GUIDE TO EMAIL MARKETING
Disclaimer:
This material is provided with the mutual understanding that it is intended for informational purposes only. No legal advice is being offered and no claims are being made as to the legality of using any of this information. By accepting and/or reading this material you agree to hold the author, seller, reseller, distributor(s) and their agents harmless from any monetary or other damages directly or indirectly resulting from or relating to the material and/or information contained herein and/or resulting from the practice of any activity contained or described herein.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome. The first thing I want to tell you is "Bulk E-mail really works! There is no other marketing tool that can so quickly boost a small business into a big business. You can sit back while your computer advertises to thousands of people around the world everyday for free! Bulk E-mail has turned thousands of people into highly successful business people.
Bulk E-mail is all about the ability of the small businessman/woman to reach as many people as the huge corporations do each day. I know some of you may not have much business experience or computer experience. Experience in both of these areas is helpful, but you will still do fine if you do your homework and study the internet and all of the other intelligent marketers on the net. Soon you will be a part of this very profitable business system and your business should see a major increase in revenues.
BULK E-MAIL
If you like the idea of FREE ADVERTISING, you will definitely want to start Bulk E-mailing today. This guide will teach you how to write a great e-mail sales letter and send it to thousands of people per day for free. Just a few years ago no one in the world would have believed it if you told them that today anyone with a computer could advertise to over 25,000 people a day for free. With a good e-mail sales letter and a good offer it is reasonable to expect that between 1% and 2% of the 25,000 people who receive your e-mail advertisement will become your customers.That's 250 to 500 new customers. Even if you only produce a 1/10th of one percent response you will still have 25 new customers you didn't have before, and what did it cost - zilch!
MORE FACTS ABOUT BULK E-MAIL
For a long time national television has been the greatest possible place you could advertise a business. But who can afford those kind of ridiculous price rates? The average businessman will never have a commercial on TV, so let's talk reality here. Let's talk about something the average businessman can start doing today to advertise to the entire world.
Now that there is special software that enables us to send e-mail to every e-mail box in the world, television takes a back seat. Think about how much a 30 second television ad on a major station would cost you. It would cost you thousands of dollars. Now think about how much it would cost you to send out a hundred thousand e-mails. Once you have an internet service provider, it doesn't cost you a penny to send e-mail. That means you can send your advertisement to over 25,000 people every day, every week, every month, every year, practically free for the rest of your life. If you have a good ad, imagine how much pure profit you will make since all your advertising is practically free. And the best part of all about sending Bulk E-mail is that everyone you send your ad to has to read at least the subject line of your e-mail. With television ads, people usually go to the kitchen when the ad starts. Or with magazines and newspapers people usually just don't read the ads. But with bulk e-mail 100% of the people you send to will be forced to read at least the subject line of your ad. That's incredible. There's nothing else like it. And you will start to see the responses within minutes or hours of sending your emails.
GETTINGSTARTED
Assumingyoualreadyownacomputer,thefirstthingyouwillneedissoftwaretocreateandsendyourmessagesout.Therearebasicallytwotypesofsoftware.Thefirsttypeisabulke-mailsoftwareprogramthatconnectstoyourISP'se-mailserverandsendsyouremailthroughtheirserver.Sinceyouareusingtheire-mailservertosendyoure-mailoutthrough,theycanseejustabouteverythingyouaresending.YoumustunderstandthatyourISPhasdedicatedservercomputersthatareusedonlyforsendingandprocessingemail.ThisfirsttypeofsoftwareconnectsdirectlytothoseserversatyourISP.NowasyoucanimaginemostISP'sdon'texactlyappreciateyousendingthousandsofpiecesofunsolicitedbulke-mailthroughtheire-mailsystem.That'swherethesecondtypeofsoftwarecomein.Thenewerbulkemailprogramsturnyourcomputerintoyourownprivatee-mailserver.ThiswayyourISPcan'treallyseewhatyouaresending.Sothebasicruleofthumbisthis:Ifyouplanonsendinglotsofunsolicitedbulke-mailyoushoulduseaDesktopServertypeofprogrambutifyouaregoingtosendtosolicitedlists,orifyouhappentohaveaccesstoabulkfriendlyISPore-mailserver,youcoulduseoneoftheolderprograms.Keepinmind,DesktopServertypeprogramsdoagreatjobofhidingyouridentityfromyourISPandprotectingyouraccount,butitisstillpossibleonrareoccasionsforyourISPtogetcomplaints.Aneasywaytotellwhattypeofprogramyouareusingisthis:IftheprogramasksyoutoentertheSMTPaddressofyourISP,thenitisusingyourISP'sserverstosendyourmail.Programsthatturnyourowncomputerintothemailserver,suchas"ExpressMailServer"donotaskfororneedthatinformation..(TheymayaskforavalidDNSserveraddress,thiscanbeanyvalidserveraddress,itisjustusedtoverifyyouremailaddressesandisnotusedtosendyourmail).
