Good News/Importance of Subscriber Forms

Good afternoon and I hope this email finds you well. Today
I want to share some exciting news and continue my
discussion about the biggest mistakes businesses make with
their web sites.

First, the good news: I have been accepted into the
strategic partner network with SpiritBank here in Oklahoma.
What does this mean? Well, SpiritBank is one of the largest
banks in Oklahoma with 18 branches throughout the state.
They specialize in serving the rural business market where
there are lots of untapped opportunities.

There are approximately 100 consultants and small companies
in this strategic partnership program. There's additional
opportunities supplying services to the other partners and
their clients as well as the clients of the bank itself.

Additionally, some friends have invited me to share office
space with them in the bank's Business Resource Center
located in downtown Tulsa. So I will be moving out of my
home office in favor of a real office. Not only will this
be good for me (especially with the kids being home for the
summer), but I'll have a chance to network with all of the
other consultants and bankers who office at the BRC. I'm
quite excited and off to find some office furniture this
weekend! Wish me luck.

OK, let's continue our discussion about the mistakes
businesses make with their web sites. This week we cover a
big no-no in my book: lack of a subscriber form.

It amazes me that some sites simply post an email link for
their visitors to click on. This is so lame. Unless someone
really wants to reach out to ask a question, this is about
the most passive way you can do it. You need a real
subscription form.

Some sites make the opposite mistake of adding a long,
complex form with many fields for visitors to fill in. Let
me clue you in on something: most people are afraid to give
you more than their first name and email address. If you
make the subscribe process too long and too much work, no
one is going to fill it out.

What about your offer? What do you mean you have no offer?
Simply telling people to "Subscribe Now" is meaningless.
Subscribe to what? Why? What's in it for them other than
your junk emails? You need a compelling reason to subscribe
like a free collection of articles or white papers or an
ebook or a demo of some software. Give them something of value.

Some people do have a compelling reason to subscribe and
they do get subscribers, but then they make other mistakes
such as never sending a confirmation email. Folks, we must
obey the Federal CAN-SPAM act. If you do not know what it
is you can read it here:

http://www.emailmarketingassistance.com/canspam.htm

This is why God made sequential autoresponders like
GetResponse and AWeber. By integrating your site's
subscription form with an autoresponder service, the
service will groom your email list, send double opt-in
confirmation emails to keep you legal, include your contact
info in all communications, and manage the entire subscribe
and unsubscribe process. It makes managing an email list
painless. Here's links to some services:

http://www.emailmarketingassistance.com/getresponse.htm

http://www.emailmarketingassistance.com/aweber.htm

http://www.emailmarketingassistance.com/constantcontact.htm

Using an autoresponder service also enables you to
personalize your emails, in both the subject line and
salutation. People will open emails addressed to them with their
first name.

Now if you prefer to manage your email yourself
and fully control the email broadcast process, you should
consider the very affordable and easy-to-use GroupMail
software product:

http://www.emailmarketingassistance.com/groupmail.htm

Remember, if you are going to use an autoresponder service, you
best set it up for scheduled broadcasts to your lists at
least every 2 weeks. This keeps you top of mind and helps
you to develop long-term relationships and to demonstrate
value. It's why my 1500 subscribers never leave me.

If you don't know how to write an autoresponder series I
can write it for you or you can buy a simple tool to help
you get started writing one yourself. Check out the review here:

http://www.emailmarketingassistance.com/followupemailcreatorpro.htm

If you want to chat with me about a custom autoresponder series,
email me at:

info@schneiderman.net

Some people make the mistake that an inquiry form is the
same as a subscription form. Most people who fill out an
inquiry form are trying to get information to answer a
question -- they are not subscribing. Don't mistake the two
or you may be classified as a sp*mmer.

OK, that's this week's tip: collect first names and email
addresses for future marketing efforts, double opt-in to
keep it legal, stay in touch often, provide value from the
first time they subscribe and forever, and they will never
leave you.

Any question? Bueller? Anyone?

Until next time,


Steven