Email marketing tips, tricks, news and more.
The vast majority of email spammers send out huge amounts of email with the lowest conversion rates. They rely on the occasional click to make their money.
This is a perfect example of how to learn by example. Study spam emails to learn what does not work well. Make sure none of the emails you send look anything like the spam emails.
Go get a free email account and then post that email to a few message boards. You will soon be receiving tons of spam emails to study.
There is an old saying, “keep it short and sweet.” This applies well to email subject lines. Do your best to keep them at less than 50 characters. With practice, you will be able to say a lot, get your point across and do it in fewer words.
Never under any circumstance use a noreply email address. Besides being totally less personable it frustrates your readers that want or need to contact you with a question.
Could you imagine going into a store and not having an easy way to ask a question about a product? Why in the world would you want to do that to one of your list subscribers? Hopefully you would not.
Make it easy for your subscribers to contact you and ask questions. You want to build a trusted relationship with your list, not a robotic one.
Also keep in mind you want your readers to add you to their address book. Noreply emails rarely get added. I know Steve@, customerservice@, newsletter@, but who the heck is noreply@.
Noreply@ tells your readers that you are not interested in them and only want to send them emails selling them stuff. Just say no to noreply@sitename.com
Most email marketers send out plain text emails with maximum line lengths of 76 to 80 characters. I’m sure you see them all the time. You open up your email reader and the vast majority of the emails you receive use this format.
I’m not talking about the short emails you get from friends, family and other communications. I am talking about emails trying to get you to buy something or click a link. What I am going to discuss here is marketing emails.
The problem with this format is that many people see it as spam, even when they signed up to receive it. Spammers are notorious for using this old style of email.
It is also using old standards that just are not needed anymore. When was the last time you saw an 80-character monitor? Some claim keeping the short line lengths is because it is easier to read. Well, what is the difference between reading an article and an email? Not really anything.
It’s also boring to look at and difficult to draw the reader’s attention to specific things. It’s just not an enjoyable experience for the reader.
Another format of email that is used by a much smaller number of email marketers is the newsletter format.
The newsletter format can contain robust content that is much more enjoyable for the reader. It can contain a header, sections and a footer.
Most readers see the newsletter format as content and not pure marketing.
Now the question is, should you be using the newsletter format instead of the old email marketing format? Do you want to stand out in a crowd by not doing what the majority is? Many times it is better to zig when everyone is zagging.
Let’s explore and look at the benefits of using the email newsletter format.
Using the email newsletter format has many benefits for the sender and the reader.
The newsletter format is much easier for the subscriber to recognize. This helps them to remember that they did subscribe. Readers are less likely to accidentally report it as spam.
An email newsletter can contain content that the subscriber can easily locate what they want to read, watch or listen to. Many readers actually save past email newsletters to reference at a later date.
One technique you can use in an email newsletter is to have a section that gives them a glimpse of what the next issue contains. You can also provide content that has cliff hangers where they can’t wait to get the next email newsletter issue.
One purpose of marketing emails is to get the reader to click a link so they are taken to a website page. The newsletter format is perfect for this. You basically curate the page you want them to go to in the newsletter. They then click the link to view the entire article or sales page.
It’s much easier to do the selling on a website page than in an email.
It’s easier to engage your readers by using the newsletter format. You can add interactive polls, comment submissions and other interactive features directly in the email newsletter.
The email newsletter format is great for non-intrusive advertising. You can use native ads that fit with the content. You can also add product reviews or how-to type articles.
Since you are providing your readers with high quality content and not just screaming buy this, now buy this, oh and buy this, you build trust with your readers. These readers are more likely to trust the links you send them and actually click on them.
So using a email newsletter format raises your subscribers recognition and allows you to provide better and actionable content. It’s easier to engage your reader and get them to look forward to your next email newsletter. The email newsletter format allows for better advertising and builds more reader trust.
So the question is, why are you still using the old email marketing format? Give the email newsletter format a try and see if it works better for you.
A click tracker is a software tool that helps you to manage click destinations and collect statistics about the clicks. It helps you to determine when a click order has been fulfilled and the quality of clicks. Most click trackers contain click trackers, click rotators and pixel tracking capabilities.
