What kind of ezines do you read?

My question for the day is a reaction to the ezines in my mailbox.

There are some I love, and read clear through. John Forde's for example. And then others I scan through, trying to see if there's something good, and delete.

The difference for me: Some have a good story or some good advice, presented in a clear, linear fashion, right there in the email. Others have a half dozen or more little blurbs telling you to go somewhere else to read the rest. Most of them are ads for something or other. I just deleted one a minute ago that probably had some good things to learn -- somewhere. But I didn't have the patience to wade through it to find which link might lead me there.

I did read somewhere that short emails get delivered more readily than long ones. Don't know if that's the truth, but I read it. That would be a good reason to link to your longer message on a web page if it's true.

So what do you think? What kind of ezine do you prefer? (I know that my tastes are often far removed what what other people think.)

And what about the rest of the format? Would you rather get an ezine with a header, and color, and a few graphics? Or do you appreciate a straightforward, black and white e-mail?

Share your opinion -- and rant a bit if you like!

Marte

Have you considered a marketing partnership?

Staying in regular contact with your past, present, and future customers is vital to your success in business. That means you should be sending some kind of direct mail at least quarterly, and preferably more often. I recommend a newsletter, because when part of your mailing is "newsy" people are more apt to read instead of toss.

The trouble is, postage rates are climbing higher and higher and higher.

So why not share that cost with a complimentary business? What's that? Any business that serves the same clientele.

For instance, if you're in real estate you could team up with almost anyone - but the most obvious would be insurance, landscaping, pool cleaning, house cleaning, home staging, house painting, plumbing, appliance sales - and the list goes on.

If you sell cars you could team up with the person who sells tires or does detailing - or even one who sells custom seat covers or truck bed liners.

If you're a business accountant, you could team up with an office supply store or a commercial cleaning business.

The combinations and possibilities are endless - and can be a benefit to both of you - or all 3 or 4 of you. You not only save money by sharing postage, you are, in effect, recommending each other.

Think about who you know and go talk to them. It might be the beginning of something wonderful.

Meanwhile, get that second quarter mailing ready to go - the year is flying and your customers could, at this very moment, be forgetting about you!

Yours for success,
Marte

P.S. If you can't decide what to say, or don't have 3 or 4 hours to write a letter, call or write me. I'd love to tell your customers how great they'll feel when they do business with you.
208-448-1479
writer@marte-cliff.com