What is Your ‘Why’?
Today I’m going to talk about something that will help you grow your business more quickly and – perhaps more importantly – make it easier for you to get up each morning and go to work. I’d really like you to do the exercise at the bottom of this article – and put the results in…
8 Newsletter Tips from Our Clients
Today I'd like to share with you some of the ideas that Ready to Go Newsletters members have come up with for their own newsletters. As you know, we've been running our Newsletter of the Year contest – and we've had some good entries. I'll be announcing the winner in the next couple of weeks,…
Show that You’re Real In a Few Simple Words
Check out this post on the 37Signals blog. It shows an automated “thank you” message that a particular website sends after someone has made an online order. Big deal, you might think. Why is the wording of this email (and others like it) so important? Here’s the thing: people like to do business with people,…
Announcing…The First Newsletter Marketer of the Year
I’m delighted to announce that Patty Wagner, of MAS Insurance LLC, in Colorado, has won our first Newsletter Marketer of the Year contest. She wins an Apple iPad. Patty won for three reasons: Excellent results from her newsletters Excellent use of the customization features – she really made the newsletters hers Excellent and innovative marketing…
How to Be Like Oprah
I got the shock of my life on the internet last night. There on my favorite news website was a big, blue headline: “Oprah Talk Show Going Off Air.” Now, I know she had Sarah Palin on this week, but it can’t have been that bad. I thought Oprah was stronger than that. +++ Turns…
Why Real Estate Agents (and Others) Need to Be Publishers
Once again, Seth Godin is speaking my language. In a post he draws our attention to the difference between renting eyeballs (the old media way, where you buy an ad that is shown to the readers of, for example, a magazine) and actually owning the platform – owning the magazine or other media. He gives…
Real Estate Agents: How to Make 4x as Much Commission
Here’s another of my little charts. This one applies to real estate agents and mortgage brokers in particular – but the general idea applies to any business. It makes a compelling economic case for keeping in touch with clients over the long term. The chart shows the difference in commission earned by a real estate…
How to Use a Newsletter to Prove that a ‘Commodity’ Product Can Be Special
Here’s a fascinating case study from a company that sends out a newsletter in every box of eggs it produces. Yes, eggs that come with their own newsletter. I’ll give you what I see as the big takeaway first: You might think that eggs is eggs. But, as we’re told, some eggs are better than…
Another Great Example of a Customized Real Estate Newsletter
It makes me smile from ear to ear when one of my clients takes the real estate newsletter I offer and really makes it theirs. Here’s another example (click here for a previous one), this one from Marianne Derjean, who is with broker McGuigan Pepin, in Quebec, Canada. Here’s what I love about it. A…
An Example of How Targeted Content in Newsletters Pays Off
I’ve said before and – watch out – I shall say many times in future that the number one rule for newsletters is: write for your reader. That’s because if you make the content relevant to your readers’ interests, they are more likely read your newsletter, engage with you and – frankly – buy stuff.…
An Example of a Newsletter with Personality
If you don’t know about HARO (Help a Reporter Out) and you are interested in getting media coverage, then check it out. Basically, it’s a service that connects journalists (who are looking for sources for stories) and PR people/companies with products seeking publicity. It goes out as three emails per day. Very simple. Very effective.…
Excellent Example of a Customized Real Estate Newsletter
I love it when people make an effort with their marketing. (Because – to be honest – so few people really do all that it takes to break through in their market, particularly in the current economy.) I love it even more when my members take the product I offer one stage further and make…
An Excellent Email Newsletter to Model
I’ve been on the mailing list of Printing for Less for some time and have always been impressed by their monthly email newsletters. January’s is perhaps one of the best, so I thought it would be interesting to talk about why it’s so good. 1. The newsletter starts with a topical comment that “enters the…
Real Estate Agents (and Others): The Newspaper Newsletter
I hate it when people have an idea similar to mine and then blog about it first, so that I don’t get the chance to claim it. Anyway, that person is Seth Godin, so I’m not mad. Real Estate agents (and anyone else with a local business) should read his post, Time to start a…
Small Gift, Big Benefit
‘Tis the season for giving. My dry cleaner hasn’t forgotten that. When I brought in my shirts and pants today, the owner handed me a lint remover and thanked me for being a customer this year. Every business should do something like this, because: It recognizes the relationship between the business and its clients, cementing…
What Links Dell, Your Business, Blogs and Newsletters?
Dell has launched a content-rich website called Digital Nomads. It’s aimed at people who, thanks to technology, can work and play wherever they like – people who aren’t tied to an office location. Here’s why Dell is being so smart. Dell is creating a community based upon a common passion. It’s serving that community on…
Be Gently in their Face
I wasn’t going to write today, but I was inspired by Seth Godin’s post, “My tooth doesn’t hurt.” It’s about how a marketer can build a solid business, even when they think their target market doesn’t need them right now (like a dentist who is badly needed when a person has a toothache, but easily…
A Clever, Timely Hook for an Offer in a Newsletter
Taking something that’s in the news and putting your own twist on it to make an offer to your customers is a great way to stand out from the crowd. By attaching your offer to something in the news you give the impression of immediacy, timeliness and relevance to your offer. Here’s an example I…
How to Use Customer Newsletters to Nurture the People Who Really Matter
Seth wrote an interesting post today about targeted traffic to websites versus untargeted traffic: it’s the focused traffic you want to capture; the rest you don’t care about. Quite right. And it’s useful to show how customer newsletters can achieve the same goal: bringing targeted buyers into your business. Let’s face it, although newsletters are…
Real Estate Agents: What Would You Do to Justify a 7% Commission?
A lot of my newsletter subscribers are real estate agents, so this post, The 7% Solution, from Seth Godin is particularly interesting. But it’s relevant for any business. Quote: The challenge is… what if you had to charge 7%. What if you had to charge more when everyone else was charging less? What would you…