Rule 2: It’s Not About You

Let’s face it. If you have done a good job of making a connection that resulted in your collecting a prospective customer’s email address, then that customer already knows what you have to offer. Email marketing provides your audience with the rationale for making you the one they turn to for it!
Figure 7.3 Blind Lemon Vintage is able to track customers who click on discount offers.
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What is it about you and your business that makes you different? This is what you want to convey in your email messages. Here are some industries and potential About Me and About What I Know topics:
Landscaping Company
About Me: 20 percent off de-thatching
About What I Know: Three plants deer won’t eat
 
 
Day Spa
About Me: Free wash with cut
About What I Know: How to stretch your lower back
 
 
Financial Adviser
About Me: Monthly Newsletter, August
About What I Know: Three tips to get an IRS audit
 
 
Nonprofit
About Me: Donations needed
About What I Know: Community helps to build house
 
 
Retail
About Me: 20 percent off all suits
About What I Know: What to wear to an interview
You may feel that the About Me subjects are just fine and in fact they might result in a desired response. However, they are just good, not great!
Good subjects resonate with your recipients but have the effect of ending their distribution at the recipient (not getting forwarded). They also have the potential to reduce trust over time. For example, in the fall of 2008, how many times were you bombarded by a big box retail store offering you an ever-increasing discount if you bought from it during its desperation to sell by year-end? It was ridiculous. I was getting daily emails with 20 percent, then 40 percent, then 70 percent off offers. Did this make me want to buy from these companies? No, in fact, I unsubscribed from their email lists.
Great subjects resonate with your recipients, engage them, educate them, make them want to do business with you, and have the added benefit of being shared with others. If you share great insights with your audience, they will reward you by sharing your ideas and your business with others. It’s human nature. We all want to look smart to our friends, so when we learn something we share it. Great email marketing is rewarded with increased trust over time.
One of my favorite email newsletter writers is Michael Katz (www.bluepenguindevelopment.com). Michael teaches businesses large and small how to write great email newsletters, and his monthly newsletter is something that I very much look forward to reading. In fact, I have given it the ultimate in email recognition—its own folder in my inbox. Michael’s email newsletters are captivating because he takes everyday occurrences and turns them into insightful ideas on how to write better email content. In short, Michael uses his everyday experiences to help his audience become better writers. Michael does not need to tell you that he is available to help you write your content because you already know that. Rather, by sharing his knowledge with the readers, he helps make us all better writers. It’s pretty clever because at the end of the day, if we recognize the value of great writing and the impact it can have on generating business, we are likely to turn to Michael if we need help. Clearly Michael has a knack for writing engaging content. You may think this is beyond your abilities, but it’s not. You don’t have to go overboard with humor but do make your stories come to life.
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