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       ** DEMC ** Volume VIII No. 33 **
        The Truth About Email Marketing!
    Serving the Internet Since November 1995

Quote for today:

"Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series
of small things brought together." - Vincent van Gogh
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What's In This Issue - Features

1) Editor's Note: "Will Selling Ezine Ads Be Outlawed"
2) Email Marketing Insights: "Email marketing: Building relationships"
3) Feature Article: "Interview with 'The Marketing Warrioress'"
4) SOHO Help Desk: "What Are 7 Psychological Triggers That Make People Buy?"
5) DEMC's - Advertising Information

======================

1.

Editor's Note:

"Will Selling Ezine Ads Be Outlawed?"

As I mentioned in last week's editor's note, California has recently passed a tough anti-spam law. Upon further investigation, I've learned the law is potentially problematic for permission email marketers not just spammers.

After the law takes effect on January 1, 2004, email list rental could become an extinct practice. And even email newsletter publishers may find themselves in jeopardy.

The concern is with the wording of the California law. It bans commercial email sent to or from a California email address unless the advertiser - not simply the sender - has direct consent or a pre-existing business relationship with the recipient.

With this wording, the law essentially prevents email list owners from being able to sell ads which would be emailed to their subscribers. The reason being, even though the subscribers may have given permission to the list owner to receive his messages, the subscribers did not give permission to the 3rd party advertisers.

The law does not address transfer of permission from a list owner to that list owner's advertisers. As a result, publishers may only discover whether they have permission to send 3rd party ads to their subscribers after a few law suits.

None of us wish to be the guinea pig! Hopefully, the law will be challenged on the grounds that it violates the U.S. constitutional ban on interference with interstate commerce. However, as of yet no one has stepped up to take the case.

So what can we do to prepare for the law being enacted?

As I've said before but it's worth repeating, be absolutely certain you are keeping records of new sign-up requests. You also should now require double confirmations for all new subscribers.

Do you distribute advertisements for 3rd party advertisers to your email list? If so consider including this fact on your sign-up form and in your confirmation email. You may even want to create a separate sign-up check box subscribers need to click on to indicate their acceptance. Some sources have suggested even listing out the names of the advertisers from whom your recipients are likely to receive email.

In terms of your current list, if you have subscribers for whom you do not have a sign-up record, now is the time to acquire their consent to receive your email. You may want to send out notices requiring these list members confirm their subscription. Remember to offer an incentive to encourage your existing subscribers to send in their confirmation. A free ebook, ecourse, report, etc. will all help to increase your confirmation return rate.

An option you could offer your subscribers is a choice between 2 separate lists. One list could be your publication with just in-house ads, therefore it will be free of 3rd party ads and promotions. While a second list choice could be a publication with 3rd party ads and solo ad offers. Then give away your freebie incentive only for subscribing to the second list.

Yes, acquiring confirmations from current list members as well as new sign-ups will decrease your list size. However, you will be taking the steps you can to protect your business from a potentially costly law suit. As the California law empowers email recipients to sue for damages of $1,000 per message, if there is no pre-existing business relationship or subscription record. And even if you can show you only send permission emails, if the court finds your email violated the law in some form you can still be fined $100 per message.

With such fines a possibility, you want to be very sure you have proof of confirmation from all your subscribers.

Looking to the positive side of the situation, by making confirmations a requirement you will develop a highly responsive list. Your list will be smaller but as you read more in today's issue, you'll see a smaller list does not mean less valuable. In fact a smaller list with better quality subscribers, will allow you to have more personal communication with your list members. You'll have better opportunities to develop stronger relationships and more sales may be the end result not less.

It is too early to tell what the exact repercussions of the California law will be. And, you can be sure I will continue to keep you up to date as I learn more. But rather than wait to find out, considering taking action now to confirm your subscribers. You may be pleasantly surprised by the results.

Abbie Drew
DEMC Editor
mail@demc2.com

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2.

Email Marketing Insights:

"Email marketing: Building relationships"
By: Ganesan. S.

In my last article, I had mentioned how many of us lose heart at lack of response (or negative response) from prospects and clients, due to lack of confidence in ourselves and our products.

Today, let's examine another big mistake we often make - taking prospects and customers for granted. This arises out of ignorance of how sales happen, at best, and arrogance, at worst.

We create databases of prospects and clients through various methods. We carefully craft our web site content, follow-up mailers and newsletters. We know they require our best attention, being mass communications. Some of us even hire professional copywriting help (which I recommend). All's fine and dandy, so far.

A few prospects and clients do write emails of complaints to us. Payment processors also normally provide a forum for the clients to complain. What do we do?

