Tag Archives: email

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Headline Hooks That Reel In Readers

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Whether you’ve written an email,  blog post,  newsletter,  white paper or press release,  your primary job is to persuade your intended readers to read what you’ve written.  Anyone worth writing for is buried in potential reading material.  Prioritizing and skimming are the norm.  Use yourself as an example.  When sorting through business or personal reading material,  what persuades you to stop and read?  The headline!

The headline is the hook that reels in readers.  Dull headlines do not grab attention.  They do not resonate with or intrigue your intended readers.  They do not communicate the value of the content that you’ve spent time to research and write.  Package and sell your content with a headline that makes your intended readers know that your content,  email or press release contains valuable information.

Headlines alert intended readers to subjects of interest.  Attention-grabbing headlines cause us to read even articles that we may conclude are a waste of time and which we may abandon,  but the subject line was like a siren song to our eyes.  Consider what would be most appealing,  or alarming,  to your intended readers and also descriptive of the content.  The perspective from which you must create your subject line / title is from the intended reader’s ultimate vetting question,  “What’s in it for me”?

The right headline gets you more attention,  more readers,  more buzz and more results.  Keep these headline categories in mind as you create the headline for your next important communication:

I.     How-to headline

Content that instructs and informs will benefit from a headline that motivates intended readers to take action

  • Cold Calling Dos and Don’ts
  • Five Tactics Guaranteed To Make You A Better Networker
  • Headline Hooks That Reel In Readers

II.    Challenge headline

Headlines that pose a question that intended readers are presumed to want answered,  because they likely grapple with the predicament that the content addresses

  • Is Your Business Model Still Relevant?
  • Will Producing Content Take Over Your Life?
  • Would You Like To Scoop Your Biggest Competitor’s Biggest Client?

III.  Targeted headline

Needless to say,  targeting is the basis of marketing and customer outreach and the more specific the headline is to the interests of the intended readers,  the greater the probability that the content will be read

  • Financial Management Tips for the Finance Phobic
  • PR Strategies for Cash-Strapped Start-Ups
  • Teaching Brings Cash and Credibility to Freelance Consultants

IV.   Warning headline 

“Shock and awe”  headlines put intended readers in a head lock and drag them in,  often times even if they would rather not.  Many newspapers and magazines specialize in such headlines

  • What Your Clients Won’t Tell You About Your Sales Pitch
  • Why Your Advertising Budget is Only Money Down the Drain
  • You Can’t Retire On Less Than $2 Million

V.      Story headline

Entice intended readers with a headline hook that communicates the theme of your compelling narrative

  • A Back Bay Grande Dame Celebrates Her 125th Birthday
  • The Client Wore Black
  • From Living in a Car to Living at the Taj: An Uncensored Story of the Entrepreneurial Life

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Marketing , , 9 Comments

A Winning Email Marketing Campaign

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I’ve not done many email marketing campaigns,  mostly because I dislike being on the receiving end of such campaigns,  so I made the decision to basically avoid that method of outreach.  I was remiss,  because there are times when an email marketing campaign fits the bill.  Content marketing,  or the new advertising,  is an excellent way to stay in contact with clients and cultivate prospective clients and that strategy forms the basis of email marketing campaigns.

What I needed to do was learn how to craft an effective email message,  create a catchy subject line,  avoid looking like spam and send the email to the right group of people.  In other words,  I had to learn how to do a proper email marketing campaign.  To that end,   I invite you to copy my homework.

1.   Start with a good list

Everyone on your email list should want to receive your emails.  Include a safe unsubscribe feature to allow those who would rather not receive your emails to opt out.  When collecting names,  ask if the person would like to receive email updates from you.  To track emails sent,  you may want to invest in Did They Read It  http://didtheyreadit.com, which will anonymously report to you the read rate of your emails.  Constant Contact  http://constantcontact.com ,  the email marketing platform,  will send out and track your email marketing messages and your newsletter,  too.  According to the Email Marketing Metrics Benchmark study done by the marketing firm Silverpop in 2012,  the open rate is 20%.  The click-through rate,  or the measurement of how many people clicked on a link that was embedded in your email and most of all the conversion rate,  or how many people signed up for a special offer or did business with you,  reveal the value of your email list.  Still,  the open rate is a very telling measure because nothing happens until the email is opened.

2.   Information, not sales

A few paragraphs that give newsworthy updates about the industry sectors of your principle client groups,  or info that can be used to help list members solve a common problem,  will greatly improve your email open rate.  An email marketing campaign is not the forum in which to swing for the fences and score a big sale or assignment.  Rather,  an email marketing campaign is the place to let your expertise shine and offer no-cost value to current and prospective clients.

3.   Subject line that pops

Be edgy and provocative, be witty,   be amusing,  but don’t be boring.  When your recipient opens emails and is faced with a huge stack,  make him/her want to open yours and see what you have to say.

