Posts from — January 2009

The creator of Wordle says it’s a toy. It’s true that is fun to play with, but it’s also got a serious side. It’s a mini application that creates a graphic image of the word on your Web site or other text. The more frequently you use a word, the larger it will be in the picture that Wordle generates (like a tag cloud).

Two ways to use this:

One: As a SEO tool. It’s a quick, visual way to see whether the words on your site match the keywords you want to use for your SEO program. If not, change them!

Two: See if your site (or letter) focuses on on selling points and benefits, rather than how long you’ve been in business.

Try it at http://www.wordle.net/create

ONE
How often it’s updated (the older the list, the more out-of-date it is. You want to pay for current names (not outdated ones)

TWO
How they get the data (is it compiled, from a paid directory, from a subscriber list)

THREE
What other kinds of companies have used the list (if you’re in the electronics industry, a list used by toothpaste manufacturers may not be right for you)

FOUR
The products those companies were selling (look for products and services similar to yours. If you sell seminars on HR training, look for lists used by other companies who sell HR training)

FIVE

Whether they rented it again (a sign of how well it worked)

SIX

How often the list is rented (a way to tell if the list is being used too much)

You’ve decided to start a newsletter, you’ve got all sorts of interesting advice and information planned, you’ve picked your target audience, but you’ve got nobody to send it to.

What do you do?

It’s tempting to go out and buy a list from InfoUSA or other vendors that promise thousands or millions (!) of addresses at low rates — (and you own the list). Sounds good, right? It’s a mistake. The list is likely to be compiled, the permission to contact is questionable, and the data is probably old.

Renting a list

This can work under certain conditions, but rented email lists (particularly business to business lists) tend to be very expensive (up to $300 per thousand names).

Build your own

Add the link to your e-zine or newsletter subscription to your email signature line.

Send an email to people you already know (friends, current clients, prospects you’ve been talking to you) and tell them about your new newsletter. Talk about all the great information they’ll get, the kinds of topics you are going to cover, and include a link to sign up.

Add an “ethical bribe.” Offer a report, an analysis or some other valuable information in return for signing up.

Once you have subscribers, include a forwarding request at the bottom of each newsletter.

Add a sign-up form to your Web site or blog

If you’re on twitter or facebook or other social networking sites, tell your friends and followers about your new newsletter. Don’t spam them with continuous tweets, but share tidbits, relevant quotes, or other information that will raise their interest.

Offer an e-mail course on a topic that’s relevant to your blog’s readers. Once you set it up, an autoresponder (automated message system) will send out each class to anyone who signs up.

For more about email marketing, sign up for my free Email Marketing Course

OK, so what does this have to do with marketing?

First, a little background. My friend Igor, from Seth Godin’s Triiibes network, has come up with this cool application that lets you add your own colors to the White House (more landmarks coming soon).

He showed it to all of us and we started playing around. We painted it purple, brown, yellow, all sorts of colors. My version is on top of this post.

And (here comes the marketing part), since it’s fun, I’m sharing it on my blog. So are other triiibe members; they’re blogging, tweeting, and emailing the link to their friends. Igor (the creator) will get lots of hits on his Web site and lots of publicity for his application, as the link spreads and goes viral.

Total cost: zero

Try it yourself here (and tell your friends too)

http://www.colorjinn.com/whitehouse/

“Some say, ‘Be very brief. People will read for little.’ Would you say that to a salesman? With a prospect standing before him, would you confine him to any certain number of words? That would be an unthinkable handicap.”

Those words were not written in the age of the Internet. They were penned by Claude Hopkins, over 100 years ago, in his book Scientific Advertising.

What held true then still holds true today. Use the number of words, amount of benefits and features, and the information you need in order to make your sale. No more. No less.

Tell your whole story. Consider that your reader is someone who knows little or nothing about your product. The people already using your product are unlikely to read your ads. Instead appeal to prospects; people who either don’t know you, or know little about you.

Tailor your appeal to those people and those people only. The readers you want are the people who are interested in your offer. Nobody reads ads for fun, regardless of their length. Think of your readers as prospects, standing in front of you, looking for information. Give them what they need to take action.

Seek to persuade, and gain sales (not applause or awards). Have a picture of your ideal customer in mind; her likes, dislikes, habits, and problems. Then create your advertisement based on what you would do face to face. Don’t write your ads to please yourself. Write them to please your customer.