Business Website Advice

I was horrified (may that is too strong, perhaps dismayed) to find out how many small business owners are breaking the law.  Besides being a law breaker you run the risk of irking potential customers.

Rather, work to get that gold studded opt-in subscribers list.

Remember early 2007, we felt mugged each time we opened our Inbox. All that unwanted, unsoliticited email. 

The Unsoliticed Electronic Messages Act UEMA went into law 5 Sept 2007 carrying a hefty $500k.  It’s been two years. Check you have consent.

 Permission-based email marketing means consent is required. 

1. expressed - opt-in.  Signed up from your website explaining future contact about what (and I feel how often is good practice according to usability studies).
2.  inferred - a customer bought from you in the previous two years.  However they need an unsubscribe link at the bottom so they can express their desire to be left alone. Their purchase may have been a one-off.  
3. deemed -  handed you their business card knowing a future contact was likely, or completed an offline competition entry or survey at an event with the box ticked giving permission to contact via email. 

Common blunder. The last part of 3 is where I see small businesses go wrong. They hold a raffle to gather email addresses and think that is legal. No way Jose. You add the name to a newsletter list then start irritating the poor sod.

Do you want to be found guilty by the company you keep? We tell teenagers not to hang around the bad kids. Today’s digitally experienced absolutely hate being bugged too frequently with something they marginally showed interest in long time ago. 

We guard our Inbox. If unsoliticted you are an unwanted intrusion. They start fuming and mentioning your business over cocktails when the spam topic comes up or they twitter about you.  Do you want your business to be associated with that pain the in arse crowd, spammers?

Update your database periodically.  Take time to weed through your database. It’s good practice and goodwill to periodically send an email asking for renewal to your newsletter. Tell them how often you’ll contact them and why.  Perhaps their details will change.

Perhaps they will not renew.  They would not have been buyers anyway. 

Subscribers do come back. Research says when they want to come back they will, and they will retain a good attitude about you.  I had a reader come back after a short time unsubscribed.  She’d sent a note saying why she was leaving my list which I most appreciated but didn’t question.  She renewed two weeks later saying she missed my jolly spirit. Made me laugh, made me happy. 

The opt-in list of subscribers you have left is worth its weight in gold.  People  are saying, yes I want to hear from you. Yes I want to buy from you. Yes you are invited into my Inbox.

Next week, read about the elements of an effective e-newsletter marketing strategy.

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