AFEWWORDSABOUTISP's
Today,mostISP'sacceptbulkemailersasafactoflifeandmostlylooktheotherway.Asofthiswritingtherearenofederallawsprohibitingthesendingofunsolicitedemailsandtherearejustafewsimpleguidelines(listedfurtherdown)whichshouldbefollowedinordertokeepcomplaintstoaminimum.
BepreparedbecauseyouWILLgetcomplaints-itisunavoidable-someonemaybehavingabadhairdayorwhateveranddecidetotakeitoutonyou!regardlessofifyouareusinganon-opt-inoranopt-inlist).
ItispossiblethatyoucouldloseyourISP-butit'sreallynobigdeal.Iftheyreceiveenoughcomplaintstheycoulddisconectyousoit'sagoodideatohaveaspareISPortwolinedupinthatevent.ISP'sarecheapandplentiful(nomorethan$20/month)soeveniftheydisconectyouforbulkemailingthatisalltheywilldoandyoucanjustmoveontoanotherISP. EvenifyouloseyourISPeverymonthitwon'tslowyoudown.
Infacttheterm"Disposable"or"Throw-away"ISPisquitecommonamongbulke-mailers.ThissimplymeansthatyousignupwithanISP,withtheanticipationofgettingkickedoffatsomepoint.
IMPORTANTNOTICE:NEVERSIGNORCLICKONANYONLINEAGREEMENTSWITHANISP.ALWAYSSIGNUPOVERTHEPHONEWITHYOURCREDITCARDORSENDTHEMACHECKORMONEYORDERWHENYOUSIGNUP.
MOSTISP'sWILLASKYOUTOSTATETHATYOUWILLNOTDOANYBULKEMAILINGIFYOUSIGNUPONLINE.
SENDINGOUTYOUREMAILS
Onceyouhavealistofe-mailaddressesandaperfectsalesletterreadytosendout,thereareafewpointersIwanttomention.Firstofall,besurenevertouseafakereturnaddressasyourreturnaddresswhendoingabulke-mailing.Thereareacouplereasonswhyyouneverwanttodothis.Reason#1:MostISP'sareprogrammednottoaccepte-mailfromanemaildomainthatisnotregistered.Thismeansthatifyouuseafakereturnaddress,manyofthee-mailsyouaretryingtosendwillberejected.Reason#2: It'snowbecomethelawthatyoumustuseavalidreturnaddressofyourownwhendoingabulke-mailing.It'sactuallyveryeasytogetagoodvalidreturnaddresstodoyourbulke-mailing.Justgetafreee-mailboxandusethat.Youcanfindplacesthatofferfreee-mailbyjustgoingtoyourfavoritesearchengineandtypingin"FreeE-mail."Thenonceyouhaveane-mailbox,youwillbeabletoreadyourresponsesfromyourbulke-mailingandyouwillbefollowingthelaw.
TOBEINFULLCOMPLIANCEWITHTHELAW
IsBulkE-Maillegal?It'slegalifyoufollowafewbasicrulessuchasneverusingafakereturne-mailaddress.Youshouldalsoincludeyourphonenumberandyourbusinessaddressinyoure-mail.Lastly,thelawsaysyoumustkeeparesponsibleremovelisttopreventsendingunsolicitede-mailtothosethatdon'twantit.
Ifyouwanttoreallyshowthatyouareinfullcompliancewiththelawandarecompletelylegal,youmaywishtocopyandpastethisstatementbelowintothebeginningorendofyouremail.
