If you stop to think about it, we’re all marketers. We all have something to sell and we need to market it, whether product or service. Narrowing the focus of your newsletter to your particular niche will increase your bottom line – whether you’ve got a huge list, or not. Your email marketing list is an important feature, don’t get me wrong, but look at it this way:

Not everyone who goes into a store is looking for the same thing.

What is the strongest thing you offer, and who wants it? Your list can be divided up in such a way that your message targets the particular group who has already shown interest in a thing, or is in the category of someone who may not know that your product or service is their remedy.

The templates shown on AWeber for newsletter design are a nice way to present your message, and it does impact on your readership to a degree, but the most important thing will always be the content specific material that is provided in it.

Kaye Z. Marks says it this way in her article titled, Where Is Your Marketing Attention Focused?,

If you send out a mass mailing to everyone you can, odds are the people who will take interest are the same people you could have specifically targeted from the beginning instead of wasting money sending something to all the people who did not have interest.”

She’s absolutely right. Some of you stop here for information on marketing your small business by yourself, others want to know if they trust the claims about our services that we make. As our list grows, so will our specific newsletter offerings to each separate group of readers. Posture yourself through AWeber by using sign up forms and your first welcome responder email template to find out just where their needs are.

A great newsletter takes much forethought, but the right tools make all the difference.

Related Posts:

So, What Goes In A Newsletter, Anyway?

How many times have you received the neighbor’s mail, or direct mail advertisements that had absolutely nothing to do with your interests or needs? With mail so easy to get wrong, why not make sure your direct mail campaign hits the nail on the head? It’s time to clean up your list.

You may think it doesn’t matter so much, after all, how much direct mail comes to ‘Occupant,’ anyway? Depending on your market, it may not matter at all. But I would be willing to bet you that your campaign would fare much better if you knew that what you were promoting was going to people who could actually use your promotion.

• Take a good look at your holiday promotion lists, and start vetting:
• Businesses no longer operating
• Names and addresses that have not responded in the last 4 promotions
• Direct competition (I mean, why bother spending money on them?)

Replace those with:

• New businesses in the same area
• New addresses that didn’t exist before due to construction
• Customers you know you can serve. Ask yourself who you’ve thought about including but have neglected to reach.

Now go forward and let the world know what you do is important to them, and that you’ve got them on your mind this holiday season. Happy Holidays!

Photo Credit: florian on Flickr

Related Posts:
What’s Your Holiday Offer?
Five Search Marketing Tips For The Holidays
Is Your Customer Database Up to Date?

If you are one of the many subscribers reading this post, you’re definitely connected. However, there are still many small businesses that are not. Believe it or not, in this modern digital age there are some who refuse to use email. The old line “Didn’t you get the memo?” still holds so true these days.

Why is this? Email is a simple, easily and  efficiently used medium to share information about special promotions, sales, meetings, new product information … and so much more! Your message can touch hundreds, if not thousands of customers in one click, versus the vast amount of man hours trying to reach the same audience by phone.

Whether you’re in need of one or several branded email addresses (as in, your-name@your-domain.com), or a full-blown email marketing campaign, we can help.

For email marketing campaigns, we use and recommend AWeber. Be sure to visit our Do It Yourself Email Marketing page for more information.

Why be left out? Don’t miss getting the memo, it could save you time and create a profitable opportunity.

As business owners, we work hard to create the perfect picture of ourselves and our company. Call it branding or call it perception, either way it all boils down to getting the details right. One such detail is your email address.

If you have a company Web site, it is in your best interest to utilize your URL where ever you can, especially in your email address. You’ve invested time and money to build your business, establish your brand and create your Web site, so why not carry that professionalism and pride into your email address?

A recent search in a through a professional directory yielded many names, phone numbers and email addresses, but not a single Web site address. For those email addresses utilizing their corporate URL, this was not an issue. But way too many listed email addresses @hotmail or @yahoo or @aol.com.

When an email address ends in @hotmail.com instead of @mycompanyhere.com, what is the perception of those on the receiving end of your email? One thing is for certain, this doesn’t portray the level of professionalism you’re striving for elsewhere.

When that personal email address is also used on your written correspondence and business cards, it amplifies the problem. Add “missed opportunity” and “technically challenged” to “less than professional.” You’ve missed an opportunity to repeat and emphasize your corporate URL, and made it easier for contacts to forget who you are.

So do yourself a huge favor. Don’t make a business etiquette faux pas by using a generic email address to conduct official business. Set up your email to utilize your website URL.