Newsletter Software

Creating a digital newsletter is the ultimate way to stay in touch with your fans, readers and customers. While there are countless other methods of connecting with people online, almost nothing comes close to the age old email. When a person receives an email it gets their instant attention - and that is your opportunity to connect, sell and build relationships.

Which newsletter software is best? There are now many solutions available, with most of them being web based. These offerings allow you to login to your own account and access a myriad of tools that allow you to easily create email campaigns, newsletters, single email broadcasts and best of all, track the success of each and every email as you go. The value of this toolset can not be underestimated and the best part is that it will most likely be one of the cheapest investment you ever make for your business - but one that yields that greatest returns.

In most cases you will pay a small fee to access the extensive tools of your chosen newsletter software provider. The best providers are constantly improving their tools to make your email campaigns easier to run, as well as making them more effective and successful regardless of what your goals are.

When selecting the right provider for your needs, take a close look at their prices, their subscriber limits at each price point, their newsletter builder tools, and their general interface. Most provide tutorial videos and a 24 hour support service to assist with any questions you might have.

Most importantly however, you want to be confident that you can access detailed email tracking and statistics. Knowing exactly how many people are opening your emails and clicking the links within is vital. Some email list providers will simply give you email open rates - however more detailed statistics summary charts, spam reports, unsubscribe rates and link tracking are also highly important if you wish to tweak your emails for maximum success.

Newsletter software makes creating and maintaining an email campaign easy and cost effective, and is a vital tool for any modern business or organization that wishes to maintain regular contact with susbcribers and members.

Mailing List Software

There are currently several dozen mailing list software options. Most of these are web based, whereby you simply login to your account to access your email list tools and statistics.

How much does mailing list software cost?

Prices start from absolutely free (usually this is only for a limited trial period), and increases up to $150 per month and beyond. The deciding factor in price comes down to the size of your email list. If you have thousands of subscribers, you generally have to pay more to access a quality email marketing service (for example, the average cost of an email list of 25,000 subscribers is around $130). The cost covers not only the tools you use, but the infrastructure required to deliver a high volume of emails without them being regarded as spam. Only the best mailing list software providers can guarantee this vital capability.

Some of the most important factors to consider when you are searching for the right email marketing platform for your needs include:

• Price
• Feature set
• Campaign reporting and statistics
• Ease of use
• Help and support

The specific features that you require will depend upon what you wish to use your mailing list for, but some of the most important and necessary features you should look for are:

• Email scheduling
• HTML newsletter creation
• Spam testing
• Web form creation
• Reports on opened emails, bounced emails, forwarded emails and undeliverable emails

If you are just starting out and feel a little overwhelmed with setting up your email campaigns, choosing a provider that has an extensive help and support facility can make the process considerably easier. Support options can include email, telephone, support tickets and live chat. In addition, if there are tutorial videos and detailed help files available, they can make learning a quick and painless experience.

Mailing list software is one of the most valuable tools any business or organization can take advantage of. As an outgoing expense, the price is exceptionally low compared to the possible gains that can come about as a result of utilizing the tools to their maximum potential.

Mass Email: Using Good Etiquette to get Good Results

Mass email can be a great way to get your message out to potential customers, provide existing customers with updates, or offer valuable information such as a newsletter or service information. However, mass email can also be an annoyance to clients, which means it could hurt your business. The following are some rules of etiquette (or netiquette as insiders like to say), that can help ensure you stay on your customers’ (and the law’s) good sides.

Check with your ISP

Every ISP has different requirements regarding mass email, bandwidth, and what they consider spam. Keep your account in good standing by checking with them regarding spam practices and what counts as spam. Even legitimate email can get flagged as spam by misguided policy, so ensure that your ISP’s policy suits your needs.

Check with the Law

Many countries have their own laws regarding spam. In the United States that law is called the CAN-SPAM act. You will want to be familiar with its requirements as well as the requirements of individual states that you intend to market to. Here is an overview of the CAN-SPAM act.