If you are an email marketer or sell solo ads, you need to use a click tracker to manage your traffic and determine what is profitable and what is not.
There are two types of click trackers available. You can purchase a script and install it on your server or you can subscribe to a hosted click tracker. Both types of click trackers provide basically the same services. Just one is self-hosted and the other is hosted.
What type is better for you? Hosted or self-hosted?
Let’s explore the benefits and disadvantages of each type.
Self-hosted Click Trackers
Benefits
Self-hosted is usually less expensive over time if you have a small or medium size list. You can host the click tracker script on the same hosting account you are already using for your websites.
Once you make the initial purchase of a self-hosted script you don’t have to pay monthly subscription fees.
A self-hosted click tracker script can be customized to meet your exact needs. You just hire a programmer to make any changes or modifications to the script you purchase that you want.
You can initially install a self-hosted click tracker on a small hosting account. You can then move it to a larger hosting account as your list and needs grow.
Disadvantages
A self-hosted click tracker can run slow or even timeout if it is being used on a shared server. Bad neighbors and low resource limits can cause your self-hosted click tracker to not work correctly.
A self-hosted click tracker can be more expensive if your list is large. The larger the list, the more powerful of server you need. So don’t forget to factor in the monthly cost of hosting the click tracker script.
A self-hosted click tracker script must be installed. If you are not familiar with installing complicated scripts, you will need to pay someone to install it for you.
When a self-hosted script releases a bug or feature update, you will need to install the update. This can be difficult if you are not familiar with script installation. You may have to pay someone to install any updates for you.
Hosted Click Trackers
Benefits
With a hosted click tracker there is no need to pay for an expensive server regardless of the size of your lists.
Since you do not need to purchase a hosted click tracker, there is no large upfront cost.
Hosted click trackers are already installed. So you get to skip the installation process.
Hosted click trackers are automatically updated for you. No need to track updates.
Disadvantages
Hosted click trackers do have an ongoing monthly fee. If your list is small, this could be a disadvantage.
One major concern is that the company providing the hosted click tracker service could go out of business in a blink of an eye. This could leave you scrambling and losing money.
With a hosted click tracker, you are at the peril of the company providing the hosted service. They could claim you violated their TOS and shut your account off without any notice.
Now that you know some of the advantages and disadvantages of self-hosted and hosted click trackers, you need to weigh the benefits and disadvantages of each. What fits your needs better? Hosted or self-hosted? The end choice is yours.
There are several popular self-hosted and hosted click trackers currently on the market. Let’s look at what is available next.
Popular Click Trackers
My Click Boss
For a very basic entry level click tracker, check out My Click Boss at the following link. It’s available in both hosted and self-hosted forms.
My Click Boss Pro
My click Boss Pro is a full featured click tracker that is extremely popular. This click tracker service is popular with solo ad sellers. Check it out at the following link. It’s available in both hosted and self-hosted forms.
ClickMagick
ClickMagick is another popular “hosted only” click tracker service. It’s more aimed at the CPA crowd but can also be used for email marketing and selling solo ads. You can check it out at the following link.
Now that you know the advantages and disadvantages of self-hosted and hosted click trackers, check out the recommended ones above and see what fits your particular needs and budget.
You could have the best website in the world. But, if you can’t get traffic to it, you might as well have never built it. Traffic is the most important aspect for an online business website.
Without traffic, your website is not going to make money. You have to drive traffic of eager buyers to your site to make sales and put money in your bank account. Traffic equals money. Let’s rephrase that. Targeted traffic equals money.
But where are you going to get this targeted traffic to send to your website? What traffic methods are going to work best for your website? Oh this is sounding difficult. Or is it?
Getting targeted traffic to your website does not have to be difficult at all. That is, if you know your options and how to drive the traffic using each option.
Let me introduce you to the Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide created by Dennis Becker. Dennis is an expert at traffic methods and explains each method in detail. Don’t worry, Dennis explains everything in a way that is easy to understand. No technical, “what the heck did he say?” jargon.
Let’s really dig in deep and explore exactly what is in the Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide. You ready? Let’s dive in!