Most of us lose our patience. We assume that our site has all the info, and our follow-up mailers and newsletters also give all the details the client would ever need. We believe our back-end programs, autoresponders, and payment systems should take care of sales automatically.

So, when a client asks a question, we answer them very briefly. So briefly that the client often has to write another email seeking further clarifications. We lose our patience, and give an even briefer reply, if at all, perhaps giving just the url where the answer can be found. The prospect or client never returns to ask any more questions. We presume the client is satisfied with our reply, and keep quiet too. Little realizing that a sale has just slipped through our hands.

Do you think I am exaggerating? Not at all! I should know, since I am at the receiving end very often.

Why are we so indifferent to client queries? We often don't have the time to reply to one-off queries. And, we are also irritated that the client doesn't even read our site contents before seeking clarifications.

Little do we realize how great a situation we have just let slip past. I reckon, a prospect who buys from our site directly, without seeking any clarifications, offers us only minimal profit return. The prospect who emails us seeking clarifications offers a great chance to build a long term profitable relationship. Ideally, I would prefer every client did this.

Online business is NOT about technology. It is about building relationships through the net - reaching out to clients who we can't possibly meet.

While we may 'mass communicate' up to a point, just before the point of sale, when a prospect or a customer wants to talk to us, our communication has to be one-on-one. It could be through the phone, fax, email, or any other medium. Every single communication from every single prospect and client has to be answered in the greatest possible detail. We should get out of the mindset of replying in the form of 'one word' or 'one sentence' answers.

Let me make a suggestion here: Add a simple personal touch to your email replies and you'll win long-term clients, perhaps even lifelong clients. Keep a set of standard 'questions and answers', by all means, so you can cut and paste them to make up your replies. But insert a few words to personalize your note, based on the specific way the query has been worded. Actively look for such opp^rtunities.

Often, prospects and customers will give you great openings. For example, a client says, "I'm sorry, I lost out on the sale you had announced. I was at the hospital attending to my son almost the whole of last week ..." How nice it would be if you were to ask him what is the problem with his son's health, and whether he is alright now, besides extending the time for him as a special case, which you should do anyway?

Customers mentioning about their loss of data due to a virus attack, or having been away on vacation, or a problem they faced in the hands of a payment processor, ... are all openings to build relationships.

Some of my best clients are those who responded to the 'personal note' in my replies to routine queries. People long for relationships, even when doing business. If you extend a hand of friendship, subtly, then the client becomes more than a client.

I have even gone on to establish a business partnership with one such client with whom I established a personal rapport, starting with a small personal note. We have never met, and spoken over the phone just a few times. Together, we are investing a large sum of money in a business now. I have gained many personal friends this way. (Let me confess, I am a poor networker, by nature; a good networker in my place would have gained a lot more.)

Has using this personalization strategy taken a lot of extra time? Not quite. I employ cost-effective 'Help Desk Assistants' to take care of the routine correspondence, while I add in my own personal notes now and then. I do it so seamlessly, no one knows the difference. It requires some training of the assistants, but it can be done.

Does every client respond to such personal notes? No, many don't. But those who do, they respond intensely. And I haven't, in any way, lost out by trying with the ones who didn't respond.

The contacts I've established this way are among the best of my friends, and our relationships go beyond business, though both sides have gained phenomenally in terms of business too.

Such is the power of relationships. Whether created in the real world, or through the use of email on the net.

###
Ganesan is the CEO of eZynes Communications.
eZynes' comprehensive services includes Advertising
& Marketing, Content Development, eCommerce and
'Help Desk' Assistance. Email: mailto:ezynes@eth.net .

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3.

Feature Article:

* Exclusive *

"Autoresponder Marketing Masters Series"

"Interview with 'The Marketing Warrioress'"
By: Mike Merz

An interview with 'The Marketing Warrioress', Jan Tallent-Dandridge owner of http://SoftwareWarrioress.com & Rim Digest eZine < http://www.rimdigest.com/ > for marketers and small business owners.

A successful entrepreneur, Jan is probably best known as the editor/ publisher of the extremely popular newsletter, RIM Digest. As the owner of a highly responsive newsletter that has gone out to as many as 50,000 satisfied subscribers, it will be interesting to see how Jan utilizes autoresponders as part of her daily email marketing strategy.

MM

Hey, Jan! ... I am SO glad you made time for us, considering your busy schedule.

JTD

Hi, Mike. It is my pleasure and thank you for asking me.

MM

Your success with RIM Digest puts you in the same class as the top email marketers in the field.

