#3StepsNoExcuses Day 13: Be A Purple Cow
Step 1 CTP: Email Marketing 101
This module offers an overview of the effectiveness of email marketing.
One of the "must have" tools for anybody who is serious about doing business online is a professional autoresponder.
Autoresponders. I've had a few!
When I got started with affiliate marketing back in 2007 I started with GetResponse. Then I went with a cheaper option - I forget what it was called... For a while I used a free one. Then in 2012 I joined Trafficwave... but YESTERDAY I closed my Trafficwave account as part of my move to SendSteed.com which is part of the Leadsleap.com portfolio of marketing services.
What about the subscribers on my old Trafficwave lists?
At first I thought I would send them a broadcast via Trafficwave to tell them I was switching over to Sendsteed and invite them to head over to an opt-in form.
Then I noticed that SendSteed allows you to import your lists, but the subscribers are not immediately added to your autoresponder.
Instead, your imported subscribers are marked as "unverified" and will be deleted if they remain "unverified" after 30 days.
How To Verify Imported Lists On SendSteed
To verify your imported subscribers you have to send them a broadcast email. The message inside the email can be a special offer or whatever you like. Those who open your email will be verified.
You can send up to four broadcasts to your list of unverified imports, so you have a good chance to convert them to "verified" subscribers on your new SendSteed list if they are still interested in being on your list.
My Verification Stats So Far
I had 168 subscribers on my Trafficwave Beginners Crypto Course list when I imported it to my new SendSteed Beginners Crypto Course list. Here are the stats after one broadcast:
Active: 43 , Inactive: 0 , Unverified: 124 , Deleted: , Unsub: 3 (7%) , Bounce: 9 (6%) , Spam: 0 (0%)
The 43 "Active" subscribers includes two new subscribers and 41 of my good old Trafficwave subscribers who responded to my broadcast. So the "Unverified" subscribers have gone down to 124. Three people unsubscribed. Nine of those "Unverified" addresses no longer seem to be working as the emails bounced off them.
I am quite pleased with the result of the first of my four chances to convert the "Unverified" subscribers into "Active" subscribers. It's good to see that 41 people, about 25% of the old Trafficwave list, are still interested in hearing from me. Let's see if the next three broadcasts can push up the numbers in my favour. :)
Step 2 Listnerds: One Person... One Clickthrough... One Subscriber
Okay, so I've been talking about how to import and verify whole lists of subscribers and was happy to see 41 of my subscribers respond to my first SendSteed broadcast.
But talking about stats and converstions, verified and active subscribers can sometimes cause us to forget that we are engaging with REAL PEOPLE, not just stats and numbers.
A good way to keep in mind that you are engaging with real people is to celebrate each individual person who subscribes to your list, responds to your offer, or connects with you on social media. Perhaps even send them a personal note in addition to the automated letter your autoresponder just sent them. Show them that you noticed them and are grateful to have them on your list. :)
Step 3 Plus1Success: Be A Purple Cow
Just doing that - reaching out to individual subscribers with a personal message - would make you a bit of a purplish cow already!
What unique "thing" is it that you bring to the market that helps to distinguish you from the, ahem, herd?
The one sure thing that is unique is YOU! So simply by showing up consistently you - as YOU - begin to stick out like Seth Godin's purple cow!
Well, there is a bit more to it than that, of course. And although I've read a few of Seth's books, and listened to him talking on various shows on YouTube, and read quite a few of his famous blog posts, I haven't yet read Purple Cow... So I got hold of a copy and will read it immediately after finishing "Ask" to find out what exactly it means, according to Seth Godin, to be a purple cow!
That's it for now.
David Hurley
#InspiredFocus