Here is What You Will Discover Inside the Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide
The Traffic Basics
You will start out by discovering the traffic basics. This will help you to get a firm grasp on getting traffic to your website. The traffic basics include:
Search Engine Optimization
Discover how to get traffic from the major search engines. You will also learn:
Blogging Your Way to Traffic
Learn why blogging can drive massive traffic. Here is what you will learn:
Getting Traffic from Article and Other Sites
Discover the powerful methods to drive traffic from article and other sites to your website.
Viral Content
Learn how to create and use viral content to drive targeted traffic to your website.
Using Images to Drive Traffic
Discover how you can use images to drive traffic to your website.
How to Use Social Media to Drive Traffic
Learn the steps and techniques to drive traffic from social media sites. You will learn to drive traffic from these media sites:
Use Videos to Drive Traffic
Discover hot methods to drive traffic using videos. You will learn the following:
Webinar Traffic
Learn how to drive bursts of traffic to your website using simple webinars.
Use Audio to Drive Traffic
Discover methods you can use to drive traffic using audios. You will also learn how to use podcasts to drive traffic to your website.
Word of Mouth Marketing
Learn how to use the power of word of mouth to drive highly targeted traffic to your website.
Get Traffic from Forums
Learn the proper ways to drive traffic to your website from forums.
Paid Traffic Options
Learn about paid traffic options and if they are right for you. You will also learn:
How to Get Traffic from Other Marketers
Learn the techniques to drive traffic to your website from other marketers. You will learn:
Use Giveaways and Contests
Learn some amazing ways that you can use giveaways and contests to drive traffic to your website.
Getting Affiliate Traffic
Learn the importance of affiliates and how to get them to send you huge amounts of traffic.
Creative Ways to Drive Traffic
Discover a variety of creative ways you can use to send traffic to your website over and over.
What Methods Should You Use First?
Find out what traffic methods you should use first to start sending targeted traffic to your website.
Worksheets
The Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide even includes worksheets to help you plan and drive traffic to your website.
As you can see, the Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide is a valuable resource. Personally I feel it is worth hundreds of times the low, low price Dennis is selling it for.
When you download your personal copy of the Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide you are going to discover exactly:
If you are serious about wanting to drive massive traffic to your website, picking up a copy of the Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide is a no-brainer. Go download your copy today. Just click the link below.
Click here to download the Honk! Honk! Web Traffic Guide
A lead magnet is basically an irresistible bribe to get someone to subscribe to your email list. The actual lead magnet could be in electronic form or even physical form. There are many types of lead magnets.
A lead magnet is an important part of the email list opt-in process. Most people these days do not easily give out their email address unless it is for a good reason or benefits them greatly.
The entire goal of a lead magnet is to get people to subscribe to your email list. Another goal of a lead magnet is to maximize the number of targeted subscribers that join your email list.
Some of the best lead magnets are designed to solve a very specific problem. The information is designed to be consumed in a very short period of time.
Another great lead magnet would be one that offers something with tremendous perceived value. Something that would appear that it should be sold for a high price but being given away for free.
Let’s take a little time and explore a range of different types of lead magnets.
Here is a List of Popular Lead Magnet Types
Guides
Guides are usually short ebooks that give information in a step by step fashion.
Reports
A report is usually very short and covers a very specific topic. Reports can be written about almost any topic.
Case Studies
Case studies usually convey actual data and information on something that was tested. An example of a case study would be one written about a/b split testing two landing pages.
Cheat Sheets
Cheat sheets make great lead magnets because they can show how to do a specific process in short easy steps. These are great for people that don’t want to learn all the fine details about something. They just want to exact steps to take without the fine details.
Mind Maps
Mind maps of all types can be used as lead magnets.
Swipe Files
Swipe files can make a good lead magnet if your target audience collects ideas for pages, email, ads and more. Swipe files save them a lot of time and can be considered very valuable.
Memberships
Membership to a website is usually perceived as something with high value. Especially if it is a paid monthly membership that is being given away for free as a lead magnet.
Resource Lists
A list of resources can make a great lead magnet. It saves the person time since he does not have to collect all the resources. Many people spend a long period of time putting together a list of resources they need. If you already have a list your target audience wants, use it as a lead magnet.
