We all get ezines, we all read *some* of them — I
just went through a "decluttering" process where I unsubscribed from
about 10 ezines. All because they failed to meet my expectations.
Unsubscribes typically occur as a result of one of the below; these are
easy to correct and well worth the time involved.
1. Not providing useful information.
You
want to insure that you include great information for your readers. You
don’t need to tell them everything or give away any secrets, but you do
need to give them chunks of information.
A relationship coach,
for example, may wish to provide tips on maintaining a successful
marriage; while a virtual assistant may wish to provide her readers
with tips on how to get the most from her services.
In both
cases, the ezine showcases your skills while allowing prospective
clients to get a feel for your style before hiring you.
2. Making it harder than it has to be.
I
was talking to a new client the other day and he mentioned that he is
sending out a monthly email newsletter. "That’s great", I said and
asked him to tell me a little more about it. He started talking about
all the work that goes into it and the number of hours he spends
formatting it so it looks "just right" and what a pain it is when
someone unsubscribes, etc.
Turns out he has been sending his
ezine manually — using his email program (Microsoft Outlook). If you
are doing this, it’s time to stop. Forgetting the sheer pain in the
butt that this is, most ISPs will block you if you try to
simultaneously send to more than 15 email addresses and, further, you
could be labeled as a spammer.
Let me recommend two different
programs for publishing your ezine: Constant Contact is great for those
who do not know html as it has hundreds of professional templates that
you can select from and KickStart Cart allows you to combine an ezine
publisher with your shopping cart in order to accept credit cards,
create autoresponders as well as manage an affiliate program.
The easier it is for you, the more likely you are to keep up with it. Which leads to my third point. . .
3. Sending your ezine "occasionally".
You’re giving good information and you’ve made it easy on yourself to publish, now set your publishing schedule and STICK TO IT!
There
is nothing worse than a lack of consistency in sending out your ezine.
Your readers will come to know you through your newsletter — you don’t
want to come through as haphazard or "occasional".
If you’re not
yet comfortable committing to sending out a weekly ezine, don’t. Send
it out biweekly or monthly. Whatever schedule you select however, you
must stay with it unless you decide to step up the frequency. If you
choose to go from monthly to biweekly, let your readers know and then
stick with that new schedule.
Regardless of what you do or how perfect your ezine is, not everyone will read it and you need to get over it.
While
that sounds harsh, consider it some "tough love". It’s true. You can
write the absolute best articles on the most incredible topics and know
that not everyone who receives your ezine will read it. Fact is, if you
get around 50% readership, you are doing very well.
Don’t get
discouraged however. When deciding to send out an ezine, it’s your
responsibility to provide good information in a readable format and
know that those who resonate with you will read and look forward to
receiving the information.
Leading
small business expert Sandra Martini is the "Automatic Business
Coach." Sandra delivers simple proven, yet innovative, ways entrepreneurs
can implement processes and systems to create a waiting list of clients while
giving them more money, time, and freedom in their businesses. For free
articles, free resources and to sign up for her free audio mini-seminar "5
Quick & Easy Ways to Put Your Marketing on Autopilot" visit www.SandraMartini.com.