Publishing Your Own Ezine, Part 6 The Three Factors Of Email Marketing Success

Success can be broken down into components. It's the little things that pile up into fulfilling rewards eventually. Like ingredients to a wonderful delicacy, success is cooked up by introducing the right mix of components.

Success in email marketing is no different. It can be broken down to three distinct and critical factors that will ultimately make or break any campaign centered on such. All three factors should be complied with, as the non-performance of one can cripple the entire system.

What are these factors? How can you ensure that they will be at their peak?

Factor 1: Attraction

Your emails should be attractive in order for the recipients to open the same. A bland email will just be left untouched, even if it finds its way to the recipient's inbox. The first thing that the recipient will see, is of course, the subject title of the email. Hence, much care should be exercised in crafting the subject title so that it may capture the attention of the recipient and prompt them to click on the same and read your email.

There is a challenge here. You cannot just add any subject title you wish, least you violate the Can Spam Act which mandates that the said subject title should be relevant to the content of the email. You can't say "Congratulations, You Just Won," when the recipient never won anything. The title may be catchy, but it is deceiving, as it is illegal.

The trick is in developing a subject title that is witty, one that will capture the interest of your audience without breaking away from the spirit of the content. Hence, "A Personal Message" and "I've Got Great News For You," though vague, have been considered as great attention grabbers.

Factor 2: Readability

Would you read an email containing purely technical jargons you could not understand? How about an email that is so poorly written it's almost unintelligible? Or a comedic one when you’re expecting something serious?

Poorly prepared messages affect readability. And your recipients should read your content to be able to get your business message. The only way you can get them to read your mails is by grabbing their attention and never letting go, through compelling content that is pretty much difficult to resist.

The way your mail is written plays a big part in all of this. A poorly written email will just turn off your readers. Worse, it may brand you negatively.

Take time to formulate an email that you can be proud of, and your read rate is sure to increase.

Factor 3: Response

So, your recipients actually receive your emails, and they actually read the same. But do they respond in the manner you want them to respond? Do your emails help you reach your business goals?

If not, then your email marketing campaign is suffering from a low response rate.

To increase the response rate, you must have some effective calls to action in place. Calls to action are the mechanisms you implement to compel the subjects to do what you want them to do. In marketing, this may be in the form of special offers, urgency offers, and gratuitous offers. Mastering these mechanisms will greatly help your online business. Including them in your eZine will be the coup de grace, as you'd be able to reach a lot of people with just one message.

Study successful sales pages. Ask yourself this question: why did such a sales page make me want to buy what was being offered? Chances are, it's because of the potent call to action that was put in place. Copy these calls to action and make some adjustments to include them in your campaigns, and you will enjoy a higher response rate.

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Publishing Your Own Ezine, Part 5, HTML or Text

There are certain issues you have to contend with when developing your eZine. For beginners, these issues may pose some problems. One wrong move and you can potentially place your entire email campaign in jeopardy. You wouldn’t want that to happen, right?

Of paramount concern among these issues are those related to formatting. Creating an eZine is more than just putting together a group of words with any word processing program you can get your hands on. Creating an eZine requires skill, knowledge and proficiency on the right techniques to utilize for a better and more fruitful campaign.

Let us take a look at some of the challenges that await you, as well as answers to the most pressing questions about eZine development.

HTML Or Text?

You have an option to deliver your eZine in HTML or text formats. Which format to use? Now, that is the question.

Each of these file types have their own pros and cons.

HTML will allow you to beautify your eZine by adding pictures, hyperlinks, and lively texts. The problem with this format is that quite a number of email clients do not recognize it. The result? Your eZine may arrive as a piece with jumble, unintelligible characters due to the inability of the email client to recognize the content.

Plain text is the safer option. You are sure to deliver your eZine free from unwanted mishaps. But it will be, as the format denotes, plain, and people may find this boring.

I’d suggest plain text. Spice it up a little, however. The only way you can do this is by adding wit to make your eZine more engaging. Content will fuel your eZine, so your campaign will rely on the strength of the same.

On Length

Some eZines are terribly, terribly long that once the readers open the mail, they often decide not to read it. This should be avoided.

Keep your eZine as clear and concise as possible. If you have something to share, share it in a straightforward manner. Do not add unnecessary details. You wouldn’t want to waste your readers’ time, and you wouldn’t want to give them that impression.

In the event that length cannot be compromised, organize your eZine properly. This means adding a table of contents so that the readers will know what’s in store for them, and they can jump right into the parts they want to read.