• No misleading headings should be used
• No deceptive subject lines are allowed
• Opt-out methods are required
• You must identify commercial email as an ad
• You must include your valid physical postal address (snail mail)

Permission

Never send unsolicited mass email. This is absolutely spam and can get you into a lot of hot water. Send emails to those who want to receive emails. This means that you should avoid using lists that you have obtained any way other than through honest means. Permission also means personal when it comes to email, so make sure your email marketing software can customize mail by including the recipient’s name or other personal information. Make absolutely sure to have an easy-to-use Opt-Out feature so that people can chose to stop receiving emails if they wish.

Good News

Sending good news, or news that is valuable to the customer, ensures that they will regard your email as friendly and not spam. Not everyone considers the same information “good,” which is why you want to send out mass emails only to those people who have requested them. Good email marketing software will help you keep track of who has subscribed, unsubscribed, requested specific information, etc.

Another part of good news is keeping it short. Send brief emails with links to information rather than long emails that contain everything under the sun. Keep formatting simple too. Avoid using bold and avoid over embellishment with HTML.

Rule of Thumb

The following are general rules that you should apply any time you begin to design a bulk email campaign.

• Use your own customer list only and respect opt-out requests
• Send the emails in groups, like 10 at a time
• You must provide an opt-out method
• You must identify your email legitimately. Tell people it is an ad if that’s what it is.
• Include a valid postal address for your business
• Send good news
• Send only to those who want it
• Include a clear and conspicuous disclaimer
• Keep it honest

That’s it. If you follow these rules you will remain in the good graces of your clients, your ISP, and the law. If there were one final thing that could be said about keeping mass email legitimate, it would be this. Ask yourself if you would be upset about receiving the email (either because you opted out or because it was not interesting to you). If you answer yes, then don’t send it.

Email Marketing & QR Code

As a pair, email marketing and QR codes allow an Internet marketer to reach a larger potential client base than with only email.  Just what are QR codes?  They are the strange looking black and white codes placed on billboards, on flyers and other advertisements that are designed to be scanned by a mobile phone.  And since many people are always on the go, these Quick Response codes are well suited to the fast paced instant gratification lifestyle.   They are the next step in advertising and marketing, and it is rapidly gaining momentum.

Integrating Email Marketing and QR Codes

The main key to success with QR codes when combined with email marketing is to know the goal of the marketing campaign.  Is it to market a product or service?  Is list building the priority?  Trying to do too much at once may dissuade busy people from following too many links and having to do too much.  This is because, when it comes to people using their smart phones to scan or check text, short is always better.  

Once a QR code is set up, make sure it leads to a relevant landing page immediately.  Whether it asks for an opt-in sign up, offers something for free, or advertises a product, the call to action must be there for a potential customer to take advantage of.  Don’t let that replace good content, and an interesting looking webpage, however.  A customer also needs a reason to purchase or opt-in.

Further Steps to QR Code Success

Along with creating a good landing page and providing a clear call to action, making sure the page is mobile friendly is important.  When combining email marketing and QR codes, it’s possible to forget that they are two different formats for two different reading devices so make sure the pages are set up properly.  Testing the QR codes before implementing them should also be a priority at the start of the marketing campaign.  All should be ready in order to avoid time consuming damage control later.

Don’t forget to provide different ways to get to the offered products and services.  Since not every mobile device has a QR code reader, make sure customers can use their Internet connection to follow a URL to the website just in case.  A marketer should never let the opportunity to reach more customers slip by.  Don’t make the mistake of one-sided thinking.  Try to accommodate as many potential customers as possible.  The more people an entrepreneur can reach with smart and creative marketing, the better the chances for a successful and profitable email marketing and QR codes campaign.

Email Confirmation

For an Internet marketer, getting an email confirmation can be an important part of any marketing strategy.  After all, what good is building a list, sending out newsletters, and offering a fresh new product if no one is reading the email notifications? 

