Spam gets you canned!
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This post is part of the Mac Book Pro Challenge it’s not to late to get involved and start your journey to a shiny Mac Book Pro.
Email is on my mind
So with the Email Gathering Firesale which is continuing as I write this but will be over in a couple of hours, I noticed a couple of familiar email addresses of people who joined our challenge. So I think its worth throwing around some ideas around to help you get the most out of your potential new niche addresses without exposing yourself to a torrent of abuse and potentially your affiliate accounts shut down.
I do not approve of spam
Given I have spent yesterday telling you how to get clean, and verify your emails I strongly believe that if you are unsure of the legitimacy of how the address was collected then you never send more then a single introductory email.
Pressure selling via the first email never works
This I think is something that needs to be emphasised over and over again, and I know I covered it in the other article but throwing your affiliate links down peoples throats in the first email is not the way to convert them.
Instead try to build trust, given yesterday I managed to rewrite the Firesale opening letter 4 times and by the end it was a grammatical nightmare (sorry to the commentator who wrote the long comment on building trust with spelling at 7 in the morning you were deleted) to the point where people were questioning not only me but the information behind the letter. Suddenly after the initial rush people were holding back it is amazing but sometimes just spending time spell checking is enough!
Trust is getting close - trust is about persona
Remember our persona’s post from a few days ago? Well let’s put them to good use, the niche your targeting will dictate the style of the email. For example:
Is very unlikely to say…
Hey guys whats up? check out my new site its really cool!
Is she?
Well maybe she does but it is not what her peers and therefore the target audience will expect fit the language to the persona.
Sell the idea, then the product
If you are not planning a long recurring relationship with your new contacts? Why not? then at least get what you came for and grab the sale, or in our case entice them into the dream. Most Affiliate sites quite rightly do not approve of spam. So our process of verification is simple…
- Present your offer in brief
- Present the way forward (a link to your site and landing page)
- Present a way out
Remember your targeting this group of people because you think they are interested in your offer. If they are not then you do not need to waste your time and resources there are plenty of fish in the sea.
Introduction shot
If you have been given or got hold of a list and need to verify then the introductory email is critical. Clearly emphasis that it is a welcome, single email and that they will receive no further communication without there expressed permission. Explain why they are receiving the email, don’t be shy if you bought the address be honest tell them. Offer them the opt out even if you are never going to contact them again. Finally make your offer/sign up page easy and quick. If they have clicked your link you have them on the line so to speak don’t waste the opportunity.
Spam sucks - be personal
Seriously the way to avoid being classed as spam is to personalise your content, names, IP addresses you name it what ever you got that is personal to your target. The fact you are actually targeting a niche and not the masses gives you lots of potential. But remember if you want to flog Viagra no amount of me to telling you nice ways to present your information will help you will be just another spammer.
So I think it’s time to start building our landing site and looking at the idea of landing pages. There are loads of good articles out there on making persuasive sales pages, I will start up a resource list but if you have some articles let me know in the comments?
