Bretts Marketing Bytes

Email Marketing is like dieting. Everyone knows what they are supposed to do but no one does it.

People spend hundreds of dollars per year on lose weight quick diet programs only to find that they didn’t get the results that they were hoping for, when the answer is right there in front of them. EAT WELL, and EXERCISE. It’s actually pretty simple, right?

So what does this have to do with email marketing? Email marketing is similar in the respect of how people treat their email lists. Companies have a hard time resisting the temptation of sending their messages out to everyone on the list, or as I will call it in this post, stuffing their face.  They will even continue to buy and rent lists just to try and make a buck.  Just like the lose weight quick ideas; they are disappointed when the results come back.

So if you are not going to send your email out to your entire list, what should you do? Here are a couple rules to follow.

• Don’t blast your message out to everyone on your list. Send it to people who you know want to hear about your message.

• Get personal with your list. Do surveys. Have a calling campaign to ensure that you have the right people receiving the right emails.

• Before adding someone you met at a networking event to your mailer. Call or email them and ask if they want to be a part of your list and what topics they would be interested in receiving. This creates a soft touch to that person and also gets you a more targeted email address.

• Remind people occasionally why they are receiving your email. People forget quickly and sometimes don’t remember giving you their information, so a quick reminder is often useful and it builds trust.
• Don’t be afraid of people opting-out of your list. This is good because it is making your list more targeted. If they don’t want your emails, who needs them?

So in summary, eat well (segment your list) don’t just stuff everything in your face, Exercise (manager your list) and you will both lose weight and have very successful email marketing campaigns.

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