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Copywriting
and My Blog |
Excess Voice Newsletter In this issue: >> Intro: Not
Many People are Writing B2C
Greetings, A big thank you to everyone who responded to the last issue. I received some great feedback both on the article and from the survey. Regarding the survey, it seems we are quite heavily weighted in favor of B2B. Clearly, there are plenty of people out there who do write B2C copy, so maybe these figures give a clue as to who is reading this particular newsletter. Mostly B2C - 27% This week I have written another article on the subject of newsletters. This time I have taken a clear position on the subject of "complete content". I also share what I consider to be three basic principles of creating a great email newsletter. You'll find links to two new reviews in this issue. The first is, appropriately, a review of an excellent report on email newsletters from MarketingSherpa. The second is on a program for copywriters interested in developing expertise in the financial market. (This is a large and very lucrative niche which served me very well a few years back.) And once again, please take a few moments to respond to this issue's survey. It's pretty simple...which are your two favorite newsletters? Until next time. Nick Nick Usborne
=============================================== REVIEW: Best Practices in Marketing with Email Newsletters This 194-page report from MarketingSherpa is a step-by-step guide to creating, writing, designing and delivering email newsletters that give you the best results. All too often companies and individuals approach the creation and delivery of their newsletters in a casual, unstructured way. You can do it that way -- and it certainly seems quite simple. But it's not how you will get the best results. This report is essential for marketers looking to increase the ROI of their email newsletter campaigns. Read my full review
here...
::: At Excess Voice ::: #1 Secrets of Writing for the Financial Market If you are looking
for the perfect niche as a copywriter - and you should be - the financial
market could be the exact right place for you. The industry is hungry
for copywriting talent and willing to pay well for it. This course will
show you how to get started, how to find your first client and a great
deal more. #2 How to Write a Landing Page and Increase Conversions This report by MarketingSherpa
gives you the data, the results and a host of before-and-after screen
shots. If you want to write landing pages that increase conversion rates
significantly, I can highly recommend this report. I have it in a binder
beside my desk and frequently refer to it for facts on the copy and design
elements that make a difference to conversions. #3 Michael Masterson's Accelerated Program for Six-Figure Copywriting This is the only copywriting
course I wholeheartedly recommend to any copywriter who wants to write
copy that drives results.
The Ultimate Travel Writer's Course As you'll see from my review, I love this course. In fact, I was so impressed and excited by it, I'm going to take it myself. It's perfect for some part-time writing -- and a great way to pay for your next vacation. http://www.freelancewritingsuccess.com/travel.php ===============================================
As I have mentioned a few times before, I think few companies understand the true potential of a good email newsletter. In the early days of the web, there were some wonderful, informative, interesting newsletters. Now, more and more newsletters have become little more than HTML candy...with small snippets of incomplete content, accompanied by links through to an accompanying web site. The result? The newsletters themselves are not interesting, not useful, not satisfying...and destined for the junk folder. Why it makes sense to deliver complete content in your newsletter A good newsletter builds respect and trust. Think of the newsletters to which you have subscribed for two years or more. You keep reading them for a reason. Because they are worth the time spent. And each time you read a new issue, your respect for the company or organization behind it deepens a little bit more. Meanwhile, more and more of the "drive them through to the web site" newsletters, with teaser content and onward links, lose our attention. The only way to make sure your newsletter is consistently opened is to make it WORTH opening. Complete Content newsletters are a long-term asset The hard part for marketers is to resist the temptation to maximize short-term click-throughs. For a variety of reasons we may find ourselves under pressure to use the newsletter to drive as many people as possible through to our sites. It's a understandable aim, but you need to find a balance that won't diminish the value of the newsletter itself. Three principles of great newsletters 1. Deliver complete content within the body of the newsletter, with optional links to your own site or other sites. In other words, links should be included as a choice for readers who want to explore further, not as a condition of experiencing the full content. 2. Take the long term view. Don't measure the success of your newsletter by short-term metrics. And don't keep changing it in search of incremental improvements in click-through rates. When you start doing that, you are on the road to transforming your newsletter into a promotional email, where content is included simply as a hook, and not for its inherent value. 3. Maintain a consistent theme, tone and format. The newsletters that keep the attention of their readers, year after year, are those that remain familiar in terms of the voice of the editor, the theme of the content and the format of the newsletter itself. Why? Because your readers are extremely sensitive to changes in their favorite newsletters. They don't like unexpected shifts in voice and content. And as many publishers have found out the hard way, subscribers hate it when text newsletters are changed to an HTML format, or when an HTML newsletter undergoes a big change in design. Concluding thoughts... I think the core to producing a great newsletter is never to lose sight of the long view. Think in terms of years, not months or weeks. Make sure you deliver real value with each issue, and that means including complete content within the body of each issue. Finally, don't let short-term metrics divert you from your long-term goal. Building long-term readership and loyalty takes time, a lot of time. Be patient and you will be rewarded.
=============================================== READERS WRITE BACK: B2B or B2C? "For most of my 20 year career my work has been 99% B2B. Since '02 the balance has shifted to 60% B2B today. I find myself prospecting more often for B2B work and I believe it has to do with the money and the rewarding feedback I receive from B2B clients. I with one exception have never had a problem with payment received on time from B2B clients. I have on the other hand found the need to stay on top of all kinds issues surrounding B2C clients. Not a large number but two per year are a problem. One other thought. B2B clients rarely ever went away. Until the past five years of mergers and acquisitions when little regard for my relationships with a client figured into the reorganization of an acquired client company. B2C clients have had more internal turnover and have often been less interested in a long term relationship." Mike Mohan -- "I don't know about the USA, but in New Zealand the biggest opportunities are for writers who can assist companies reach their business audiences. There are B2C sites here, but with a much smaller consumer base the opportunities are limited. That's not to say that Kiwis don't use the net for consumer purchases, but that a lot of those sites will be offshore (e.g. Amazon). B2B is where it's at for this writer, currently." Philip Tetley-Jones -- "I began my career over 20 years ago and started out writing for B2B clients. I’m more comfortable dealing with products and services of a technical nature and, in my opinion, have real value and utility, as opposed to many consumer products which are little more than tools of vanity. I’ve had clients try to convert me a few times, but it generally doesn’t turn out well." Lloyd Lemons
>> Feedback: mailto:nick@excessvoice.com =============================================== SURVEY: And Your Favorite Newsletters Are..? While we're on the subject, which are your two favorite email newsletters? (Excluding this one.) #1..........
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