How did you go about building such a large, and responsive list? (the two don't necessarily go hand in hand ..;)

JTD

For over three and a half years now I have been determined to stay totally MYSELF and I am told, and do believe, that this is the *key*, if there is one. I put a lot of myself in each issue of my ezine, really LOVE what I do and adore my subs and they know it. The first 10,000 subs were mostly accumulated via "word of mouth", subscribe boxes on my web sites and ad swaps with other ezines. I later bought out two retiring ezines and merged the subscriber bases with my own. I have also used subscriber brokers with some success.

MM

In what way has the use of autoresponders contributed to the success of RIM? How were they utilized?

JTD

Alas, I am quite lazy when it comes to using autoresponders as much as they can be used. I mostly use them to send the welcome message to new subs. I also take really large articles and put them in an AR so as to save space in the ezine by using only a teaser and then the AR address, but I do know I SHOULD use them more.

MM

... in regards to your other Online ventures?

JTD

I use autoresponders to send follow-ups to my software/ eBooks customers, the index to my cookbook, etc.

MM

As the owner of a high circulation, email newsletter, SP^M and filtering issues must be a big headache ... how have you dealt with these problems? Any experiences you'd like to share?

JTD

I had been shut down by my ISP for suspected sp*mming just over a year ago and had to go in and have a ^meeting^ to explain what I was doing and how ANTIsp*m I was. I had made a really stupid mistake and bought out a so- called ezine, solo ad business, web site, etc. with over 50,000 *targeted* subs, when, in fact, it turned out the list was a collection of harvested addresses/made up ones. Over 10,000 were harvested and of these, over 20 yelled (rightfully!) sp*m.

Just two months ago I was blacklisted with AOL due to their customers not keeping their mailboxes clean. Ironically, while I have had to dump over 26,000 double confirmed AOL subs, I still spend at least an hour a day getting rid of the most awful and sick messages that pour right on in past any filters my ISP or I can set up.

I'm finding getting my ezine emailed OUT is actually more work than putting the three issues together each week!

MM

The HTML VS. Text Debate ... where do you stand?

JTD

Rim Digest is basically plain text. Due, in a large part to the 26,000+ AOL customers I was mailing to AND to yearly polls I've run where those who bother to answer still vote 9 to 1 to keep it text. So text is the basic email format, I use.

However, I have an HTML list for what I call the "Personal Copy" and there are almost 200 on this list. These subs get the issues with colors and fancy fonts and images. This issue is about 10K bigger than the text one.

I find these subscribers are a seriously responsive bunch. I do not know if the colors and pics put them in the mood to buy or what but I generally sell more from just the small HTML list than the whole big one.

MM

I'm sure our readers would love to read a few 'insider tips' to building a successful newsletter ... what have you got for us, Jan? ;)

JTD

My sincere advice is to be yourself. There are thousands of clone ezines out there. I have subbed to over 200 in five years and have now weeded them out to those I find really entertaining, educational or both. Do NOT try to be like everyone else you see - and do not be in a hurry to get *numbers* vs. quality/responsive READERS. My response is as good now with 28,000+ as it was when I THOUGHT I was getting to 54,000.

Plus, as I mentioned before my small 200 subs list to whom I send the "Personal Copy" is the most responsive of all!

My subs know I am a real person, I make mistakes and readily admit them. I hurt and cry and rant and rave and get ecstatic and happy and share just a touch of that with my readers. I also quit following all of the so-called "gurus" because what might have worked for THEM did not feel right to ME and that has been the right choice for me.

MM

Anything new coming out of the JTD camp? ... give us 'the skinny', will ya?

JTD

Actually, now that you mention it, my husband, George, who makes software for MY needs and then being a marketer's spouse, gets talked into sharing it, has come up with a brand new product I have been dying to release. It was brought about by my AOL problem and a new resolve to totally clean out my list of all "three strikes and out" bouncers, etc. I used it constantly for 2 months straight and have the cleanest list I could have without removing the non-bouncers, LOL! You can be on the watch for it, it will be called "eMail Bounce Tracker".

MM

Thank you so much for making time for us, Jan!

JTD

You are more than welcome and again, thank YOU, for wanting to interview me.

Future "Autoresponder Marketing Master" interviews are being booked as of this writing to be run in DEMC in the months to come ...

So stay tuned!

Who would YOU like to see featured in our series?

