for "Mattress Sale." If you don't have an immediate need, you'll just gloss right over.

So what do you have to do to get noticed?

1. Make sure your headline reflects the problem you will be solving for your prospect or features the product you will be selling?
2. Be certain your ad focuses on the needs of your customer and is oriented toward them using "you" and "your" instead of "we" and "our."
3. Keep your company logo, contact information, and web address at the bottom of the advertisement.
4. Whenever possible, educate your reader.
5. Always include a "call to action."

We can help you evaluate the effectiveness of your current advertising campaign. To find out about our marketing services or how we can help you create an advertising campaign that will make them stop and take notice, contact us at info@eaglesoars-marketing.com.