Toolkits
A toolkit is a combination of resources, information, guides, reports, software and more. If you are in a niche where people would benefit if they had all the initial tools they need, a toolkit can make a great lead magnet.
Videos
Many people prefer to learn by watching video. If your target audience could benefit from watching a video, produce one and use it as a lead magnet.
I have also seen marketers use a squeeze page that talks about a video. Once they subscribe they are sent to a sales page that contains the video. This works well with affiliate products that give away free quality information on the sales page.
Audios
Many people prefer listening to audio. People that have long commutes to work also like audios they can put on their mp3 players and listen to them while in transit.
Software
Free software or even a free trial to a paid software program can be used as a lead magnet.
Discounts
A discount to a product or subscription can be used as a lead magnet.
Courses
Courses of all types can make a great lead magnet. Courses delivered through a member’s area or by email work well.
Sales Page or Sales Video
I talked about this briefly before. If your target audience would benefit from a sales page or sales video, you can use that as a lead magnet.
As you can see there are many different types of lead magnets. Just think about your target audience and make the decision on what type of lead magnet you want to use. You can also use several and see which one does the best.
When building an email list using a squeeze page or other type of opt-in form, two opt-in methods are used. The two methods are known as the single opt-in and the double opt-in.
Single opt-in is when a person only needs to enter his email address in a subscription form and click the submit button. He is then automatically added to the email subscriber list.
Double opt-in is when a person has to take two steps to subscribe to an email list. The first step is the same as the single opt-in. He enters his email address in a subscription form and clicks the submit button. A confirmation email is then sent to the prospective subscriber that contains a confirmation link. The person needs to click this confirmation link before they are added to the email list.
But the question is, what method is better? Single opt-in or double opt-in?
Let’s look at the advantages and disadvantages of both opt-in methods.
Single Opt-in
Advantages
Single opt-in is easier for subscribers to join your email list. They don’t have to go hunting down the confirmation email.
Since many subscribers don’t confirm their subscription when the double opt-in process is used, your list will build faster. All subscribers submitting the join form are added to your list, not just some of them.
Since a single opt-in email list is usually larger, you have more chances of making a sale when you broadcast an email out to your list.
Disadvantages
Your list will have a higher chance of containing some fake email accounts since the email is not confirmed using single opt-in. Make sure you have a clear unsubscribe link in all your emails that is easy for the unwilling subscriber to opt-out.
Some email marketers claim that you get a higher quality list of subscribers with double opt-in, but really all you get is less subscribers that may buy from you down the road. Personally I have not really seen this.
Single opt-in can produce a higher unsubscribe rate. This is because your list is naturally larger and also contains subscribers that were just mildly interested in joining your list.
Double Opt-in
Advantages
Using double opt-in can possibly give you a better quality list. The reason is that all the subscribers did in fact take the time to confirm their email. Your list will be smaller with less people to market to, but will contain people that really wanted to subscribe to your list. The subscribers are more likely interested in being on your list and not just on it out of curiosity.
By using the double opt-in process you will eliminate fake emails from getting on your list.
If you have a need to make sure a list only contains 100% valid emails, then double opt-in is an advantage. For example, you are having people use their email as a login to a membership site. Or your list contains a list of people that have purchased a product that need to know about updates.
You usually have less unsubscribers using double opt-in. The people that joined your list usually had a higher interest in getting on it. Now this is only true if you don’t beat your list to death.
Disadvantages
Double opt-in is more difficult for the subscriber wanting to join your email list. They must also hunt down the confirmation email, open it and click the confirmation link. Many confirmation emails end up in the spam folder. A large percentage of potential subscribers never complete the subscription process by clicking the confirmation link.
You will lose a lot of potential subscribers when using double opt-in. The reason for this is because a large number of potential subscribers will not confirm their email address.
Since many potential subscribers never confirm their email address, your list will build much slower using double opt-in.
We have explored single opt-in advantages and disadvantages. We have also explored some of the advantages and disadvantages of double opt-in. As you can see, both methods have advantages over the other.