Use Dividers

Use dividers to separate the portions of your eZine. Your dividers should form thick lines so that they may stand out and remain attractive. See the example below:

#########################

Such is an example of an effective divider. There are other characters you can use which you can play with to come up with something unique. But whatever you do, do not use dollar signs ($) as repeating characters because that will simply grab the attention of spam filters.

Number of Characters

When formatting your digital newsletter in plain text, make sure that the characters for each line do not exceed 60. This is standard. Otherwise, your mail may expand the page and it will be difficult for your readers to read your eZine by scrolling from left to the farthest right.

You will want your eZine to fit the page readily available on their screen. The only way to ensure this is by keeping close watch on the number of characters per line.

You can do this manually, which is the traditional method. Or you can make use of eZine assistance programs that will automatically parse the characters in the appropriate format. The latter is an easier step, and it will save you a lot of time.

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Publishing Your Own Ezine, Part 4, Writing For An Online Audience

You are most familiar with print publications such as your local dailies or some magazines. Some of these you may be following religiously, what with their timely and highly informative articles as well as the news and tips they provide.

Naturally, you will want to achieve the same with your own eZine.

Doing such haphazardly will prove to be fatal. Why? It’s because there are distinct differences between print publications and online materials. Primary of these differences is the manner by which content is written. You simply cannot write for an online audience the way you would for print publications. They are two very different markets.

Online materials are read from monitors. They are not like print publications which can be taken to the bathroom, the bedroom or the public transportation system to be read. Reading from monitors can be stressful in the long run, will tire out the user, especially when he is tasked to read something from his screen. This is what you will want to avoid. If they get tired, they’ll give up reading, and they won’t be able to receive your business message.

Writing for an online audience entails a unique set of rules:

1. Keep your sentences short. People will be reading from their monitors. Their eyes will get tired easily. Allow their eyesight to rest by keeping your sentences short so that they can easily be read.
   
2. Keep your paragraphs short. Same reasons as number one. Additionally, you will want your readers to feel a certain sense of accomplishment for reading your piece. This can be achieved by presenting short paragraphs so that they’d know that they have read a lot of what you have to say.
   
3. Avoid using technical jargons. You will be writing for a wide array of people with various reading comprehension levels. As such, you will want to pull them into your piece by making your works easier to understand. Jargons – especially highly technical ones - will only confuse people. So keep your words simple. The rule of the thumb is this: write as if you’re writing for a 12 year old. This is so because the average reading comprehension level is likened to that possessed by someone of such an age.
   
4. Use bulleting and numbering as much as possible. This will make it easier for your readers to scan your copy. Even if they decide to skip some parts, bulleted and numbered items will not escape their attention, and you will still be able to convey your business message.
   
5. Avoid using all caps, not even in titles. All caps is a form of digital shouting, and you wouldn’t want to give your readers that impression. This is a form of net etiquette that has been in existence in years. Its principles apply in eZines as well.
   
6. If you need to emphasize some phrases, use quotation marks. Since you cannot italic certain words or place them in bold fonts, quotation marks will suffice as replacements.
   
7. Find the right tone appropriate for your audience. You can’t be too serious when your market is demanding something amusing. And you can’t be too relaxed when your market is demanding something formal. Know your market, and write correspondingly. This way, you’d be able to relate with them better, which is the purpose of an eZine in the first place.
   

Again, writing for an online audience is very much different from writing for print publication. You have to adjust accordingly to please your target market and to better your chances of achieving your industrial goals.

Publishing Your Own Ezine, Part 3, Reasons Why You Should Publish An Ezine

An eZine isn't only good to capture leads as well as repeat visitors. It isn't only good for establishing great relationships with your prospects. If that were the case, then eZines can easily be replaced by other marketing tactics.

But eZines are on a class of their own. They are one of the most potent marketing strategies in existence. Part of this lies in their amazing ability to keep in touch with potential customers/visitors, of course. But a great part of it lies in their sheer flexibility. Indeed, eZines are capable of satisfying many marketing purposes that can bring in some direct and indirect income for your enterprise.

There are so many things you can accomplish with your eZine, basically because your eZine is capable of so many things. It's not just a means of conveying information. It can be bigger than that. And its benefits will surely stack up as time goes by and your digital publication will grow in reputation.

Let's take a look at some of the reasons why YOU should publish your own eZine.

1. An eZine can immediately brand you as an expert in your field. An eZine conveys information, information that will be attributed to come from you, the publisher. This is an excellent way of building your reputation. People will easily think that if you have the balls to publish an eZine, you have the knowledge and the skills to back it up.
   
2. An eZine can help provide a boost for your sales. This is a given. Statistics show that at an average, people buy after the 12th contact. How do you contact them? This is a purpose served by the mailing list, as powered by your eZine.
   