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ThisadisbeingsentincompliancewithSenatebill1618,Title3,section301.
Hereisamoredetailedversionofthelegalnoticeabove:
Thismessageissentincomplianceofthenewe-mailbill:SECTION301.PerSection301,Paragraph(a)(2)(C)ofS.1618,
Furthertransmissionstoyoubythesenderofthisemailmaybestoppedatnocosttoyoubysendingareplytothisemailaddresswiththeword"remove"inthesubjectline.
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Bypastingtheaboveannouncementintoalloftheemailsyousend,peoplewillrealizethatyouareobviouslynotbreakinganylaws.Andthat'saveryimportantpointthatshouldbemade.
***Ifyouareusinganopt-inlist,youshouldfollowthesameguidelinesasabovebutadd
somethinglikethis:
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"Youarereceivingthisemailbecauseyouorsomeonewithaccesstoyouremailaddresssubcribedtoanaffiliatedistributionlist.Ifyoureceivedthismessageinerrororwishtoberemovedfromthislist,furthertransmissionstoyoubythesenderofthisemailmaybestoppedatnocosttoyoubysendingareplytothisemailaddresswiththeword"remove"inthesubjectline".
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START-UPCOSTOFBULKE-MAILING
Mostbusinesseshaveastartupcost.Togetintothebulke-mailbusinessthestart-upcostwouldbehighifyoudidn'thaveacomputer.Butsinceyoualreadyownacomputer,youarewayaheadofthegame.SotheonlystartupcostyouwillhaveisthecostoftheBulkE-mailsoftwareandyourlistofemailnames.Thereisnomaterial,postageorlaborcosts.
Goodbulke-mailsoftwaredoesmostoftheworkforyou.Itimportsthousandsofe-mailaddressesintoyourcomputer,thenwhenyouareready,itsendsyourmessagetoallofthematafastrateofspeed.Youcanadvertisepracticallyfreeforyourentirelifeaslongasyouhaveaninternetprovider.
OnceyouhaveaBulkE-mailprograminstalledonyourcomputer,youwillthenneedtohaveaninternetserviceprovider.Youprobablyalreadyhaveone,butifyoudon'tthengotothewebsite:
Tofindthistypeofsoftwarejusttype"emailextractor"or"emailharvester"intogoogle.comoranysearchengineofyourchoice.
Thereare3basictypesofe-mailextractorsonthemarket:
1.Websitee-mailextractor:Ane-mailextractorthatvacuumsthousandsofaddressesfromwebsitesandstorestheminyourcomputer.
2.DataBasee-mailextractor:Youjusttypeinakeywordtosearchforanditwillgointosecretdatabasesontheinternetandpulle-mailaddressesatincrediblespeeds.Whataresecretdatabasesontheinternet?Sorry,that'sasecret.Justkidding.Secretdatabasesareplaceswherecompaniesstorethee-mailaddressesofmillionsofinternetusers.