The final choice over using single opt-in or double opt-in is yours. You need to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of both methods to determine which one to use when building an email list. Use the method that best supports the purpose of your list.
If you are building multiple lists, you may find yourself using different methods with each list.
Neither single opt-in or double opt-in are the best. The best method is determined by your intended use.
A safelist is an email list that lets everyone on the list send out emails to everyone else. It’s basically a free for all. When you join a safelist you agree to receive emails from all the other subscribers on the list.
When you join a safelist, expect to be flooded with emails for all types of things, including scams. Many people cheat safelists and automate the process so it is hands and eyes free. Safelists get a bad rap because of the massive number of emails you receive and the cheaters.
If you know the tricks, you can successfully get subscribers to your email lists from safelists.
You will constantly hear people claiming that it’s impossible to get subscribers from safelists. They are just doing it wrong or trying to get subscribers for one niche off a safelist setup for another niche.
The niches that do well with safelists include the make money online and get rich quick. Keep this in mind when wanting to build a list from safelists. Most subscribers will be newbies looking for ways to make money online fast. So make sure you target them directly.
Now, let’s look at some ways to improve your chances at getting subscribers from safelists.
Do Not Try to Directly Sell Something
This is most likely the biggest mistake being made by most safelist marketers. You do not want to even attempt to sell something to safelist readers in your email ads.
Safelist marketers are not in the buying mode when they are cleaning out their email inbox. They want you to read their ads but they usually have no intention of reading your ads.
Since they are not in the buying mode you need to give them something of value they are interested in for free and make your money on the backend or down the road.
Your main goal should be to get their non-safelist email address and name. This way you can market to them when they are not in the safelist “empty my email inbox as fast as I can” mode.
Use Great Subject Lines
Most safelist marketers use extremely bad subject lines. Go through your safelist email inbox and really take a look at what subject lines are being used. It will amaze you at all the subject lines you see that make no sense, scream hype and
buy me!
If you plan on getting your email ad read, you need to use subject lines that grab the safelist email inbox scanners attention. Your subject line has to jump off the page among 50 to 200 other subject lines. The reason I say 50 to 200 is because most web based email accounts allow the user to set the number of emails to view per page to 50 to 200.
Test Your Subject Lines
The slightest change to a subject line can increase the number of reads big time. Most safelists marketers do not test their subject lines against each other and lose a lot of email ad reads.
Don’t make this common mistake. Test your subject lines to determine what subject lines are working and which ones are not.
Keep Your Email Ads Short
I see this mistake all the time. For some reason safelist marketers write very long emails telling the reader all about their product and why it is the best and why they must have it today.
I also see email ads that look like a list of classified ads trying to sell 5, 10, 15 or more things in the same email.
Your email ads should have one purpose. That purpose is to get the reader to click a link to go to a web page that will give them all the information they need.
The email should get them to click. Do the selling on the web page instead.
Keep your email ads short and to the point with the only purpose being to get them to click a link. You will find you do a lot better with your safelist marketing.
Don’t Just Use Free Safelists
Everyone seems to start out by joining only free safelists. This is a big mistake as the free only safelists are the least productive and responsive. They are usually not maintained well by the list owner and produce little or no income for safelist submitters.
What you want to join is the free safelists that have a paid pro upgrade option. These are better maintained and have more serious members. The members of these safelists take their business much more seriously and are much more likely to read several safelist emails each day.
By all means keep the free only but also obtain several paid pro memberships.
Safelist marketing is a numbers game but you can increase your conversion percentages greatly by subscribing to top paid safelists.
Take Advantage of Credit Based Safelists
Credit based safelists are the most productive hands down. But the majority of safelist submitters are too lazy to use them. All it takes is about 15 minutes a day to get good results from using credit based safelists. The more time you have to view other members email ads the more email ads you will be able to email.
If you are not familiar with the term credit based safelists, let me explain how they work. You earn credit by clicking on emails and viewing their offers from other members of the credit based safelist. You can then spend these credits with the safelist to mail out emails ads to its members.
With credit based safelists your email ads have a better chance of actually being viewed by a real live person.
