Internet Marketing: \my Opt-in List Gets Mad When I Sell\

For marketers of service businesses, Internet marketing often begins with list-building. But when you work hard for every name it\'s easy to forget why you need that list in the first place.

Recently I talked to a fellow marketer, \"Linda,\" about a joint venture I\'ll be promoting soon. She wants to grow her list and I wanted to offer her an opportunity to participate.

Linda wasn\'t comfortable with the idea. For a joint venture, she would need to send a \"solo message\" to her opt-in list. That\'s an email written as a miniature sales letter. It\'s not part of your regular e-zine. You feature one promotion or you combine several into a single message.

Every time I make an offer,\" she said, \"I lose about 10% of my list. Most of my names come from pay-per-click. I\'m afraid they will all disappear if I keep selling.\"

Linda held a common set of marketing beliefs. \"A big list is a good list. Keep adding names and you will get richer.\" But in fact it\'s the quality of your list that matters. I\'ve met marketers with lists o 1000 who consistently out-perform competitors with lists that are several times larger.

A quality list starts with names you obtain from article marketing, teleseminars and social marketing. That way you attract participants who have a sense of who you are.

Once you get a quality list, you have to create expectations right from the get-go. I call this step \"training\" your list. You have to let them know that you are not sending them e-zines and info because you are a nice, kind, generous person. You will make offers in every single issue of your e-zine. You will send occasional solo notices.

As soon as you clarify your status, you will see names disappear. In my experience, most will go away after you first make the change to selling consistently. Those who remain will appreciate your value. They\'re also savvy enough to know you\'re not in a social relationship. You\'re promoting your business.

And once you\'ve set the ground rules, don\'t disappoint your list. Send messages at least every other week. Your fans won\'t mind. Think of your own experience. Who are your top 3 or 4 \"fave\" marketers? Don\'t you look forward to their e-mails? I do!

Okay, a couple of times a year, you might send out a good-will message with hot tips or holiday wishes. Your readers will appreciate what you send. But I\'m willing to bet most of them won\'t care if you throw in a special offer, too.