There are two kinds of email confirmation, confirmation on delivery and confirmation on being read.  For an affiliate marketer, the latter is more important because delivery is still no guarantee that the information is being put to use.

The Value of Email Confirmation

When an email marketing campaign is created, the idea is to not only build an opt-in list of prospects from the website’s sign up page, but to also keep those prospects appraised of new developments.  One problem is that sometimes people sign up and forget about the site or lose interest.  With email confirmation, a marketer can monitor the efficiency of his or her email marketing strategy.  By checking the statistics to see if emails are being read, they are able to trim dead prospects from their opt-in list.  A marketer can also see what types of emails are read more often, perhaps indicating a need to change format and content to help the campaign stay as efficient as possible.

Why Delivery Email Confirmation Isn’t Enough

When your autoresponder sends out the newsletters, promotions, or special offers to the prospects on the opt-in list, marketers presume the offers are read and acted upon, based on the call to action.  Of course this presents the problem of what if they don’t read the email.  Getting email confirmation of delivery may help a marketer double check the opt-in list and get rid of phony or inactive listings, but it won’t help in fine tuning the marketing campaign to polish off the rough edges so it can shine.  While it is a good tool to have initially, a read email confirmation is a better choice.

How Do You Set Up Read Email Confirmation

One option is to use read receipts.  Basically, when emails are sent, a read receipt can be requested so that affiliates can track how well their newsletters and other mailings are received.  Other statistics will track how effective the call to action is by monitoring click through and purchases of products and services.  The only problem with requesting read receipts is that the recipient has to agree to send them, so there is still a chance a marketer may not get them.

Although there are other methods of getting email confirmation, using a service that provides it is a good investment.  Once it is implemented, any marketer can take their email marketing campaign to the next level and shine ahead of the competition.  Since many affiliates don’t use this tool, this is a great way to set up a successful Internet marketing campaign from the very start.

Read more: How Email Marketing Helps Grow Your Mailing List

Email tracking software

Most of us assume that all of the emails we send everyday reach their destination as we expect them to. However, this is not so for many of the emails we send to friends, family or for business. Some popular email programs provide ways by which we can be assured of an email reaching the destination. At times, even valid, relevant emails end up in a spam folder or in trash without the recipient ever seeing the message. At other times, these emails may be misdirected or may get lost in a network shutdown or computer malfunction. Email tracking software enables us to send emails with the knowledge that the emails have not only reached the recipient but also have been read or processed as intended.

Email Tracking Software – How Can I Track My Emails? 

There are many ways to track an email that is flying at lightning speed. Although many of the email tracking software work, they are not 100% foolproof. However, over the years, this type of tracking software has become more reliable.  Rarely, although some of these email tracking businesses get the information that an email was read, there could be instances when the email was read but a graphic or coupon did not show up on the receiving end due to a computer glitch.

  

While many email clients offer tracking, many other email clients have no ability to offer receipts for received emails. Some companies depend on small virtual images on sent emails that connect to their website as the email is opened by the receiver. In some types of mail tracking software these images may only be seen when the reader opens the email and the actual image is accessed by the client programs. In this way, the sender is informed that the receiver has opened the email. In other circumstances, when a person opens a “bugged” message, the mail client will contact the server on site and convey the IP (internet protocol) address and other information so that the sender can receive an acknowledgement of the email.

Email Tracking Software – The Benefits

With the use of email tracking software, businesses may find out the full statistics of the email including whether an email reached its intended destination, if the recipient opened it, have read the contents, looked at pictures, clicked on links that were on the email and most important of all, the IP address of the machine that the delivered the email. With an IP, marketers can easily send culture appropriate, gender appropriate and focused ads to this computer. These marketing strategies may eventually make our life easier by helping to reduce spam while enabling us to receive only emails that are useful to our lives.