Use a Dedicated Email Account for Safelists
I feel sorry for all the new safelist marketers that make this common mistake. Safelists produce a very large amount of email being sent to your inbox. If you use your main email account, you will regret it. You will have a hard time finding emails from friends, family and business acquaintances.
Always use a dedicated email account for your safelist emails. I highly recommend setting up both a list and contact email account that is only used for safelist marketing.
If you are going to be using credit based safelists, I would highly recommend setting up a third dedicated email account just for its use.
Clear Out Your Safelist Email Account Frequently
A full email inbox is the great taboo of safelist owners. If your email box gets full and starts bouncing back emails to the safelists, it clogs up their systems and really pisses them off.
If you bounce emails back due to a full email inbox you will quickly find your safelist accounts being deleted. Sometimes you will even find yourself banned from particular safelists.
You must keep your email inbox cleaned out on a daily basis so this does not happen to you.
Constantly Learn More About Safelist Trends
Productive safelist marketing techniques are constantly changing. You need to learn what is new and what is currently working on an ongoing basis. Using old safelist marketing techniques will only make you think that safelist marketing does not work. This is no different than any other marketing method.
You need to constantly be learning what works today, not what worked yesterday.
Now that you know some of the tricks to getting subscribers from safelists, start taking advantage of this source of new subscribers. Be patient and soon you will have a new flow of eager subscribers on your email list.
Not all niches work well for email marketing. Many niches are just too small or there is really no way to monetize it. Also many niches just don’t have people spending money online.
So the question we have to ask is, what niches do work well with email marketing?
There are many niches you could build a massive email list from, but not make any money. So what we do need to look for is large niches that actually spend a lot of money online.
The place to start is the evergreen niches. These cover a wide variety of smaller profitable niches we can build email lists from.
The most popular evergreen niches include health, wealth and romance.
Let’s drill down in a few evergreen niches and see what profitable sub niches we can find.
Popular Niches for Building Email Lists
The niches I have listed below should be used as a starting point in locating the niche or niches you want to build a list in. We are only going to look at some of the popular niches. Don’t hesitate to go outside of these niches and explore on your own. Just make sure the niche you select does in fact have people spending money online.
Diet and Weight Loss
People are always looking for ways to lose weight. They don’t have a problem spending money. In fact, many people buy multiple diet plans looking for the one that works for them.
Making Money Online
This is a huge niche of big spenders. You can find tons of smaller niches with huge amounts of money to spend within the making money online niche. People in this niche buy product after product. Some even buy multiple products each day.
Personal Finance
Some niches within the personal finance niche include Forex, stocks and bonds trading, and investments. These niches do well with higher dollar products.
Health and Beauty
Lots of money to be made in the health and beauty niche. A niche within the health and beauty niche that is popular is the healthy eating niche.
Body Building
The body building niche is really a sub niche of the health and beauty niche. If you know about body building, this niche can be very profitable. Products that work well in the body building niche are books, supplements and protein bars.
Dating and Relationship Advice
This is a huge niche with lots of smaller niches within it. Many have people that spend, spend and spend. This niche includes the big money maker niches like get your ex back and how to get a date. Both women and men spend money in this niche.
Seduction and Pickup Artist
This niche contains mostly men. They spend a lot of money and many high ticket items are available to be sold to them. Selling coaching courses is also popular in this niche.
Food and Cooking
This niche is very popular especially around the holidays. People love buying cookbooks, cooking utensils and learning new cooking techniques. Who does not love to eat?
Gaming
The gaming niche may contain a lot of kids and young adults. But they do spend. Gaming guides and cheats are very popular.
Pets
Some consider pets as part of the hobby niche. But it truly depends. Fish for example usually are considered a hobby. Dogs and cats are more companions and usually are not considered a hobby.
Pet owners spend money on their pets. Physical products do better than ebooks in this niche.
Hobbies
People love their hobbies and spend a lot of money pursuing them. Look for profitable hobbies like golf, model trains, tropical fish and collectibles.
When looking at hobbies be careful, some hobbies don’t spend money online.
As you can see, there are a lot of popular niches you can build a list in. We have just scratched the surface here. Sit down and brainstorm niches you feel you would enjoy. Then do a little investigating and see if they have a large number of people that are willing to spend money online.