Why does should every successful company (online or offline) talk about the potential of their email marketing?
And why do so many companies make a BIG mistake thinking that email “lists” don’t apply to them?
A “list” is basically a collection of information you have on your clients or customers.
At the most basic level, it is having their email address.
Since we do most of our personal marketing online, we are very motivated to get an email address.
Having an email address means we can market to them whenever we want…at essentially zero cost.
Proper list building and marketing can add a substantial boost to the bottom line of any business (even if you think yours does not apply…guess again).
If you have an online business, the results are clear. But…
…let’s start with an obvious OFFLINE example…
Let’s say you own a small restaurant that specializes in seafood. For the weekend, you order 50 pounds of Halibut to be delivered on Thursday.
When the order comes in you accidentally get 500 pounds of Halibut (which frankly sounds like a lot of Halibut to me).
After a lengthy conversation with your Halibut supplier, you both agree that the additional 450 pounds is yours at an amazing discount unheard of in the Halibut industry (or whatever one would call it).
Things are about to get fishy
No time for any traditional print media promotion.
You can throw a sign out front, but what are the odds that someone walks by with a Halibut craving?
You do have one ace in the hole. You have an email list of people that come in to your restaurant and you have permission to contact them (via email).
Well, it is time to call in that mark.
You walk over to your computer and type out a short email. If I were writing the email for you, it might look something like this…
Email Subject Line: How I gained 450 pounds…
Our fish company just made a whale of a mistake…
…actually a halibut of a mistake.
They just sent me an extra 450 pounds of premium
Halibut filets. I am talking top shelf stuff!
When I tried to send them back, they offered
me an amazing price I could not refuse.
I mean this is once-in-a-lifetime kind of price
and I am passing it on to you.
Here is the deal…
Come in Friday or Saturday night for
Buy One, Get One on Halibut filets!
Our only rule is when they are gone,
they are gone.
Hard to believe, but at this price, I will
go through all 450 pounds…FAST!
Yep…we are getting our Halibut on. The
Distributer’s loss is our gain!
Call 555-555-5555 to reserve your table now!
See you this weekend,
Frank
Frank’s Seafood Stop
P.S. This really is a once-in-lifetime deal and I
am sharing this with my best customers. Make
your reservation now (555-555-5555)
Now send the email out to your list.
If you have been building your list and courting them correctly, you will not only get some great email responses, you will get a big hit on reservations for the weekend and unload that Halibut*
*Here is one interesting fact. Many of the people that come in may not even order the Halibut. But your email reminded them of you, your restaurant, and how they would love to come by again. Either way, you made money off your list.
I know what you are saying. “Fred, I don’t own a restaurant. I just sell xyz or service xyz clients.”
Well, I don’t care if you sell rocks or provide a service that cleans rocks…there is a list to be built and money to be made from it!
I have had clients with all sorts of products. Many of which had products or services that I had no idea existed.
Even some of the more bizarre ones still had other people with the same interest that were out there looking for information. When that happens…ta da….a list is born.
There are lots of ways to communicate with your “list.” – I think email is one of the best ways to get an immediate response from your list.
Having a list of people you can market to (on demand) can be an invaluable profit center when you need it most.
So, if you think you don’t need an email list OR you think that your business is “special” in some way and you can’t create an email list…think again…
*Fred’s note: No Halibuts were harmed in this post. The Halibuts mentioned are works of fiction. Any actual Halibuts in real life resembling those mentioned in this chapter are purely coincidental.
Need Help? Email me!
Be The Lime Consulting Packages À La Carte! – Do you just need a quick tune-up, second set of eyes, or brainstorming with YOUR needs in mind? Email me at Info@BeTheLime.com* and let’s squeeze some limes!
*You want to know something really weird? The email actually goes to ME. No minions. No Lackeys. Just me. So, give me a little time to respond.
