Hi Everyone
Loren McDonald has written another insightful article on Email Marketing.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on it:
http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=139778#comments
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Email Marketing: Sorry I Have To Tell You This
October 10, 2010 By 1 Comment
Hi Everyone
“Sorry I Have To Tell You This”
For those who know me personally you are aware I
have been into marketing and motivational type products
etc. for well over 30 years.
I’m one of those funny guys who buys the books, the tapes,
goes to seminars and walks up to speakers and introduces
themselves.
My library looks like the “Who’s Who” of the marketing world
over the last 50 plus years.
I know…But that’s me.
For the past 14 years I have been out on my own making a
living i.e NO BOSS – and YES – a very handsome one at times;
(multiple racehorse ownership, a luxury b.each apartment, multiple property
developments & the latest model cars to name a few extravagances)
I always thought I could do things on my own.
You know; I don’t need help to make money or a very good living.
But…
Then I listened to a video today from one of my marketing buddies in
the States and I heard these words.
And it hurt. Yes, hurt.
He said:
“Sorry, but I have to tell you this, but if there is a problem
with your business it’s probably YOU !”
Now, he wasn’t speaking direct to me. He was speaking to the
hundreds or thousands who were going to watch the video, but
he may as well have been speaking to me.
Because…
His words hit me direct in the heart, like a crossbow arrow piercing
through my chest and blazingly protruding from my back.
I thought, “OUCH – That HURTS”
Why ?
Because he was Right !
Until you can admit you need someone to help you in your
business you won’t get the results you deserve. PERIOD !
You see, we can’t do it alone. Even a lone sprinter still needs
someone to click the stopwatch for them.
I have realised I need others to help and you can too.
I have put in place today to reconnect with some mentors
I have had over the years and toss around a few ideas and
thoughts with them.
I need their help to make sure I am on track to achieve
what I wish.
What about your Business. Do you need a hand?
Everyone does.
The first place to start is with your Marketing.
Yes, you need to look at this and get a plan underway.
So to help, I have put together a 22 page book titled,
“There Are Only 8 Types Of Emails”.
It gives you explanations and examples and it will
be dogeared from your use within a few very short months.
You can get it FREE from here: ONLY 8 TYPES OF EMAIL
I hope you do because I don’t wish to post again
and say, “Sorry, But I Have to Tell You This.”
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Email Marketing – Killer Tips 4 & 5
September 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Hi Everyone
Continuing my series of email marketing tips.
Here are my Killer Tips numbered 4 and 5.
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Email Marketing – An Act Or An Art ?
August 17, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Hi Everyone
Is email marketing an ACT or an ART ?
Let me explain…
People today want the quick fix, the magic pill, the immediate solution.
They wish to be the CEO before they have learned the business, learned the environment AND served their apprenticeship.
It’s Ok to dream and it’s Ok to desire but it’s not OK to believe you deserve the right to the Excecutive Bathroom without first completing a solid learning process and proving you can continually produce the outcomes needed.
Email Marketing is very much like this too.
I see over and over again people who profess to be email marketing experts because they send an email out once in awhile. They believe they know the game and emailing is easy.
But…
Whilst the ACT of EMAILING is easy the ART of EMAILING is not.
Email Marketing, whilst not an exact science, has many proven formulas to help you succeed. It has an underlying tone and purpose which can take years to learn.
Years to learn by looking at results, looking at open rates, looking at click-through rates, looking at unsubscribe rates, looking at statistics during different times of the week.
Sure, you can send out an email and stumble upon success. Gees many marketers do.
But by recording results, deciphering the wins and losses and by massaging your messages, you can hit a winner more times than not.
So, the clear message from this post is to take time to construct email marketing campaigns which will resonate with your audience.
Construct your emails to proven formulas which will help, assist and increase your open and response rates.
Create messages which will HELP your client.
Don’t take this medium lightly. If you do, you are not caring for your recipients and they will see this.
Gosh it is an exciting time for email marketers – but only if you are keeping up with the latest trends, technology and changing environment.
Email marketing is evolving. Are you staying up with the advancement?
More and more people today read their emails via Smart Phones. This gives them the ability to access programs like YouTube at their fingertips. This in turn gives the email marketer the ability to gain further trust with the recipient by creating videos in the marketing.
If you are not sure how to go about all this then let me know. My team and I are up with the latest trends and we can help you climb the email marketing success ladder too.
So remember; Email Marketing is an ART not an ACT and with the right help and guidance you too can benefit with greater customer relationships and sales.
My team and I are here if you need.
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Email Marketing: How To Get Your Emails Noticed.
July 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Hi Everyone
This week I talk about getting your emails noticed.
The first part of an email a recipient reads is the ‘From Line”.