4.   Interesting photo or video

A picture is worth 10,000 words,  so add a good photo or two to your email,  one that communicates some aspect of your message.  A short video of you speaking to a topic,  or a testimonial by one of your clients,  is also compelling.

5.   Easy call to action

Once you’ve made the case,  remember to ask the recipient to do something with the information that you’ve provided: take a survey,  sign up for a free 30 minute consultation,  sign up for your newsletter.   Resist the temptation to go for the jugular and force a sale in your email marketing campaign.  The more successful strategy is to entice the recipient to make some small contact with you that appears to have more benefit for them than it does for you.  Build trust and familiarity first and you will become the obvious choice when your services are needed.

6.   Optimize for smart phones

It has been reported that nearly half of all emails are now opened up via smart phone.  Figure out how to size and space your email and links to make it easy to read on a smart phone.

Despite numerous pronouncements to the contrary,  email marketing is alive and well,  according to a January 2013 survey conducted by the marketing services provider Experian.  Their survey indicated that correctly conceived email marketing campaigns remain the best way to draw traffic to your website and increase sales revenue.  So copy my homework and get busy creating one for your business.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Work Your Email List

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 I descend from a long line of New Englanders and we are known for our thrift.  When the collars of his dress shirts frayed with age,  my father (who was actually a New Yorker,  but knew how to squeeze a penny until Abe Lincoln yelped) would have the dry cleaner turn them.  Presto,  add a few more good years to a useful item.

Mom served any leftovers from the big Sunday dinner for Monday night’s supper.  If we didn’t finish them off at that sitting,  she was not ashamed to throw them at us again on Wednesday or Thursday.   Mom and Dad were born during the Depression and they did not believe in wasting valuable resources.  Use it up,  wear it out,  make it do.  As we slog through our recession,  I suggest that a revival of that credo is in order.  It is time to make the most of what you’ve got.

One valuable resource that we all have is our list of email addresses.  Consider putting them to work in an email marketing campaign that will enhance your other promotional activities.  The practice of email marketing continues to grow.   When executed properly,  it can be an effective way to communicate with your target audience.

The conversion rate will probably not exceed 2% ,  but that matches the results of  a typical direct mail campaign.  Moreover,  email marketing is both less expensive and much more environmentally friendly than direct mail.

An email marketing campaign provides yet another way to keep your name in front of  the right people,  serving as a reminder that you remain a viable player with valuable services to offer.  Email marketing keeps your brand visible and that is utmost for every Freelancer.

How to ensure a mailing list with money-making potential?  Use an opt-in approach,  to avoid annoying people.  You only want to contact those who want to hear from you.  Hire a web developer to add a sign-up function to your website home page.  When exchanging cards with new colleagues,  request permission to add them to your mailing list.

Add your LinkedIn connections,  clients and colleagues,  plus selected friends and family members.  Always include an unsubscribe feature in your communications,  so that those who choose to opt-out can easily do so.  Purchased email lists are not recommended,  since those people do not know you.  Organic growth of your list is best,  so take the time to cultivate it.

 As you build your list  (and before  you add a sign-up to your website),  think about what you should communicate and the best delivery system for your message.  Put yourself in the place of the recipient.  What timely and useful information will best serve their needs?  What  “call to action”  might pique their interest?

Engagement is king in email marketing.  Take the time to carefully consider what you would like to achieve and how to communicate your message most favorably.  Is  a monthly or quarterly newsletter something you have the time and talent to produce?  Perhaps handy factoids plus links to relevant articles,  doled out every six weeks,  will be a better fit for both you and your target audience?  Give it some thought.  Whatever you do,  just remember to always include a link to your website…

…because that is one way to measure the response to your campaign.   Google Analytics,  e.g.,  will report the stats on the campaign’s impact on visits to your website,  pages that get the most viewing,  etc.  Receiving an inquiry about your services from a prospect is another sure-enough good sign that you’re doing the right thing and signing a client is,  needless to say,  the ultimate validation of your genius!

You are perhaps now intrigued by the email marketing concept,  but wonder if you can handle it by yourself.  It is possible to outsource the project,  for a more or less reasonable fee.  I recently heard about a company called EyeMail http://eyemailinc.com  that’s gaining a good reputation for creating smart email marketing campaigns. 

If you’d like to create a real splash,  EyeMail will even add audio and video clips to what you send out.  Most of all,  I’ve heard that they’ll work with you to create the content and delivery system that will best support the rest of your promotional activities.   Other options are Constant Contact and HubSpot,  both of  whom have great track records for devising savvy email marketing campaigns.

I’ve only used email marketing sporadically,  primarily to broadcast public courses that I’m scheduled to teach or speaking engagements.  I’m kicking around the idea of establishing a  consistent presence,  whether I do it myself or hire a specialist.  To those of you on my list,  stay tuned.

Thanks for reading,

Kim