This is where the real meat of e-marketing begins. You have a list of hungry subscribers at your fingertips and now you need to convert them into customers. You want to send them the best offer possible, presented in the best possible light.
In order to accomplish this, you need to create effective sales copy.
Good copy includes many elements: voice and style, proper grammar, spelling and punctuation, emphasis on benefits and much more. Let's talk a bit about
each of these.
Voice/Style
Your messages should sound professional without sounding "stuffy'.
You need to find your unique voice to connect with your subscribers. Pretend that you are sitting across the table from a friend and write as if you were speaking to them (leaving out, of course, things like swear words or references to your personal life).
You should also keep close watch over pronoun usage. Talk directly to the
subscriber and avoid using the word "I" as much as possible. Be personable,
but not too personal.
English 101
We all make mistakes in our writing at times. Your subscribers will probably forgive you for a few gaffes. However, you don't want to send out horribly written messages. Always run your copy through a spell-checker. Brush up on
your grammar and punctuation skills if you've gotten rusty.
Focus on Benefits
Never place your focus on selling the product or its features alone. People want to know what the product can do for them. For example: will it save them time? Will it save them money? Will it bring more love into their life?
Remember that most consumers, even if they swear otherwise, purchase products that they desire, and not products they need. Self-gratification and self-improvement always lay behind the buying impulse.
Offer Useful Content First
Are you giving your subscribers useful information? You need to win them over first with lots of high quality, free content before you begin making offers. Your sales pitches should be periodic in nature.
It's a really bad idea to flood your list with offers every single day of the week. If you want, you can bury an affiliate link or two in each newsletter as long as it points to a useful resource in the context of your content. Just go easy on the special offers, though.
The best way to prime your subscribers is through scarcity. Your offers should be something subscribers look forward to receiving, rather than something easily predictable.
Calls to Action
When you do finally send an offer to your list, don't be shy about letting your subscribers know what action you want them to take. If you want them to buy a product, sign up for a membership, visit a site, etc..then offer them the link and tell them to go for it.
Sprinkle your link several times throughout the copy for maximum effectiveness.
