Top 4 Fears of eMail Marketing


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How to Make Smart Marketing Decisions

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Small business owners can spend a lot of time and money on marketing initiatives. Sometimes we're successful and sometimes not so much. I think of marketing as an experiment because - really - there are no magic bullets. There are best practices, there is good and bad advice, there are lots of experts and gurus. But we, the business owners, have to make the final decisions and... live with the results. Marketing isn't cheap (even if it's our own time) and poor decision-making can hurt more than our wallets - our reputation may also be at risk. So, how do we make decisions about things we have little experience with? How can we possibly know what all of our options might be when it comes to getting a new website? Or knowing which social media platforms will work best? Or building a content strategy? We can't... unless we put some extra effort into it. Step #1: Clearly identify the decision that needs to be made. Sometimes it'll be staring you in the face ...
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The Bottom Line About Newsletter Bottoms

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There seems to be some thinking that getting people to read to the bottom of a newsletter is a most desirous goal. And, if getting people to read to the bottom (read the whole newsletter) is so important, isn't putting the really good stuff at the bottom the best way to make that happen? The short answer is that it doesn't matter. Oh, the placement of content matters but whether someone reads to the bottom doesn't... at all. If you think it does, you are thinking about your newsletter strategy all wrong. It's all about your reader finding value in opening your newsletter. That value might be in the form of useful information or it might be interesting reading or both. And it definitely shouldn't be hidden away at the bottom. In fact, it should be immediately obvious. Having readers discover value in hearing from you regularly is the goal. It doesn't matter how much they read. Your readers aren't thinking, "I have to read through all this other stuff be...
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Here's How Writing Content Turns You Into an Expert

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(guest post by Alison Knott) So you’re starting the process of making a brand or logo for your new business. Or, you’re about to hire someone to do it for you. Congratulations! It’s now time for the daunting task of articulating whatever the hell is in your head into something concrete. Eep! I’m here to help you help yourself. It can seem difficult to put into words how you do (and do not) want to represent your brand that doesn’t exist yet. So… how do the pros do it? We do research and create moodboards, which are a visual collection of images, colours and graphics to illustrate a certain mood . Now, as a brand designer I use Adobe InDesign and Illustrator to put final mood boards together for my clients. But you want to know what has saved me and my clients so much time? Having clients send along their own little Pinterest brand modeboard collection to help me get inside their head. Yes! That thing you’ve been using to save 783 pictures of living room renos you’re nev...
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Guest Post: 10 Ways to Figure out What to Write on Your Blog When You Don’t Know What to Write on Your Blog

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Frances Leary When I saw this blog post by Frances Leary, I immediately asked her if I could share it with you. Frances is owner of Wired Flare , specializing in SEO, Internet Marketing & Social Media for franchises and organizations in Canada, the U.S. and Europe. While she's blogging about blogging, all of these tips below work for newsletters as well... We've all been there. Complete brain freeze.  The only problem? You need, need, need to get this blog article out STAT. You've already pushed it to the last minute, and you’re down to the wire. It simply can’t wait.  So you’re in a predicament. What do you do?  Truth be told, we often find ourselves in this predicament, and when we’re in it, these are some of the things we do…hopefully they can be a starting place for you, too. Tell a success story – Think of moments big or small that have happened in your business recently that can be a celebration. Did a client give you a pat on the back? Can you gi...
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How Long should a Newsletter be?

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@DaleyProgress How long should a newsletter be in this day and age? — Lino (@LinosVersion) December 5, 2013 The ideal answer is: as long as it needs to be to give value. The real answer is: it depends. Here are some of the things it depends on: Frequency Typically, the more often you send your newsletter, the shorter it will be. In my experience, though, that tends to be a function of the work involved with preparing it. Is there such a thing as providing too much value? Goals If one of your goals is to build your reputation as an expert, your newsletters will need to include a fair bit of content in the form of original articles (or images). If you have well-defined goals, these will always help you decide what to include and what to leave out. When in doubt, ask yourself if any of your goals are being met by the content you’re considering. Your commitment The perfect strategy is to put out as much amazing content as you can. Your actual strategy will depend...
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Repurpose Articles into Infographics

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I'm a big fan of repurposing content for two reasons: It can save me time . People have different ways of learning. Different formats for the same material will ensure a broader reach. Summing up a past article in a graphical format is a great way to appeal to a different audience. Pick an article that can be summed up into bullet points. Then turn those bullet points into a graphical format. With the proliferation of infographics, we now have lots of choices of apps to make it easy for us to create our own: infogr.am piktochart.com Hubspot’s templates canva.com Here are a few examples of our own infographics: Elements of eNewsletter Success  (used Hubspot's templates) 9 Ways to Personalize Your Newsletter  (used Canva) 4 Ways to Constantly Grow Your List  (used Canva) In her article Marketing with Infographics , Janet Slack suggested these other creative uses for infographics: Share testimonials Showcase your expertise Share customer statistics...
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Adding Audio to your Content - Part 1

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Natasha in her studio (guest post by Natasha Marchewka) ***  Click to listen in rather than read Have you considered adding audio to your blog or eNewsletter? As a voice actor, someone who uses and sells their voice for a living, showcasing my voice and having an archive of recorded blogs is an obvious choice for me. Adding audio to marketing adds to the multimedia dimension, offering readers more engagement. Lucky for me, Linda Daley of Daley Progress has embraced my audio blogs as she is able to listen to it weekly while completing other tasks! But adding the element of an audio file isn't limited to voice actors. Including a voice in your content, be it a blog, newsletter, website, or social media is just smart.  When you want your client or customer to have the perception of a personal connection with you, offering more of yourself, like a photo, audio greeting, or even video is another step closer to making your way into their hearts and minds. Who might...
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If Efficiency is Your Goal, You'll Want These Tools

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“You’re assuming efficiency is my goal,” my good friend replied one day when I suggested a better way (to me) of doing something. Oddly, I might be inclined to say that about some parts of my own work (just not whatever it was we were discussing at the time). This is not a story about the dangers of assuming (although that could be another article). This time I want to dish out some advice about how to be more efficient (since Danielle doesn’t want to hear it). I’ve written before about my essential small business tools ( Part 1 and Part 2 ) but these ones below are especially important to my productivity . FreshBooks (aff) Immediately upon implementing FreshBooks, I saw an improvement in outstanding accounts receivable. Reminders are automated and I rarely have to follow up with anyone myself. No more wondering, "Did I already remind that client?" Canva I've been using graphics applications for over 20 years - for fun and work. Nothing beats Canva's ...
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Action and Email Don't Mix

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Reactionary Workflow – reacting to what’s coming in rather than being proactive. It’s a new term but a familiar feeling… and it sure did resonate with me. Being constantly connected means that it’s really easy for people to contact us. As a consequence, our ability to prioritize is crippled by the unending flow of communication. It has become harder to direct our work with intention. We’ve relinquished control over our focus. One of my own personal focus areas last year was to be, well, more focused. What I found was that just focusing on being focused didn’t cut it. I needed tactics… and discipline. Here are some things that I found useful: Blocking out time for specific tasks , especially tasks related to developing my own business. Turning off email for certain periods during the day – need I say more? Taking time to create , rather than just responding to emails. Yes, I might be suggesting taking more time. Adding value to my communications has resulted in many ben...
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