You have a few choices what to use here, including:
* Your company name: (i.e. Johansen International);
* Your name: (i.e. Kurt Johansen);
* The position name of someone in your business: (i.e. CEO – Johansen International);
* The email loyalty program name: (VIP Club – Johansen International); OR
* your name and a description of your services: (i.e. Kurt Johansen – Email Mastery).
The choice should be based on what you think most recipients are likely to recognize.
Your first and last name is quite a useful relationship building technique but it must be recognisable to your recipients.
If you are sending to a list of people who know you and are expecting your emails then you may use your names successfully. i.e Kurt Johansen.
This particular ‘FROM’ technique works especially well for small businesses who have a personal relationship with their clients.
But…
If you are sending to a list as an employee or from a business where the business name is primarily known then it may be wise to use the business name. i.e. Johansen International.
Whatever you choose be consistent. If you change, it may confuse your recipients which could lead to ‘unsubscribes’.
Please DO NOT use “sales@abccompany”, or “admin@abccompany” etc. as these will not help build a relationship with your lists.
Also keep in mind many emails are now read on mobile phones. Therefore it also pays to get your ‘FROM’ line identified early. i.e “Kurt Johansen – Email Mastery” rather than “Email Mastery – Kurt Johansen”;
An often overlooked element of the FROM line is a person’s email address. Try to avoid using ‘Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail addresses if you email market. Use your email address. i.e kurt@johanseninternational.com.au
Your real address will render a more personal touch when it comes to email marketing. If you do not wish people to reply to the FROM email address (as it is your personal email address) this can be organised.
Email Marketing programs allow you to program where the return/reply email should be directed to.
So, make sure you have your FROM line correctly set up if you wish to succeed in Email Marketing. If you need help contact me. We can get you into a professional Email Marketing system for only $49.50 per month.
Click http://budurl.com/EmailProfits to view.
PLUS…
When you come on board I will throw in 2 one-hour training sessions (valued at $500) from me – absolutely FREE.
Yes, I will walk you through how to use the system to best affect and how to get the most out of your email marketing for FREE when you sign up at http://budurl.com/EmailProfits
Take a look NOW. Click http://budurl.com/EmailProfits to view.
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Kurt Johansen
Email Marketing Strategist
PS: Act straight away – CONTACT ME. You need to start email marketing NOW.
PPS: We can get you started for as little as $49.50 per month. Click http://budurl.com/EmailProfits to view.
Email Marketing Meets Guerrilla Marketing
July 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Hi Everyone
An interesting comparison hit my desk today.
I was re-reading Guerrilla Marketing “Secrets For Making Big Profits From Your Small Business” – by Jay Conrad Levinson, Copyrited 1984 and saw a very familiar theme which is true today.
Back then Email marketing did not exist. Gosh even the internet may have been around only in thought.
But what I discovered was…
Jay Conrad Levinson told all his clients when you market you must have these three key elements and stick to them.
They are…
- You must be COMMITTED to your marketing program;
- You must think of that program as an INVESTMENT;
- You must see it to that your program is CONSISTENT.
Now how true is this.
He says, If you are not committed to your marketing or advertising, it’s probably not going to work for you.
Marketing and Advertising should be considered as a conservative investment. They are not miracle workers. They are not the magic formulas. They are not instant gratifiers. If you don’t recognise that marketing is a conservative investment, you’ll have difficulty committing to a marketing program.
By accepting this chances are you will be committed to your investment and earn a lot more from money than by spending your money in marketing. And there is a difference.
And the finally, the third key element which he also introduces as his ’3 secrets’ is don’t change media. Learn as much as you can on one and develop a winning formula. Then don’t change the message either. People come and go in market all the time.
- Consistency equals familiarity.
- Familiarity equates to confidence.
- And confidence equates to sales.,
Whether you choose email marketing or not for your next marketing campaign, all three of Jay’s 3 Key Elements must be in play.
For me, Email Marketing also brings into play 3 other Key Elements.
- Have a List;
- Have a Relationship with your list; and
- Make Dynamic, Irresistible Offers to your list.
So remember those words which were written over a quarter of a century ago: Commitment, Investment, Consistent when you next undertake your email marketing campaign.
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Email Marketing – “What Do Your Customers Do In The Morning?”
June 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Hi Everyone
Interesting question isn’t it?
A study by Exact Target in the U.S. researched this very question
and suggested if we do not know whether our customers are reaching
for smartphones to check Facebook, updating their Twitter status or
logging onto laptops to check email then it’s time we should.
Exact Target suggests whatever our customers do first in the morning
will drive their on-line behaviours during the day.
And what this then does is drive their motivators for on-line interactions.
Let me explain this a little simpler.
Research reveals:
- 58% of consumers check their emails as their first
on-line activity in the morning; - 20% will check out a website first; and
- 11% of on-line consumers go straight to Facebook.
People who begin their day by checking emails are most likely to
continue to do it during the day and are susceptible to on-line offers;
specials and deals which may land in their in-box.
