how to run an ezine

With the introduction of spam regulations and zealous spam filters, there were many who predicted that the popularity of email marketing and the ezine would die down.

This hasn't been the case.

Used responsibly as a relationship building tool, the ezine has proven itself to be an enduring and successful marketing tool.

The beauty of an ezine is that you can use your content to presell your readers on your products and services (or the products and services you recommend). Ken Evoy has a marvellous book on the subject which you can download for free.

You will need to give your subscribers some information in order that they can come to trust you and have confidence that you are the right person to do business with! Don't worry that you are giving away your resources because you'll find that the more you give through your ezine, the more you'll get back in sales.

I go back to my introduction here...it's all about relationship building.

Ezine marketing works particularly well for companies promoting high ticket price items. It allows customers to obtain the information they need in order to make a purchasing decision. The net result is that more sales are made.

Of course, having a wonderful ezine is not going to help your business if you have no one subscribed. Your subscribers are the life blood of your monthly or weekly mailing.

No matter how desperate you may be to grow your list of subscribers NEVER be tempted by list purchases or any other mechanism of artificially increasing your number of subscribers. Such exercises always end in tears. You will be accused of spamming, you will be out of pocket and your business practices will be tainted. It is simply not worth it.

We'll look at some ways of building your list of subscribers in a moment, so do read on.

If you always employ legitimate practices to obtain subscribers for your ezine, you will never have to worry about falling foul of the regulations. So here are some list building ideas for you...

Some list building methods are expensive and some have little or no cost and most successful marketers use a mixture of both to gain subscribers.

If you are using paid methods to gain subscribers keep a close eye on your costs. You never want to be paying more per lead than your lead is going to generate for you in income. You are, after all, in business to make a profit.

One simple but effective way to attract E-zine subscribers is hang out with them. Find the forums and blogs that they read and join in. Now, this needs to be done with care otherwise you'll find yourself as persona non grata and that's not the idea at all. Design yourself a meaningful, short and appealing signature file which can be appended to your forum posts and blog comments and let people just follow the trail you leave behind you.

Ensure you have this same compelling signature file at the end of every email you send. This is effectively a branding exercise during which you are creating top of mind awareness in your potential subscribers.

You may well have heard of pay-per-click advertising and this is certainly an option for growing your subscriber list. However, the word 'pay' will have warned you that there is a cash cost attached to this method. Adwords is probably the best known pay-per-click advertising program and this is offered by Google. Pay-per-click advertising allows you to do all sorts of split testing and tracking to see which of your ads is enjoying the best conversion rates. If you are going to be paying for subscribers to join your list in this way, it is essential that you remain aware of the numbers and not let your campaign run away with itself.

So you now have 3 free ways of attracting subscribers and one paid. All of these are safe, legitimate methods of marketing and growing your list and will keep you out of trouble.

So, you have your idea for an ezine, you create a sign up page, you build a list of subscribers and you begin to send them your newsletter. Do be careful not to spoil it all by making the following mistakes.

Do not just contact your subscribers when you have something to sell them. Do not just send them your latest offers and catalogues. Use your ezine to build a relationship with your subscribers in order that you become the one person on the internet that they know, like and trust.

You have worked hard to gain your subscribers but believe me when I tell you it's much easier to get people to un-subscribe than it is to get them to subscribe in the first place!

Don't chase your hard-won subscribers away!

Ensure you use a 'double optin-in' system when building your list. All list hosting companies offer this facility and some insist on its implementation. This will help you to avoid any problems with the authorities and your ISP.

Always ensure that there is a means of unsubscribing from your list on every message you send out. Allow people to remain on your list by choice and not because they cannot find a way of escaping. Nothing will break fragile trust more quickly than any form of sharp practice on your part.

Never, ever, never, never, rent or sell your email list to anyone else. Not ever. Yes, you can have something tucked away in your terms and conditions telling subscribers you plan to do such a thing but we both know that people rarely read those pages. You will be duping your list subscribers if you pass their details on to anyone else and people do not do business with anyone they feel has pulled the wool over their eyes. Always, always, treat your subscribers with respect and they will respond by becoming devoted fans for you and your services.

Good reputations on the internet may be hard to win - but they are very easy to lose. Bear that in mind at all times when building your business and your list.

Keep your operation legitimate and clean. Your reputation as an honest business person with a legitimate site depends on your being a true marketing strategist not a scam artist.

Whenever you send out a mailing to your list take notice of those e-mails that bounce. These are known as undeliverable messages and they occur for a number of reasons.

Sometimes it is simply that the server was busy at the time of sending but the message may be sent another time. Some messages bounce because the recipient's mailbox is full and there is no room for any further messages. Some messages bounce because the email account has been cancelled or closed.

Whenever any of your messages bounce, the situation needs to be managed. Check your statistics shortly after sending out a mailing and see if you can spot the cause of any problems and put it right...if not disable the address in order to avoid any complaints of spamming.

Remember that you do not know who will be opening the ezine message you send and for that reason you must be cautious about the content you include. Should your business be in an 'adult' market place, remember that children do sometimes have access to parent's email and plan your content accordingly.

Always remember that your aim is to be viewed as the legitimate business person you are. Your ezine may be the only contact your subscribers have with you, so always make that contact a positive experience.

Your online reputation may well depend upon it.