3.NewsGroupextractor:Whatarenewsgroups?NewsGroupsareagiantbulletinboardontheinternetwheremillionsofpeoplegotoaskquestionsandpostanswerstotheirfavoritehobbiesandtopics.Theyalsopostadvertisements.Asyoucanimagine,mostofthesepeoplehavee-mailaddressesjustwaitingthereforyoutocollectthem.Whenyouarereadytoextracte-mailaddressesfromthenewsgroups,youwillneedtofindoutyour"newsserveraddress"Mostprogranswilltellyouhowbutifyoucan'tfindit,justcallyourISP'stechsupportandaskwhatyour"newsserveraddressis."Iftheyaskyouwhyyouneedit,justtellthemyouareusinganewsgroupreaderandyouneeditforthat.Remember,yourISPcannoteventellwhenyouareextractinge-mailaddresses.Onceyouhaveyour"newsgroupserveraddress"justenteritunder"Connection""SetupConnection"Thensignonlineandclick"Refreshgroups."Nowjustwaitwhileitloadsupallthethousandsofdifferentgroups.Then,onceallthegroupsareloaded,highlighttheonesyouwante-mailaddressesfromandclick"Retrievefromselectedgroups
PURCHASINGLISTSOFE-MAILADDRESSES
IMPORTANTNOTICE:NeverbuyanyofthemanyCD'syouseeadvertisedwith500,000or10millione-mailaddresses.Theselistsarefullofmostlyold,fake,andundeliverablee-mailaddresses.Andthefewdeliverablee-mailaddressesontheselistsforsaleareusuallygrumpypeoplewhohavebeenblastedwithe-mailadvertisementsfromthehundredsofotherbulke-mailerswhoareusingthatsameidenticallist.BOTTOMLINE:Buylistsinreasonablequantitiesfromsupplierswhodon'tmakeoutlandishclaimsorclaimtohavehundredsofthousandsormillionsofnamesavailable.Anotheralternativeistoharvestyourownfreshe-mailaddressesasmentionedearlier.Ifyouwanttogetmaximumresponsetrytodoagoodjobtargetingyouraddresses.Example:Ifyouaresellinggolfequipmentontheinternet,typekeywordstosearchforlike,golf,golfers,putting,teetime,golfballs,9iron,clubhouse,etc.Youcanmailtoagenerallistbutyouwon'tbelievehowmuchbetterofaresponseyouwillgetwhenyoutargetyouremails.Andmostpeoplehavealotmorerespectforbulkemailerswhotargettheirlists.
What'sespeciallygreataboutbulkemailingisyouneverhavetobeathomewhileyourcomputersendsyoure-mailadvertisementsout.Sobasicallyyourcomputerisdoingeverythingforyounomatterwhereyouare.Evenwhileyouaresleeping,yourcomputercaneitherbecollectinge-mailaddressesorsendingoutyouradvertisements.It'sreallylikehavinganemployeethatiswillingtoworkforyou24hoursaday,7daysaweek,forfree.Andthat'snotanexaggeration,that'sreallyhowitis.Andcomputersnevergettired,sotheymakegreatworkers.Onceyouhaveasalesletterwrittenandhavecarefullyselectedasubjectyoucanbeginsending.Ijusttellthecomputerwhiche-mailIwanttosend,presssendandmycomputersendsthousandsof e-mailsoutbyitselfuntilit'sfinished.Whileit'sdoingthis,Icanspendmytimedoingotherthings.
SALESLETTERS
BulkE-mailisallaboutsendingpeopleane-mailthattellsthemhowtheycangetmoreoutoflifebyvisitingyourwebsiteorpurchasingyourproductsandorservices.ThereisnowayIcanstresstheimportanceofawellcraftedsalesletter.Yourwholebulke-mailingcampaigndependssolelyonthequalityofyoursalesletterandyourchoiceofwordingforthesubjectline.Whenyousendoutagreate-mailsalesletter,moneywillstartpouringinsofastyou'llthinkyou'redreaming.Ofcourseyoumustexperimentinordertofindoutwhattypeofe-mailsalesletterimpressespeople.Youneedtostartoutbywritingabout5e-mailsalesletters.Makethemallasdifferentaspossible.Nowyoumustopenup5separatee-mailboxes.You'llprobablywanttousefreee-mailboxesforthisexperiment.Justtypethewords"FreeE-mail"inanysearchengineandyou'llhaveplentytochoosefrom.Nextit'simportanttosendthesameamountofeache-mailsalesletterout.Forexample:Youwouldsendout1,000e-mailsforeachofthe5saleslettersandfivefreee-mailboxesyouhave.That'satotalof5,000e-mails.Justbesuretouseadifferentletterandadifferente-mailboxforeachthousandyousend.Thenyoujustwaittoseewhiche-mailboxhasthemostgoodresponseinit.Thenyoucandeletethe4saleslettersthatdidn'tgetagreatresponse,andkeeptheonethatdid.Continuetheprocessuntilyouaresatisfiedyouhavethebestpossibleletter.(Agoodwaytogetstartedistolookcarefullyatthesolicitationsyoureceiveinyouremailboxandnoticewhichonesgrabyourattentionandwhy).