People who go surfing a particular website or sites first generally look for
distinctive brands
whereas…
People who go straight to Facebook are looking for social interaction and
therefore looking for entertainment, and personal connection.
So, what does this mean to the email marketer ?
Well, everything.
If we know what our customers are doing first thing in the morning then
we can craft our messages especially for them.
For example:
Email First Customers
Email First customers don’t wish to get too personal with you.
They are happy to identify you through your brand or name and are
likely to share any information you send them via email to their friends .
They engage with you because they have opt.ed-in to a list to receive
your messages and welcome your marketing emails
but…
they are 5 times unlikely to share these email messages via Facebook.
Facebook for them is a social medium not a transactional one.
Facebook First Customers
These are our social creatures. They are most likely to identify with
a Brand via a Facebook Fan Page and are happy to share their experience
with their ‘Facebook Friends’ via Facebook.
They use email throughout the day but are highly likely to share information
they discovered on a Facebook Fan page to their friends via email.
Email to them is not a social-discovery-exchanging media.
Email is used in a more ‘corporate’ manner.
Sure, they will engage with friends via email because they are social.
They are more likely to exchange their personal buying experiences
via Facebook.
So, why should all this research matter to you, the marketer?
Until now most marketers have used the same message in their
emails as they would on Facebook in the belief as long as our message
is out there it will be OK.
But this strategy is now clearly wrong.
Clear, concise, and precise tactics are now required to the email marketer
or to the larger extent any marketer.
The tactics you need to engage with your customers are changing.
Don’t get left behind.
In my next message I am going to share with you social media tactics
you simply must employ if you don’t wish to lose your customers
attention.
Quite simply, knowing where your customers begin
their daily on-line activities will be your key to success.
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Email Marketing – Piggy Back Off The Major Players
June 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Hi Everyone
Welcome back from hopefully a wonderful long weekend.
Gosh; have you been watching the numerous sales promotions
happening at the moment wrapped around the End of the
Financial Year?
There are numerous promotions from all the regular big players.
The promos are in letterboxes, blaring on the radio, emblazoned
across the Tele with everything from the latest facial creams to
the latest gadget and gizmo which a household simply must have.
Some may say, there are too many promotions, some may say it’s a
annoying and they would be right; wouldn’t they?
But some people…
are taking advantage of the sales in droves and spending their hard
earned dollars on the amazing specials we are being presented with.
I don’t know about you but I have spent money updating my wardrobe
and my 18 year old came along and did the same too. (Have you ever
tried to get an 18 year old to do anything???)
Why did we both do this…WELL…
Because…
The promos and sales on offer grabbed our attention and reached us
at the right time.
Now, there isn’t really anything startling here.
Except…
With the amount of promotions going on it does create a sales frenzy.
And your customers will be no different.
All the big retail stores are advertising and this provides you with
a brilliant opportunity to piggy back off their promos.
You don’t have to jump on the T.V. or radio to get your messages out
though you do need to do something.
This is where email marketing can be used.
Email Marketing is a most cost effective way to get your marketing
messages out to your clients.
So, what could you do?
How can you use this consumer frenzy and engage your customers?
How can you accessorise your products and services to tantalise
your clients into action?
Marketing is a MUST for all businesses. Most business owners often struggle
though on how to do it.
The simplest method is to look what’s happening around you in
the market place.
Then…
ACT !
Yes, ACT.
So go on. Get a message out to your clients.
Of course you will need to massage the message to suit your
clients but DO IT all the same.
It’s ok, if you are still unsure what to do. It’s not your fault.
It can be tricky.
But…
Help is easy to get. Simply, let me know if you need it.
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
Email Marketing Meets “End of the Financial Year”
June 1, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Hi Everyone
Email marketing is about resonating with your Lists to ensure they receive meaningful messages.
In Australia, we are about to enter a crucial marketing and advertising period which is known as the “End of the Financial Year.” This is where companies like to throw out specials and have end of financial year sales.
Gees, even Foxtel have jumped on board and call it “EOFYS”. It worked so well for them last year they are repeating their advertising this year. Their strategy is to offer 50% installation fees for a new customer knowing they will lock them in for at least 12 months. They even offer another upgrade free for 6 months.
So, here’s your opportuntity to jump on board and piggy back off their marketing.
What service or product do you have to offer your clients in an ‘End of Year Sale’?
It could be stock still sitting on the shelf which would be great just to receive ‘cost’ back.
It could be new product from a supplier who may be in the same position. i.e. They have stock they would love to move on.
If your a service industry, it may be offering a special deal to obtain a new client or a service you can offer former clients just to re-engage them.
What ever you sell, there must be an End Of Year Offer you can make.
So, get out there and start doing it now. There is still plenty of weeks left in June to take advantage of a three-five step email marketing campaign.
But…
You must act now !
Cheers and Great Selling
Kurt