3. An eZine can become your leverage. Want to enter a joint venture with established players in the field? The first thing they will study is the size of your mailing list. If you have a quality and well-marketed eZine, your mailing list is sure to grow and you can use this as a bargaining point. Joint ventures are a "what's in it for me" proposition. You have to show your prospective partners that you’re a worthy addition to their team by presenting a mailing list with a lot of subscribers and an amazing response rate.
   
4. An eZine can become a revenue-generating system by itself. Once your mailing list grows, you can sell ad space on your eZine. A lot of online businessmen are constantly on the lookout for eZines with huge readerships where they can promote their own products and services.
   
5. An eZine can even require payment for subscription. Once your eZine gains a lot of prominence and credibility in the industry, you can start charging subscription rates. A lot of the big name internet marketing superstars today have paid subscriptions, and such is doing wonders for their profit rate.
   
6. An eZine can advertise your other ventures. Even if your activities are beyond internet marketing, you can always mention the same in the issues you distribute. Ezines can grow so big that the advertising mileage they can provide has tremendous potentials. It's always a great way of reaching more people, and it's fast considering the speed of digital delivery. Furthermore, you won’t have to spend that much on advertising cost, since it’s YOUR eZine.
   

There are other benefits in publishing your own eZine, but the reasons above are at the top of the list. The bottom line is this: there is no reason – no reason at all – why you should refrain from publishing your own eZine. If there’s one tactic that will change the course of your online business, it's this.

Publishing Your Own Ezine, Part 2: Choosing The Right Autoresponder Service

Publishing your own eZine is one of the most powerful tactics you can employ for your strategic online positioning. Gold is in your mailing list, they say, and one of the best ways to build up your mailing list is by offering your prospects something they'll find difficult to refuse: the information they need. And this information is best conveyed through a digital magazine format that is an eZine.

But publishing your own eZine is not as easy as writing and formatting an electronic newsletter. That is the easy part, quite actually. The process of placing the right gears in the right places to ensure an automated system that will allow you to milk your mailing list for a long, long time with minimal labor on your part is the first goal you should aim for.

And the heart of a highly efficient mailing list is an excellent autoresponder service.

What Is An Autoresponder Service?

If you’re going to send an email to 5 or even 10 people, then manually doing the same won't be a problem. But if you're going to send an email to hundreds, if not thousands, of recipients, then such will be a laborious task that will take a day or two to accomplish.

Since you're expected to build up your mailing list to as many subscribers as possible, you don't have the luxury of manually sending out issues of your eZine.

The solution? You have to enroll with an autoresponder service.

Not just any kind of autoresponder service, mind you, but the best one you can ever find. The reason for this is simple. An autoresponder service is your business partner. Since your mailing list will play an integral role in determining the degree of success you can gain in this industry, and since an autoresponder service will make your mailing list possible, you need to join the best one available.

An autoresponder service automates the entire process. It picks up the contact details of your prospects, stores them in a database, and allows you to pre-load and pre-schedule the delivery of your messages. This way, it is possible to have a year's worth of messages ready for delivery even before you start accepting subscribers.

Things To Look For In An Autoresponder Service

An excellent autoresponder service should have the following characteristics:

• Allows you to create as many mailing groups as you want. You'd need to transfer subscribers from one to group to another depending on how well they respond and how much they have purchased from your enterprise.
  
• Allows you to personalize your messages automatically by using the details submitted by your subscribers. People respond more when they are referred to by their given names.
  
• Has excellent customer care service. You wouldn't want to be bogged down by technical difficulties in the middle of a very important campaign.
  
• Will protect you against spam complaints. Spam complaints are sometimes unavoidable despite your best efforts to avoid the same. Your autoresponder service should be able to protect you at times like this so as not to jeopardize your email marketing strategies.
  

Price Or Features, Which Is Which?

Often, I've been asked which is more important in choosing an autoresponder service: its applicable fees or its abundance of features. The ideal answer is: both.

But it can't be helped that the more powerful and reliable services come at a steeper price. We get what we pay for, after all.

In choosing an autoresponder service, the features should take precedence. An autoresponder service is one of the primary investments you can make for your online business, and it should never be compromised least your success in this field will be jeopardized.

My autoresponder of choice is GetResponse. I can create as many mailing lists as I want, can copy subscribers to and from those lists, and can set up as many autoresponders as I want for the list. I have one client who has over 400 autoresponders attached to one subscription list.

Contact me if you have any questions about autoresponders. They are a great tool for automating your subscription process.

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