WHY
SHOULD YOU START YOUR OWN NEWSLETTER?
by Pam Jones
If you are reading this I am assuming that you have a product or service you are marketing
on the Internet. What avenues have you used to market your product or service?
Classified sites, linking your URL to every site you come in contact with, FFA's
(free-for-all sites), banner exchanges, attempting to get the best search engine ratings,
bulk mailings? Have any of these attempts really brought you the traffic you desire?
All of the above techniques either take a lot of time or can get you in trouble with your
ISP. Why not start your own
newsletter? Market to existing customers and visitors who are already
familiar with your products or services.
What would I put in my newsletter, you ask?
I am sure you know something about your product or service that you can
share with your readers. If you have a craft site
your newsletter could contain information about where to purchase supplies at wholesale
cost, information about message boards where crafters can share ideas, maybe a
"recipe" for putting together a craft item.
If you are in the service business you can offer tips pertaining to the service you
provide. When I had my sewing business I would run into certain altering problems with
customers. I put an article in the local newspaper once a month addressing certain tips to
educate my customers about how to purchase clothing, the advantages of custom clothing,
etc. This helped immensely and many times a customer would say they remembered my article
when they were purchasing clothing and followed my advice. You can do this with any type
of service you provide.
OK-You have me convinced I need to start my own newsletter. How do I get started?
Your newsletter doesn't have to be long and drawn out. You don't even really have to write
your own articles if you don't want to. Depending on the information your newsletter will
contain, there are many places where you can use articles that others have written. Most
of the time there are stipulations that for using the article. It must have their contact
information intact, which is only fair.
I would suggest first subscribing to newsletters pertaining to your field of expertise and
look at the articles in them. You can write to the authors for permission to use their
articles if you find some you would like to use. At my site at http://www.i-m-r-c.com/resources/index.htm
you will find some places that offer articles for use in newsletters.
Find newsletters that pertain to
what you are doing and subscribe to them to get an idea of what your market might be
looking for in a newsletter.
How do I get subscribers to my newsletter?
First, promote your newsletter on your website. Have a spot for visitors to subscribe. If
you have been collecting the email addresses of visitors, send them an email message
telling them about your new newsletter and offer a subscription to them.
Write up a press release in various lengths ranging from one or two lines to a full page.
Submit your newsletter to every site that accepts ezine listings. For a list of places to
submit your press release go to http://i-m-r-c.com/resources/prs.htm
There you will find links to various sites that allow you to list your ezine.
Don't forget to write to other ezines pertaining to your area of expertise and offer to
exchange ads and articles.
How do I handle the mailing of my newsletter?
You can mail your newsletter yourself if you have a good email program. Build a group list
of your subscribers in your email program. Mail your newsletter to yourself with your
subscribers in the BCC section of the message. If you use BCC instead of CC your
subscriber's address will be hidden from the other subscribers.
There are list servers that will handle every detail of your newsletter except putting it
together. All you have to do is send the newsletter to them and they take care of the
rest. There are various list servers. Some are free and some charge for the service.
Contact us if you would like help setting up a newsletter.
For more information related to newsletter publishing visit http://www.i-m-r-c.com/article/index.htm
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Click
here to have this article emailed to you. A blank email message will
open - just click 'send' you don't need to put anything in the body of the
message.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Pam Jones specializes in offering
quality information and services that will keep you on the right track with your online marketing to help you
increase your profits. Visit the Internet Marketing Resource Center at
http://www.i-m-r-c.com, for tips, tools,
resources and helpful articles. Or find out about web hosting, website design or
redesign, domain name research & registration, online marketing &
promotion and website maintenance services at affordable prices for small to
medium sized businesses at Clearwater Web Solutions
at http://www.clearwaterwebsolutions.com.
|