Send your requests to mailto:DEMC@im4newbies.com and I'll do my best to track them down! ;)

Regards,
Mike Merz

###
Mike Merz is a well known Internet Marketing expert, specializing
in Online newbie campaign start ups, and is the owner of ...
Internet Marketing For Newbies - http://im4newbies.com/
The IM4Newbies Update - http://im4newbies-update.im4newbies.com/
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~/~ SOHO Help Desk ~\~
http://www.demc.com

"What Are 7 Psychological Triggers That Make People Buy"

Today's SOHO Help Desk offers two informative tips to build your business. First you'll find good advice on setting up reciprocal links. Then you'll read a valuable copy writing tip to improve your sales letters, ads and articles.

If you have a valuable tip, promotional idea, question or answer you would like included in an upcoming issue of DEMC, all you have to do is submit it by email to - mailto:helpdesk@demc2.com

To start us off, here's a great question from a fellow DEMC subscriber.

=== HELP REQUEST ===

From: Cathy Friesenhahn

My newsletter (ezine) has 1500 members on it. It is growing about 15-24 a day. How much can I charge for advertising on top level, middle, and bottom of my ezine?

Also, how many ads can be put in an ezine without annoying the subscribers? Is it that the more subscribers you have, the more ads you can have?

Thanks for your help,

Cathy Friesenhahn
Draw And Paint School
http://www.DrawAndPaintSchool.com

Send your answer to: mailto:helpdesk@demc2.com

=== Answer for Jenny ===

Jenny's Question:

> I'd like to know more about reciprocal links and how to
> use them to make my business site more visible.

Hi Jenny

Here it is one of the secrets of reciprocal links. Take care to set up reciprocal links with sites closely related to the topic of your site. Then a part of people surfing the related site will come to your site through the reciprocal link. Coming from a related site they should be interested in your site's theme as well, and more likely to buy your product.

If you want to learn more secrets, please read my article "The Two Sides of Reciprocal Links" http://www14.brinkster.com/promcf/exe/art.htm

May you succeed
Valerian
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=== Copy Writing Tip ===

From: Arina Nikitina

What Are 7 Psychological Triggers That Make People Buy?

Did you know that there are seven psychological techniques that literally persuade people to buy?

When I first used them in my sales letter I increased the response rate by 457% overnight! You can use them not only in your sales letter but also in your ads, headlines, and even newsletter.

Trigger #1: Reason Why

Tell people WHY you're doing something. Don't be a mystery for your customers. People are more likely to buy from an ordinary person they know something about.

Are you giving 25% discount on your product? Give the people honest reason why. Are you limiting the number of products you want to sell? Tell people why.

If you tell your visitors about the reasons of doing something they will be more likely to trust you and to buy from you.

Trigger #2: Specifics

Tell the specifics. "How I made $1,058 in a week" sounds more believable than "How I made $1,000 in a week".

People are skeptics. If you include specifics people will be more likely to believe you.

If you state a fact, make it specific. General numbers never sounded plausible.

Trigger #3: Curiosity

We all are extremely curious. We want to know answers to our questions. Tell people not to open this email and they will open it. Because they want to know what's inside.

Headlines like "Discover the hidden secret of free ezine advertising" are always producing great results. You immediately want to know "What secret?".

Curiosity trigger is a great way to get your email opened. It also works great in ads and in articles. Like the title of this article: "What Are 7 Psychological Triggers That Make People Buy?" :)

Trigger #4: Fear to Lose Something

People are most likely to buy from you if they are motivated by fear to lose something than if they are motivated by desire to gain something. That's why deadlines and limited production numbers works well.

Use deadlines in your copy. Run 3 days specials or limit the number of products you want to sell. Make people act now by letting them know that there is an expiration on your offer.

Trigger #5: Questions

Ask questions. By asking questions you get people involved, they automatically start to think to answer your question and become more responsive to your message.

What headline would grab your attention:

"You are wasting money on ezine advertising" or "Are you wasting money on ezine advertising?"

Trigger #6: Stories

Nothing can be better than a good story. It's easy to influence people just by telling them a good story.

A lot of famous copywriters used this method in their sales letters. You can tell a true story about your customer. Or about yourself.

A real life story about something the product has done to improve someone's life will build your credibility and motivate people to buy.

Trigger #7: Facing a Problem

Every product is a solution to particular problem. Don't rush into presenting the solution you have, make sure you first make your visitors to face the problem.

Present the problem and agitate it so people would feel the pain of situation. Spell out the problem, tell them how it feels. Only after you've got readers interest present your product that provides the solution.

Apply these seven psychological techniques to maximize your sales and increase the response rate of your ads.

###
Arina Nikitina is the author of exclusive report "5 Laws of Success". To receive it in minutes absolutely fr.ee of charge send a blank email to: mailto:5lawsofsuccess@directfollowup.com?subject=725

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