Thisissimplyandexperimentthatusesascientificapproachtodeterminingwhichsalesletterisgoingtogetresultsandmakeyoumoney.Thissimplelittletestwilltellyouwithinafewhours,whichisthebestsalesletter. It'ssoaccurateatpredictingwhatwillmakeyouhugeprofitsinyourfuture.Onceyouhaveasalesletterthatstandsoutamongtheothers,youcanusethatoneforalongtime.Itwillcontinuetoproduceordersandmakeyoumoneydayafterday.Youwillthinkofitasyoursecretweapon.Belowaresomevaluabletipswhenwritingane-mailsalesletter:
1.Keepyoure-mailsalesletterunder2pageslong.
2.Beyourself.Talklikeyouaretalkingtoafriend.Peopleliketoidentifywiththewriter,andfeelliketheyknowhim/her.Sodon'talwaysworryaboutperfectgrammar,andit'sOKtousesomeslangterminology,peoplecanrelatetoslangtalk.Ifyoudon'tthinkyoucancomeupwithagoodsalesletterofyourown,thenyouhaveanotheroption.Youcanreadandstudysomeofthee-mailsaleslettersthatotherpeopleareprobablysendingyou.IamgoodatwritinggreatsaleslettersbutIstillspendalotoftimestudyingotherpeoplessalesletters.Istudythemall.Istudyeverywordverycarefullytoseewhatexactlymakesagreatsalesletter.Irecommendyoudothesamething.Youcanborrowbitsandpiecesofotherpeoplessalesletterstocomeupwithyourownmasterpiece.It'salsoagoodideatoseewhattypeofinformationorservicetheyaresellingandhowmuchtheyaresellingitfor.Allofthesefactorswillgiveyouinsightoncreatingyourownbrilliantsaleslettersandbusinesssystems.Iliketokeepallmysaleslettersshortandtothepoint.Iseesomesaleslettersthatareupto10pageslong.Veryfewpeoplewillread10pagesofanye-mailsalesletter,soIwouldsuggestyoukeepthemshort.Iusuallylikemyletterstobeaboutapageandahalf.Alonge-mailsalesletteralsogivesthereadertoomuchinformation.Ithinkitisbesttoalwayskeepthereadercurious,andashorte-mailsalesletterisagreatwaytodothat.
3.WHENYOUWRITEASALESLETTER,ALWAYSMAKEYOURHEADLINEABSOLUTELYINCREDIBLEANDAMAZING!!!
Theheadlineofyoure-mailisextremelyimportant.Aftersomeoneopensupyoure-mail,thiswillbethefirstthingtheysee.Andthisfirstlinewilldeterminewhetherornottheyaregoingtoreadyoure-mailordeleteit.Soyouneedaheadlinethatreallypeaksthereaderscuriosity.Youneedaheadlinethatreallypullsthemin.Whenyouwriteaheadline,thinkofsomethingthatthereaderwillthinktohimorherself:"Wow!,Ihavegottoreadthis.IfIdon'treadthis,I'llalwayswonderwhatthise-mailwasabout."
4.THESUBJECTLINEOFYOURE-MAILISALSOVERYIMPORTANT!
Thesubjectlineofyoure-mailisalsoextremelyimportant.Thisistheveryfirstthingyourreaderwillsee.Youhavetwochoiceswhenitcomestowritingyoursubjectline.
Choice#1Youcanusethehonestapproachandsaysomethinglike"Findouthowtoboostyourbusiness."
orChoice#2Youcanbealittlebitdeceptiveandsaysomethinglike"Hi,thisisforyou"WithChoice#1thereaderknowsit'sacommercialadvertisementandcandeleteitbeforereadingit.Butthereaderoftenappreciatestheabilitytoknowifit'sandadbeforereadingit.ButwithChoice#2thereaderisalmostforcedtoopenthee-mailandreaditbecausethereisasmallchancethatthee-mailisfromafriendorbusinessassociate.SoChoice#2getsthereadertoopenthee-mail,butitcanalsomakeafewpeoplealittleangrythatyoutrickedthemintoopeningthee-mail.Thishastobeyourownpreferenceandyoushouldtestvarioussubjectlines.(Hint:whenyouaretestingandperfectingyouremailmessagedonotchangemorethanoneelementatatime-Forexample,ifyouaretestingdifferentheadlinesdonotchangethesubjectorthebodycopyoftheletter).
