Alan’s Nine Steps to Marketing Email That Will Be Read
I love people who tell me they are hosting a radio show or a TV show. That almost always means they’ve allowed their ego to be captured by some wise guys who are charging them to “host their own show”!
In an electronic age, why not spend nothing and be more effective than poorly appealing to an irrelevant audience that really isn’t there? Here are nine steps to killer email:
1. Use your own list of people who know something about you. Don’t purchase “stranger lists” if you are trying to sell consulting services, which is what I’m talking about here. A small, quality list is always better than mere quantity.
2. Create a great subject line. “Special offer” is not as good as “Unique opportunity” or “Five ways to attract talent that most people are missing.”
3. Personalize the opening and make it immediately enticing: “Jane, you’re a respected professional and valued client (friend, professional colleague, etc.), and I’ve thought of something that makes great sense for your career (profession, company, plans, etc.).
4. Offer real value, but simply. Provide a quick list, explanation, idea—something to show value in the early going.
5. Don’t send them away or make them work. People are not going to follow links, and may not even open attachments. Stick to a brief email.
6. But have a call to action on your part or theirs. I prefer that you follow up with them. Tell them you’ll be calling at a specific time on a set date (and invite them to respond if they prefer another time). When you call, say that “I’m calling as promised.”
7. Spread it out. If you have a list of, say, 50 people, send out ten every other day. Don’t make it onerous on yourself, and give yourself time to make the follow up calls. This also allows for personalization and will greatly increase the tendency to read the message.
8. Include a brief testimonial. “Jim Smith at Sigma Engineers said that he was overjoyed that I contacted him about this, and has already found two new people with no fees. You can reach him at….”
9. Keep tinkering. As people respond, eventually ask what was key in the email to make them amenable, and constantly improve the content and format as you hear patterns.
© Alan Weiss 2009. All rights reserved.
Donna Walsh
Alan, thank you once again for providing (for free!) genuine, valuable ideas & insights that can be implemented immediately (or close to it). My immediate response to your posts is either “why didn’t I think of that” or “I knew that, why haven’t I done that?” Either way, you are an appreciated catalyst for change and improvement.
Alan Weiss
Just trying to do my thing….
John Felkins
Just starting my newsletter. This is my guide. Thanks Alan!
Wiltshire Lawyer
Another simple way to rapidly build up your e-mail database, is to make sure that whenever you get any promotional e-mails or hardcopy marketing material, that you add the sender’s e-mail details to YOUR database, and send a let standard email back thanking them for their interest in your business, telling them that you have taken the liberty of adding them to your database and asking them to let you know if that’s not okay. I’ve never had anyone ask to unsubscribe on this basis — they are hardly likely to — they want to carry on having the opportunity of trying to market to you!