MYTHSANDRUMORS
Youwillseebulke-mailersthatclaimtosendatspeedsofupto250,000e-mailsperhour.Whilethissoundsgreat,youshouldknowthatit'snotpossibletolegallysendoutatthosespeeds.TheprogramsthatadvertisethesehighspeedsusuallyrequireyouyoutousetheresourcesofothercompaniesandISP's.Andifyouuseane-mailserverthatyoudon'thavepermissiontouse,thatisstealing.SoIwouldsteerclearofthosefasttalkerswhotellyouaboutsending250,000perhour.Ifyouarefollowingthelawandusingastandardconnectionyoucanexpecttosendoutamaximumofabout5,000e-mailsperhour.Andwhenyouthinkaboutit,that'splenty.Youwouldhaveahardtimecomingupwithmoregoodqualityemailaddressestosendthanthatperhour.
FREQUENTLYASKEDQUESTIONS
Whatdoesthetermspamexactlymean?
Answer:Spamisatastymeatproductthatisperfectforalloccasions.Well....that'strue,butwhenpeopleuseitinreferencetobulke-mailtheyjustcallitspambecausetheresomuchofit....kindoflikespam(themeatproduct.)
Ihavereceivedemailsfromotherpeoplethatareincolor,andhavedifferentsizedlettersandallthatfancystuff.CanIdothattoo?
Answer:Youreallyshouldneversendbulkemailincolororwithanyfancystufflikeunderlines,bold,largefontsoranthingotherthanplaintext.Thereasonisthatabout30%ofthepeopleonthenetcan'treadthatfancyemail.Theyhaveoldersoftwareoroldercomputers.Ifyousendacoloremailtooneofthese30%whodon'thavetheproperemailsoftwaretoviewit,theemailwilllooklikestrangecomputercode.Belowisanexampleofwhatyouremailwilllookliketoalotofpeopleifyoutrytosendincolorwithanybulkemailsoftware.
HTML/PPALIGN=CENTERFONTCOLOR="#000080"SIZE=3WehaveagreatnewproductIthoughtyoumightbeinterestedinhearingabout.PTSIZE=10B/FONTFONTCOLOR="#0000ff"SIZE=4PTSIZE=12IPleaserespondtothisemailwiththewords"MoreInfo"inthesubjectlineformore./FONTFONTCOLOR="#000000"SIZE=3PTSIZE=10/B/I*Toberemovedfro"here/A/FONTFONTCOLOR="#346df7"SIZE=3PTSIZE=10BR/FONTFONTCOLOR="#0000ff"SIZE=3PTSIZE=10BIBR/FONTFONTCOLOR="#008000"SIZE=5PTSIZE=14/IThisisitfolks./FONTFONTCOLOR="#000000"SIZE=3PTSIZE=10/BBRBThisistheletteryou'vebeenreadingaboutinthenewslately/B.BR
Ihopetheexampleaboveisenoughtoconvinceyoutonevertrytosendanyfancycoloredbulkemails.Imyself,getemailseverydaythatlookjustliketheoneabove.InfactItookthatexamplefromanemailsomeonejustsentmeyesterday.Soifyouwanttosucceedinbulkemailjustsendplaintextwithnothingfancyonitandyou'lldofineifyouhaveagoodsalesletter.
Igetbulkemailsfrompeoplethathaveahyper-linksothatwhenyoureadtheemail,youcanjustclickonthelinkandittakesyourighttotheirwebsite.HowcanIdothat?
Answer:It'seasy,youdon'thavetodoanything.Mostemailsoftwareautomaticallyturnswebsiteaddressesintohyper-textlinks.Howdoesitdothat?Simplemostmodernemailsoftwarelookfor
ShouldIfindabulkfriendlyISP?
Don'twasteyourtimeormoneyonabulkfriendlyISP.Theyareexpensive,usuallyabout10timesthemonthycostofaregularISP, andtheyneverseemtolast.
WHATELSEDOYOUNEEDTOKNOW?
"Thereispowerinnumbers"Knowthatbyreachingmanypeopleyouarepracticallyassuredofgettingsomeresults.Andifyoutakethetimetocomeupwithagreatletter,headlineandsubjectlinetheresultscouldblowyouaway.Goodlucktoyou!